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Gene Therapy Lab

Gene therapy can modify mutations in genes or deliver an extra, healthy copy of an allele to treat inherited forms of blindness. Dr. Mahajan was a surgeon in the recent trial for gene therapy using a viral vector that successfully rescued vision loss in patients with Leber Congenital Amaurosis. The development of pre-clinical models to test gene therapy approaches for other forms of blindness, as well as testing gene therapy treatments in these pre-clinical animal models, is necessary and important to lead to clinical trials for human patients.

We are treating human patient stem cells and translational animal models with gene therapy approaches. We are also developing animal models for various inherited retinal degenerative diseases by introducing human genes or human mutations into the animals.

Pluripotent stem cells are made in the lab from patient volunteers with retinal degenerations. We then use gene editing (CRISPR) to correct the patient mutations in their own cells. Our lab was the first to correct a human blindness gene in human stem cells. These gene-corrected cells can then be used to test therapies and create transplants that replace diseased retinas.

Projects

Fixing faulty genes.
Direct modification of DNA in living cells.
Gene therapy correction in pre-clinical models of retinal disease.

News

Sep 30 2021 | Posted In: 20/20 Blog
 
Jul 6 2021 | Posted In: 20/20 Blog
Palo Alto, CA – As genetic testing and molecular biomarkers open new avenues for medical care, researchers are more reliant on samples from human subjects than ever.
Jun 15 2021 | Posted In: 20/20 Blog
Palo Alto, CA — A study by the Mahajan Lab, in close collaboration with Rajesh Rao’s lab at the University of Michigan, helps improve our understanding of vitreoretinal lymphomas (VRLs) and demonstrates how liquid vitreous biopsies c
May 6 2021 | Posted In: 20/20 Blog
Palo Alto, CA — Most people today, including many physicians, see the hypodermic needle as a mundane instrument that isn’t worth a second thought. This is not so for eye surgeons.
Apr 5 2021 | Posted In: 20/20 Blog
Palo Alto, CA — Interrupted patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic has been seen across the medical field with dire consequences. In ophthalmology, interrupted care can result in vision loss. 

Publications

REPRODUCTIVE OPHTHALMOLOGY: The Intersection of Inherited Eye Diseases and Reproductive Technologies., Park, Jong G., Xu Christine L., Boyd Allison, Aghajanova Lusine, Mahajan Vinit B., and Wood Edward H. , Retina, 2022 11 01, Volume 42, Issue 11, p.2025-2030, (2022)
Expanding the phenotype of TTLL5-associated retinal dystrophy: a case series., Oh, Jin Kyun, Del Valle José G. Vargas, de Carvalho Jose Ronaldo Li, Sun Young Joo, Levi Sarah R., Ryu Joseph, Yang Jing, Nagasaki Takayuki, Emanuelli Andres, Rasool Nailyn, et al. , Orphanet J Rare Dis, 2022 04 01, Volume 17, Issue 1, p.146, (2022)
Investigation of Cas9 antibodies in the human eye., Toral, Marcus A., Charlesworth Carsten T., Ng Benjamin, Chemudupati Teja, Homma Shota, Nakauchi Hiromitsu, Bassuk Alexander G., Porteus Matthew H., and Mahajan Vinit B. , Nat Commun, 2022 02 25, Volume 13, Issue 1, p.1053, (2022)
Genetics of Uveitis., Cunningham, Emmett T., Pichi Francesco, Mahajan Vinit B., Rosenbaum James T., and Zierhut Manfred , Ocul Immunol Inflamm, 2021 Feb 17, Volume 29, Issue 2, p.215-218, (2021)
Telegenetics for inherited retinal diseases in the COVID-19 environment., Al-Moujahed, Ahmad, Kumar Aarushi, Chemudupati Teja, Tsang Stephen H., and Mahajan Vinit B. , Int J Retina Vitreous, 2021 Mar 29, Volume 7, Issue 1, p.25, (2021)
Whole-Exome Sequencing of Patients with Posterior Segment Uveitis., Li, Angela S., Velez Gabriel, Darbro Benjamin, Toral Marcus A., Yang Jing, Tsang Stephen H., Ferguson Polly J., Folk James C., Bassuk Alexander G., and Mahajan Vinit B. , Am J Ophthalmol, 2020 Jul 21, (2020)