Molecular medicine: Molecular diagnostics, preventive medicine, and gene therapy

New trends in molecular medicine that have emerged owing to the success of the national Human Genome program are characterized. The major attention is paid to molecular diagnostics, preventive medicine, and gene therapy. Preventive medicine is a product of synthesis of the current notions on genetics and biochemistry of human diseases; it comprises pharmacogenetics, presymptomatic diagnosis, and testing of genes of predisposition to the most frequent multifactor diseases. In the Gene Therapy section, advantages and drawbacks of the main methods of delivery of nucleic acids into the cells are considered; diseases that are attempted to be rectified using gene therapy are listed. Exemplified with Duchenne myodystrophy, the problems encountered in correction of a genetic defect with the aid of foreign genes are considered. Results are summarized for assessing the efficiency of various methods of introduction of dystrophin cDNA (gene gun, liposomes, microspheres, viral oligopeptides, and lactoferrin) conducted on the Duchenne myodystrophy model, mdx mice.