Gene defects in dogs and people cause a progressive, inherited blindness called Retinitis Pigmentosa (XLRP). Gene therapy treatment developed at the University of Pennsylvania was able to treat this disease in dogs.
“While the exact disease mechanism of the RPGR form of XLRP is still unknown, the researchers were able to successfully treat dogs with two different RPGR mutations. The mutations disrupt photoreceptors in different ways, but both ultimately cause them to become useless for vision. While this form of blindness is rare in dogs, it is common in humans. Patients with XLRP usually begin to lose night vision as children and become almost totally blind by middle age. ” Continue reading Progressive blindness (XLRP) treatment