3 ms·

The story is about the pricing, but the drug itself was more interesting to me: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voretigene_neparvovec https://en.m.wikipedia.or

The story is about the pricing, but the drug itself was more interesting to me: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voretigene_neparvovec https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voretigene_neparvovec It’s a gene therapy delivered in a viral vector. They inject it (into your eye which much be fun). It appears to be one of the first approved gene therapies.

stuaxo 9y ago
Could something similar be injected into you're eye and turn it into a different kind of eye ?
- comstock 9y ago
  They’ve cured color blindness with gene therapies already. It’s likely possible that you could add receptors for more wavelengths. It just doesn’t seem to be commercially viable (colorblind-ness therapy was never persued because risk/reward/commercial aspects don’t work out IIRC).
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- codeisawesome 9y ago
  This might be limited by what the sum total real capability is of the entire vision system. An eye that can receive extra wavelengths is useless without the Neurons that can perceive and project into our conscious mind. To imagine injecting viruses that will change the genetics of the brain is a major leap of discomfort.
  - fab1an 9y ago
    >An eye that can receive extra wavelengths is useless without the Neurons that can perceive and project into our conscious mind. Not necessarily. For example, consider that neurons in our auditory cortex aren't different from neurons in our visual cortex! What is different about them (and the "subsequent" perceptual/conscious level) is that they receive different inputs, and have learned the systematicity of how these inputs behave in relation to the body's own actions. This is related to the "Sensorimotor Contigency" theory of consciousness [1], which would predict that it should in fact be possible to process entirely different types of sensory input, given long enough exposure and a clear systematicity of the input signal. [1] http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sensorimotor_theory_of_consciousness http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sensorimotor_theory_of_c...
    - GFischer 9y ago
      Some experiments by "cyborgs" are relevant... I remember that one of them added to himself "a sensor that detected Earth's magnetic field." https://www.wired.com/2007/04/esp/ https://www.wired.com/2007/04/esp/ and it seems the experiment has been updated: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/06/first-humans-sense-where-north-is-cyborg-gadget https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/06/first-hum... “As we walk down the street there’s radiation, X-rays, infrared and ultraviolet, as well as the electromagnetic field of the planet. So we want to create new senses to become aware of our environment.” and Harbisson, who is colourblind, has an ‘eyeborg’ that allows him to “hear” the light spectrum (including infrared and ultraviolet), while Ribas has a sensor in her elbow that vibrates when an earthquake occurs anywhere in the world.

stuaxo 9y ago

Could something similar be injected into you're eye and turn it into a different kind of eye ?

comstock 9y ago
They’ve cured color blindness with gene therapies already. It’s likely possible that you could add receptors for more wavelengths. It just doesn’t seem to be commercially viable (colorblind-ness therapy was never persued because risk/reward/commercial aspects don’t work out IIRC).
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
codeisawesome 9y ago
This might be limited by what the sum total real capability is of the entire vision system. An eye that can receive extra wavelengths is useless without the Neurons that can perceive and project into our conscious mind. To imagine injecting viruses that will change the genetics of the brain is a major leap of discomfort.
- fab1an 9y ago
  >An eye that can receive extra wavelengths is useless without the Neurons that can perceive and project into our conscious mind. Not necessarily. For example, consider that neurons in our auditory cortex aren't different from neurons in our visual cortex! What is different about them (and the "subsequent" perceptual/conscious level) is that they receive different inputs, and have learned the systematicity of how these inputs behave in relation to the body's own actions. This is related to the "Sensorimotor Contigency" theory of consciousness [1], which would predict that it should in fact be possible to process entirely different types of sensory input, given long enough exposure and a clear systematicity of the input signal. [1] http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sensorimotor_theory_of_consciousness http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Sensorimotor_theory_of_c...
  - GFischer 9y ago
    Some experiments by "cyborgs" are relevant... I remember that one of them added to himself "a sensor that detected Earth's magnetic field." https://www.wired.com/2007/04/esp/ https://www.wired.com/2007/04/esp/ and it seems the experiment has been updated: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/06/first-humans-sense-where-north-is-cyborg-gadget https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jan/06/first-hum... “As we walk down the street there’s radiation, X-rays, infrared and ultraviolet, as well as the electromagnetic field of the planet. So we want to create new senses to become aware of our environment.” and Harbisson, who is colourblind, has an ‘eyeborg’ that allows him to “hear” the light spectrum (including infrared and ultraviolet), while Ribas has a sensor in her elbow that vibrates when an earthquake occurs anywhere in the world.