Mar-2021
Juravinski hospital lab on Hamilton Mountain plays key role in groundbreaking gene therapy
The stem cell laboratory at the Juravinski hospital is getting some international recognition. Nature Communications, an international access journal that features high-quality scientific research, has published the findings of a Canadian research team that used gene therapy to help people suffering from Fabry disease. That includes the key role played by the Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) laboratory at the Concession Street hospital.
“It’s a very high-impact journal; it will be read across the world,” said Dr. Ronan Foley, an HHS clinical hematologist and director of the clinical stem cell lab. “In terms of future gene therapies or strategies to correct genetic disorders, this hopefully provides information that others may take in the future.”
Fabry disease is a rare disorder. Those who suffer from it have a gene called GLA that does not function correctly leading, over time, to serious medical issues with symptoms that include burning in the hands and feet, kidney failure, abdominal cramps, frequent bowel movements, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting.
According to HHS, men are more affected than women and about 500 people in Canada are known to have the illness. Foley said the Hamilton lab was part of a cross-country team that received $2.5 million from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research for the pilot study that included five patients from hospitals in Toronto, Calgary, and Halifax over about two months in 2017.
Read the full Hamilton Spectator article here