UK Researchers Help Blind Mice See

Sight and blindness are two powerful, truly global metaphors. These conditions have also been with us in the tangible world beyond recorded history. For some scientists, the conquest of blindness is their holy grail.

While the ultimate prize remains elusive, researchers from the University of Oxford have come tantalizingly closer to solving blindness' riddle. In recent experiments, this intrepid group has been able to restore the sight of blind mice. According to a BBC report on the subject, the scientists restored the rodents' sight by injecting "light-sensitive cells" into the creatures' eyes.

While questions remained about the quality of sight resulting from the new cells, the experiment did confirm that some qualitative change occurred.

Medical procedures that could mitigate or entirely eliminate blindness would be an extraordinary contribution to humankind. I hope I live long enough to see it.