Innovative Saxony

Prof. Frank Buchholz's research is on the cutting edge of genome surgery.
Could a cure for cancer and other diseases be on the horizon?
An End in Sight for Genetic Diseases
Interview Kathrin Hollmer
Photo: Stephan Floss
"Dresden researchers cure
HIV." Last year, your
HIV research at TU Dresden
made headlines. How did
you achieve that important
breakthrough?
That headline was sensationalist.
It's important to exercise caution,
so we don't raise any hopes
unrealistically. What I can say is
that in collaboration with Prof.
Hauber at the HPI in Hamburg,
we've developed a new and very
promising approach to HIV
treatment that's worked well in
animal trials and in the lab.
While we were no longer able to detect the virus in the animals'
bodies after treatment, we cannot yet say whether the same will
happen in a human body.
How were you able to basically reverse the HIV infection?
HIV is a retrovirus; it incorporates its own DNA into the host
genome. That means that once infected, a patient will carry the
virus for the rest of his or her life. That's why there's been no
chance for a cure until now; we can only use drugs to stop the
virus from spreading throughout the body. For some time, we've
been taking a new approach; we aim to use genome surgery to
treat genetic conditions.
What does that mean?
Put simply, we've developed an enzyme that searches for specific
sequences of the virus in human cells and "cuts" the virus
genome out of the human genome like a tiny pair of "gene
scissors." In 2007, we were the first research group in the world
to achieve that. At the moment, we're preparing for clinical
studies on human subjects. While obtaining sufficient funds is
proving to be a challenge, we're fairly confident of success in the
long run. At the same time, we're working very hard to develop
new applications for the process. There are many other potential
applications besides HIV.
What other diseases might you be able to cure
using these "gene scissors"?
Theoretically, all genetic diseases for which there is currently no
CALLING CARD
Molecular biologist
Prof. Frank Buchholz is
on course to cure HIV. He
has led a research group
at the Max Planck Institute
of Molecular Cell Biology
and Genetics since 2002,
and since 2010, has held
a professorship at TU
Dresden's university clinic,
where he heads his own
laboratory in BIOTEC,
the Biotechnology Center
TU Dresden.
www.mpi-cbg.de
www.biotec.tu-dresden.de
cure could be treated with
genome surgery. Examples are
cystic fibrosis and hemophilia.
Genetic mutations are also the
underlying cause of cancer. These
mutations change cell behavior,
meaning that cells start doing
things they shouldn't do. If
we could deactivate or even
repair these mutations using
gene scissors, then that would
lead to entirely new treatment
approaches. Hopefully, many
other viruses that trigger diseases
such as leukemia could then be
removed, curing the respective
disease. If these procedures work
on humans, it will revolutionize
medicine. First of all, however,
all of the new technologies and
approaches have to prove their
worth. That's why we conduct
extensive studies.
You regularly receive offers
from various universities
and research institutes. What
made you decide to stay
in Dresden?
When I came to Dresden, the
new Max Planck Institute of
Molecular Cell Biology and
Genetics was just opening. A huge network that included
medical researchers was springing up, and some of the
smartest minds from all over the world were coming here to do
research. The research environment is still very international
today, and thanks to close ties to the university hospital and
institutions like the Max Planck, Fraunhofer, or the German
Cancer Consortium in Dresden, interesting collaborative
opportunities are available. The State of Saxony is also very
committed to encouraging research, for example when it
comes to financing the acquisition of devices. At the moment,
the state government is supporting the implementation of our
clinical HIV study. •
INTERVIEW
INTO THE FUTURE
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