Question: Is it possible to correct mutations in the body?

Lena Ciric answered on 12 Mar 2012:

Hi Jason. The short answer is yes!

Cells have various mechanisms which are used to repair any so called “damage” to DNA. This damage is usually in the form of mutations that occur during DNA replication – when cells are dividing. The mutations can be small (a single base) or large (a set of genes). The cell’s repair mechanisms can cope with the small mutations.

The above are processes that our cells have evolved themselves. There are also therapeutic approaches that we have developed. I have to confess I’m not an expert on human genetics but I’ve done a bit of reading. Gene therapy is used to repair mutations in the body. This basically involves finding out if a mutation in a gene is causing a diseases and then replacing this gene with a non-mutated “healthy” version. This is inserted into the cell and the cell’s machinery then uses the “healthy” gene rather than the mutated one. This can be done in various types of cells, but will only be passed down to your children if it’s done to egg and sperm cells.

Remember that it is mutations which have occurred over billions of years of evolution that have resulted in us being able to sit here and chat about this. So, there are also positives to mutations. Out there, there are people who are resistant to certain diseases because of mutations they have that the rest of us don’t.