1939-

American geneticist noted for his innovative work in gene therapy and applied genomics. In the early 1980s Blaese and his colleagues hit upon the idea that defective genes could be changed, and subsequently devised a strategy to deliver engineered viruses to correct such defective genes. In 1990 the team had their first success when they treated a young girl with adenosine deaminase (ADA). This breakthrough led them to apply the same principles of gene therapy to other metabolic disorders and cancer.