Health & Environment
Historical Research on Cytosine Variant Lays Foundation for Gene Therapy
The Hindu2h
THE BRIEF
1
In 1904, scientists Henry Wheeler and Treat Johnson synthesized a cytosine variant containing a methyl group, naming it 5-methylcytosine.
2
The synthetic variant resembled thymine and uracil by incorporating the added methyl group chemical tag.
3
Modern medical research leverages targeted gene therapies to mute viral DNA structures like hepatitis B.