During Breaks New Ground

A groundbreaking study by NZ neuroscientist Matt During has been applauded in leading British medical journal, The Lancet. During has pioneered a controversial gene therapy for Parkinson’s Disease that involved inserting synthetic copies of human genes into the brain. His research involved twelve patients who had suffered from Parkinson’s for at least five years and found no relief from other treatments. The results, which were published in The Lancet, offer new hope for those afflicted by the disease. “We saw a significant improvement in their motor scores, their tremors, their ability, their rigidity, their slowness of movement, all those parameters improved,” said During in an interview with NZ’s ONE News. Most of During’s research has been undertaken at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York.