Guidelines to be revised
THE Japanese government is considering revising its guidelines on gene therapy. Current rules, introduced in 1994, allow only researchers to use gene therapy in the treatment of serious life threatening diseases such as cancer and AIDS. The move follows an application by researchers to Osaka University's ethics committee for permission to use gene therapy to treat a patient with obstructive arteriosclerosis, a chronic condition that could, result in amputation. However, present guidelines based on similar rules in the US, limit the use of gene therapy to life-threatening diseases because of fears that the treatment has not been proved to be safe.
Officials said the health and welfare ministry and the education ministry are expected to revise their guidelines which govern doctors and university researchers by the end of the year. The therapy is expected to be limited only to the treatment of chronic diseases.
Related Content
- Dietary guidelines for India 2024
- Amendment to the guidelines for tariff based competitive bidding process for procurement of firm and dispatchable power from grid connected renewable energy power projects with energy storage systems
- Wild Life (Protection) Licencing (Additional Matters for Consideration) Rules, 2024
- Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) revised guidelines
- Guidelines for environmentally sound facilities for handling and scrapping of end-of- life vehicles (ELV)
- Amendment in Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles (EV): the revised consolidated guidelines & standards