Glossary:

Molecular Medicine 

Molecular medicine is a medical discipline that combines achievements and methods from such diverse areas as molecular biology, genetics and cell biology. Molecular medicine hopes to tackle the root cause of a condition, not to just ameliorate its symptoms.

The ”Molecular” in the term molecular medicine is best explained in view of the vast knowledge obtained in recent years that relates to molecular structures in cells and organisms. Today it is often possible to nail down the pathogenic, or disease-causing, components of a virus to the very last atom. Thereby, mechanisms can be suggested to tackle any affliction at the molecular level. Unfortunately, the discovery of the genetic or molecular makeup of a virus does not necessarily mean that science has understood the way a virus makes people sick. The rational design of a cure from this knowledge is even further away. But the step-by-step unraveling of the molecular mechanisms will bring science closer to this goal.

One of the most exciting aspects of molecular medicine is the use of genetic information in the treatment of disease. DNA or RNA is transferred into the patient´s cells; the genetic message is then read and used by the body to whatever medical purpose it was introduced to achieve. This is called gene therapy.