Japanese Scientists Successfully Remove Extra Chromosome That Causes Down Syndrome.

Japanese Scientists Successfully Remove Extra Chromosome That Causes Down Syndrome.

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Japanese scientists have made a big breakthrough.

A team at Mie University, led by Dr. Ryotaro Hashizume, successfully used gene-editing technology called CRISPR-Cas9 to remove the extra chromosome that causes Down syndrome.

Normally, people with Down syndrome have three copies of chromosome 21 instead of two, which affects their health and development.

The scientists worked with lab-grown skin and stem cells from people with Down syndrome.

They used CRISPR to delete the extra copy of chromosome 21, and the cells repaired themselves. After the edit, the cells grew normally and showed better function.

While this is exciting news, it’s only been done in the lab so far—not on real patients. Experts say it could take many years of research before this technique can be used in medicine.