Achromatopsia is the inability to see color. Although the term may refer to acquired disorders such as color agnosia and cerebral achromatopsia, it typically refers to congenital color vision disorders.
In a paper published online in Tuesday's edition of Nature Medicine, the researchers injected a harmless virus to deliver corrective genes to mice with a genetic impairment achromatopsia that deprives them of vision.
The experiment proves the possibility to target and rescue cone cells, the most important cells for visual sharpness and color vision in people. Achromatopsia affects one in about 30,000 Americans by affecting their cone photoreceptors in the retina thus resulting in nearly complete color blindness and very poor central vision.
"Cone vision defines whether someone is blind or not," said William Hauswirth, professor of ophthalmic molecular genetics and a member of the University of Florida Genetics Institute.
AP reports that 19 of the 21 treated eyes of mice responded positively to therapy; 17 of those 19 had electrical readings from their retinas on par with those taken in normal mice. The research shows that it is possible to focus and save cone cells which are the vital for visual sharpness and color vision in people.
