bluebird bio

Thursday

bluebird bio

A new industrial revolution

From our UK edition

bluebird bio is aiming to be one of the first companies to launch a gene therapy in the UK. Often mistakenly seen as a treatment of the future, gene therapy has come of age, primed and ready to go with bluebird bio a leader in the field. Gene therapy’s arrival on the scene is very timely as it has been swept up in Boris Johnson’s ‘new industrial revolution’ that includes a wider UK policy agenda to foster an eco-system and lattice-work of cutting-edge technological and life science innovation. The vision positions the UK as a world-leader in clinical, scientific and industrial transformation — to remain at the vanguard of pioneering science and healthcare. bluebird bio is part of that scientific and medical revolution.

bluebird bio

Gene therapy’s potential could soon be fulfilled at last

From our UK edition

Gene therapy has been promising to transform healthcare for half a century, and still we have only around ten treatments approved for use. But that is going to change dramatically over the next five to ten years, according to Nicola Redfern, UK general manager of bluebird bio, as many treatments for rare genetic diseases are brought forward. In her introductory remarks for a digital round-table, hosted by The Spectator, Redfern laid out the challenges for the NHS and wider healthcare sector. ‘Have we got enough beds for transplant services?’ she says. ‘Can fertility services cope as patients may want eggs and sperm harvested?’ A major issue is the sheer cost of gene therapy.

bluebird bio

How gene therapy works

From our UK edition

Gene therapy aims to repair, replace or add functional genes in individuals suffering from specific genetic diseases Gene therapy has traditionally been in the form of ‘gene addition’ which commonly utilises a ‘viral vector’ to introduce functional genes into the cells of eligible patients [1].