The Scientific Search for Youth
Later this year, a handful of people with a rare eye condition will receive a novel injection that is designed to quite literally turn back time.
Nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy—known as NAION—can cause sudden blindness when blood flow to the optic nerve is blocked. It’s not clear what causes the condition, although diabetes, high blood pressure, and smoking are known to be risk factors. Some early evidence also suggests GLP-1-based weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy, Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Zepbound might also make patients twice as prone to the condition compared with those not taking the medications. Whatever its cause, there are no treatments for NAION. And if it strikes one eye, there is a good chance it will also affect the other, leading to complete blindness.
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Scientists hope to change that with what is potentially much more than an eye treatment. The injection will test a new gene therapy that, instead of targeting specific gen..