Resources
Further gene therapy resources can be found below. The material presented ranges from basic gene therapy resources for the general public to extremely technical papers detailing the nuances of gene therapy.
- http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/handbook/therapy/genetherapy
The NIH website is a government-run resource detailing gene therapy in a straightforward manner. It is organized into a handbook, which makes it easy to follow and effective. The content presented is both accurate and objective, while simple enough for the general public to use. There is sufficient amount of background about cells and DNA to allow anyone to understand how gene therapy works and why it is important. - http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/gene-therapy/MY00105
Mayo Clinic's gene therapy web section provides a great clinical perspective. It outlines the clinical implications - how it works, what to expect, and results. It is a great resource for patients looking to enter into a gene therapy clinical trial, with little biology knowledge needed to understand the content. - http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/genetherapy/
The University of Utah's genetics website provides interactive learning to educate students about gene therapy. Basic cell and molecular biology is required to understand their explanations. However, the animations and illustrations used provide great supplements to the text. This is one of the best resources for biology students to learn about gene therapy. - http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/health_medicine/gene_therapy/
Science Daily's gene therapy section provides a compilation of scientific journals and articles on the topic of gene therapy. It follows the current research on gene therapy as well as various clinical trials in the field. Unfortunately, the site is quite cluttered and unorganized that may make it difficult to find articles. Most of the articles are highly technical, so the site is geared towards those working in biotechnology or doing research in gene therapy. - http://online.sfsu.edu/rone/GEessays/gedanger.htm
This website created by a professor at SFSU gives a broad perspective regarding the use of gene therapy across various industries. The site itself is quite unorganized and consists of long lists of links. The links lead to articles discussing the different uses of gene therapy in biowarfare, humans, and agriculture. The links vary in technicality, with some only requiring basic biology knowledge while others require technical knowledge of biology. - http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/genetic-inequality-human-genetic-engineering-768
This article from Nature discusses the implications of human gene therapy. The authors dissect the ethical dilemma of using gene therapy to create "designer" humans. The article is a fairly straightforward read, but requires a moderate amount of biology knowledge. However, Nature provides hyperlinks for many biology vocabulary words, allowing readers to define terms and find references while reading. - http://www.technologyreview.com/news/519071/when-will-gene-therapy-come-to-the-us/
MIT Technology Review has an article detailing the clinical trials of gene therapy in the USA. The authors try to create a rough timeline to determine when gene therapy will be a viable treatment that is approved by the FDA. No biology knowledge is required to read the article. The authors use the chart effectively to convey their message clearly to the general public. - http://www.nature.com/gt/index.html
Nature is a scientific journal and their gene therapy section has lots of cutting edge research articles. The organization and layout of the site is a little messy, but menus help to guide the reader to papers of interest. In-depth biology and biotechnology research knowledge is required to understand the content. This is fully geared towards researchers in the field of gene therapy. - http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Gene-Therapy-in-a-New-Light.html?c=y&story=fullstory
This Smithsonian article follows the use of gene therapy to treat blindness and remove controversies surrounding the field. The content is clear and simple with no need to have a background in biology. The authors follow the story of a gene therapy treatment, while giving sufficient background information about gene therapy to allow the readers to understand why this case is so important. - http://www.pbs.org/saf/1202/features/genetherapy.htm
This PBS special web feature tracks the history of gene therapy uses. It explains the source of the stigma and controversies behind gene therapy. Challenges and successes are equally mentioned and PBS gives a fair assessment of where gene therapy is now. Very little biology knowledge is needed to understand the article because everything is explained very clearly.