Conference “Gene Therapy: the Present and the Future”

25 DECEMBER 2020

On 18 December 2020, an all-Russian multimedia conference "Gene Therapy: the Present and the Future" organized by the Association of Medical Geneticists of Russia and the FSBI Academician N.P. Bochkov Research Centre for Medical Genetics was held at the International Multimedia Press Center of the Russian News Agency "Russia Today".

Conference “Gene Therapy: the Present and the Future”

Conference participants noted that that was the first conference dedicated to the most promising approach to the hereditary pathology treatment. A.V. Marakhonov (FSBI RCMG) in his report reviewed the existing methodological approaches in genotherapy; P.I. Makarevich (M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University) presented data of own experimental studies in the development of genotherapy; S. A.Smirnikhina (FSBI RCMG) presented the results of studies using genome editing technology for the hereditary diseases treatment; P.M.Gershovich (JSC Biocad) reported on special work with viral vectors in genotherapy. D.V. Vladovets (Y.E. Veltischev Research Institute of Pediatrics) spoke about real practice in genotherapy of spinal muscular atrophy with the drug Onasemnogen Abeparvovec (Zolgensam).

The Conference also discussed the issues of early diagnosis of hereditary diseases, which was a prerequisite for successful genotherapy. The reports of V.S. Baranov, Corresponding Member of RAS (D.O. Ott Research Institute of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductology), A.V. Polyakov, Corresponding Member of RAS (FSBI RCMG), and E. Zakharova, MD (F FSBI RCMG) were devoted to those issues.

Of particular interest was the Plenary Session, chaired by E.K. Ginter, Scientific Director of FSBI RCMG, and Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The session discussed the most promising hereditary diseases for genotherapy, technological problems of genotherapy (design and construction, vector selection, ensuring sufficient level and consistency of transgene expression), and risks of genotherapeutic interventions, benefits and risks correlation, the state of research in genotherapy in Russia, readiness of the biopharmaceutical cluster to produce genotherapeutic drugs in Russia, and the medical community to carry out genotherapeutic procedures. Academician of RAS V.P. Puzyrev (Tomsk Research Institute of Medical Genetics), V.S. Baranov, RAS Corresponding Member (D.O. Ott Research Institute of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductology), S.I.Kutsev, RAS Corresponding Member (FSBI RCMG), D.A. Kudlay, Dr. of med. sci. (Generium JSC), Prof. S.L. Kiselev (Vavilov General Genetics Institute), and P.I. Makarevich, Candidate of med. sci. (Lomonosov Moscow State University) took part in the discussion.

The next Conference “Gene Therapy: Present and Future” will be held in December 2021.

Video materials of the conference are available here: http://ormiz.ru/gen/video