1
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Wong RL, Sackey S, Brown D, Senadheera S, Masiuk K, Quintos JP, Colindres N, Riggan L, Morgan RA, Malech HL, Hollis RP, Kohn DB. Lentiviral gene therapy for X-linked chronic granulomatous disease recapitulates endogenous CYBB regulation and expression. Blood 2023; 141:1007-1022. [PMID: 36332160 PMCID: PMC10163279 DOI: 10.1182/blood.2022016074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
X-linked chronic granulomatous disease (X-CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency caused by mutations in the CYBB gene, resulting in the inability of phagocytic cells to eliminate infections. To design a lentiviral vector (LV) capable of recapitulating the endogenous regulation and expression of CYBB, a bioinformatics-guided approach was used to elucidate the cognate enhancer elements regulating the native CYBB gene. Using this approach, we analyzed a 600-kilobase topologically associated domain of the CYBB gene and identified endogenous enhancer elements to supplement the CYBB promoter to develop MyeloVec, a physiologically regulated LV for the treatment of X-CGD. When compared with an LV currently in clinical trials for X-CGD, MyeloVec showed improved expression, superior gene transfer to hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs), corrected an X-CGD mouse model leading to complete protection against Burkholderia cepacia infection, and restored healthy donor levels of antimicrobial oxidase activity in neutrophils derived from HSPCs from patients with X-CGD. Our findings validate the bioinformatics-guided design approach and have yielded a novel LV with clinical promise for the treatment of X-CGD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan L. Wong
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- ImmunoVec, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Sarah Sackey
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Devin Brown
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Shantha Senadheera
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Katelyn Masiuk
- ImmunoVec, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Jason P. Quintos
- ImmunoVec, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | | | | | - Richard A. Morgan
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Ophthalmology, Duke University Eye Center, Durham, NC
| | - Harry L. Malech
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Roger P. Hollis
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Donald B. Kohn
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Pediatrics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
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2
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Moscoso CG, Steer CJ. The Evolution of Gene Therapy in the Treatment of Metabolic Liver Diseases. Genes (Basel) 2020; 11:genes11080915. [PMID: 32785089 PMCID: PMC7463482 DOI: 10.3390/genes11080915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Revised: 08/02/2020] [Accepted: 08/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Monogenic metabolic disorders of hepatic origin number in the hundreds, and for many, liver transplantation remains the only cure. Liver-targeted gene therapy is an attractive treatment modality for many of these conditions, and there have been significant advances at both the preclinical and clinical stages. Viral vectors, including retroviruses, lentiviruses, adenovirus-based vectors, adeno-associated viruses and simian virus 40, have differing safety, efficacy and immunogenic profiles, and several of these have been used in clinical trials with variable success. In this review, we profile viral vectors and non-viral vectors, together with various payloads, including emerging therapies based on RNA, that are entering clinical trials. Genome editing technologies are explored, from earlier to more recent novel approaches that are more efficient, specific and safe in reaching their target sites. The various curative approaches for the multitude of monogenic hepatic metabolic disorders currently at the clinical development stage portend a favorable outlook for this class of genetic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos G. Moscoso
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Correspondence: (C.G.M.); (C.J.S.); Tel.: +1-612-625-8999 (C.G.M. & C.J.S.); Fax: +1-612-625-5620 (C.G.M. & C.J.S.)
| | - Clifford J. Steer
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Correspondence: (C.G.M.); (C.J.S.); Tel.: +1-612-625-8999 (C.G.M. & C.J.S.); Fax: +1-612-625-5620 (C.G.M. & C.J.S.)
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3
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Nobles CL, Sherrill-Mix S, Everett JK, Reddy S, Fraietta JA, Porter DL, Frey N, Gill SI, Grupp SA, Maude SL, Siegel DL, Levine BL, June CH, Lacey SF, Melenhorst JJ, Bushman FD. CD19-targeting CAR T cell immunotherapy outcomes correlate with genomic modification by vector integration. J Clin Invest 2020; 130:673-685. [PMID: 31845905 PMCID: PMC6994131 DOI: 10.1172/jci130144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 10/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor-engineered T cells targeting CD19 (CART19) provide an effective treatment for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia but are less effective for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), focusing attention on improving efficacy. CART19 harbor an engineered receptor, which is delivered through lentiviral vector integration, thereby marking cell lineages and modifying the cellular genome by insertional mutagenesis. We recently reported that vector integration within the host TET2 gene was associated with CLL remission. Here, we investigated clonal population structure and therapeutic outcomes in another 39 patients by high-throughput sequencing of vector-integration sites. Genes at integration sites enriched in responders were commonly found in cell-signaling and chromatin modification pathways, suggesting that insertional mutagenesis in these genes promoted therapeutic T cell proliferation. We also developed a multivariate model based on integration-site distributions and found that data from preinfusion products forecasted response in CLL successfully in discovery and validation cohorts and, in day 28 samples, reported responders to CLL therapy with high accuracy. These data clarify how insertional mutagenesis can modulate cell proliferation in CART19 therapy and how data on integration-site distributions can be linked to treatment outcomes.
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MESH Headings
- Antigens, CD19/genetics
- Antigens, CD19/immunology
- Female
- Genetic Vectors
- Humans
- Immunotherapy, Adoptive
- Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/genetics
- Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/immunology
- Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/pathology
- Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell/therapy
- Male
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Joseph A. Fraietta
- Department of Microbiology
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - David L. Porter
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Division of Oncology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Noelle Frey
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Saar I. Gill
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Stephan A. Grupp
- Division of Oncology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Shannon L. Maude
- Division of Oncology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Donald L. Siegel
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
| | - Bruce L. Levine
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Carl H. June
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Simon F. Lacey
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - J. Joseph Melenhorst
- Center for Cellular Immunotherapies
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and
- Abramson Cancer Center, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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4
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Feinberg D, Paul B, Kang Y. The promise of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy in multiple myeloma. Cell Immunol 2019; 345:103964. [PMID: 31492448 PMCID: PMC6832886 DOI: 10.1016/j.cellimm.2019.103964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2019] [Revised: 08/08/2019] [Accepted: 08/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
A cure for multiple myeloma (MM), a malignancy of plasma cells, remains elusive. Nearly all myeloma patients will eventually relapse and develop resistance to currently available treatments. There is an unmet medical need to develop novel and effective therapies that can induce sustained responses. Early phase clinical trials using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy have shown great promise in the treatment of relapsed and/or refractory MM. In this review article, we provide an overview of the CAR constructs, the gene transfer vector systems, and approaches for T cell activation and expansion. We then summarize the outcomes of several early phase clinical trials of CAR T cell therapy in MM and the novel CAR T targets that are under development. Finally, we explore the potential mechanisms that result in disease relapse after CAR T therapy and propose future directions in CAR T therapy in MM.
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MESH Headings
- Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use
- Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation/methods
- Humans
- Immunotherapy, Adoptive/methods
- Immunotherapy, Adoptive/trends
- Multiple Myeloma/immunology
- Multiple Myeloma/metabolism
- Multiple Myeloma/therapy
- Neoplasm Recurrence, Local
- Outcome Assessment, Health Care
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/metabolism
- Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/immunology
- Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/metabolism
- T-Lymphocytes/immunology
- T-Lymphocytes/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Feinberg
- Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Barry Paul
- Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Yubin Kang
- Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapy, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
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5
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Dubois VP, Zotova D, Parkins KM, Swick C, Hamilton AM, Kelly JJ, Ronald JA. Safe Harbor Targeted CRISPR-Cas9 Tools for Molecular-Genetic Imaging of Cells in Living Subjects. CRISPR J 2018; 1:440-449. [PMID: 31021241 DOI: 10.1089/crispr.2018.0030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Noninvasive molecular-genetic imaging of cells expressing imaging reporter genes is an invaluable approach for longitudinal monitoring of the biodistribution and viability of cancer cells and cell-based therapies in preclinical models and patients. However, labeling cells with reporter genes often relies on using gene transfer methods that randomly integrate the reporter genes into the genome, which may cause unwanted and serious detrimental effects. To overcome this, we have developed CRISPR-Cas9 tools to edit cells at the adeno-associated virus site 1 (AAVS1) safe harbour with a large donor construct (∼6.3 kilobases) encoding an antibiotic resistance gene and reporter genes for bioluminescence (BLI) and fluorescence imaging. HEK293T cells were transfected with a dual plasmid system encoding the Cas9 endonuclease and an AAVS1-targeted guide RNA in one plasmid, and a donor plasmid encoding a puromycin resistance gene, tdTomato and firefly luciferase flanked by AAVS1 homology arms. Puromycin-resistant clonal cells were isolated and AAVS1 integration was confirmed via PCR and sequencing of the PCR product. In vitro BLI signal correlated well to cell number (R2 = 0.9988; p < 0.05) and was stable over multiple passages. Engineered cells (2.5 × 106) were injected into the left hind flank of nude mice and in vivo BLI was performed on days 0, 7, 14, 21, and 28. BLI signal trended down from day 0 to day 7, but significantly increased by day 28 due to cell growth (p < 0.05). This describes the first CRISPR-Cas9 system for AAVS1 integration of large gene constructs for molecular-genetic imaging of cells in vivo. With further development, including improving editing efficiency, use of clinically relevant reporters, and evaluation in other cell populations that can be readily expanded in culture (e.g., immortalized cells or T cells), this CRISPR-Cas9 reporter gene system could be broadly applied to a number of in vivo cell tracking studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica P Dubois
- 1 Department of Medical Biophysics, Western University , London, Ontario, Canada.,2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Darya Zotova
- 2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Katie M Parkins
- 1 Department of Medical Biophysics, Western University , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Connor Swick
- 2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Amanda M Hamilton
- 2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - John J Kelly
- 2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada
| | - John A Ronald
- 1 Department of Medical Biophysics, Western University , London, Ontario, Canada.,2 Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute , London, Ontario, Canada.,3 Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Ontario, Canada
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6
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Yabe IM, Truitt LL, Espinoza DA, Wu C, Koelle S, Panch S, Corat MA, Winkler T, Yu KR, Hong SG, Bonifacino A, Krouse A, Metzger M, Donahue RE, Dunbar CE. Barcoding of Macaque Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cells: A Robust Platform to Assess Vector Genotoxicity. MOLECULAR THERAPY-METHODS & CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT 2018; 11:143-154. [PMID: 30547048 PMCID: PMC6258888 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2018.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2018] [Accepted: 10/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Gene therapies using integrating retrovirus vectors to modify hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells have shown great promise for the treatment of immune system and hematologic diseases. However, activation of proto-oncogenes via insertional mutagenesis has resulted in the development of leukemia. We have utilized cellular bar coding to investigate the impact of different vector designs on the clonal behavior of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) during in vivo expansion, as a quantitative surrogate assay for genotoxicity in a non-human primate model with high relevance for human biology. We transplanted two rhesus macaques with autologous CD34+ HSPCs transduced with three lentiviral vectors containing different promoters and/or enhancers of a predicted range of genotoxicities, each containing a high-diversity barcode library that uniquely tags each individual transduced HSPC. Analysis of clonal output from thousands of individual HSPCs transduced with these barcoded vectors revealed sustained clonal diversity, with no progressive dominance of clones containing any of the three vectors for up to almost 3 years post-transplantation. Our data support a low genotoxic risk for lentivirus vectors in HSPCs, even those containing strong promoters and/or enhancers. Additionally, this flexible system can be used for the testing of future vector designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Idalia M. Yabe
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC 20057, USA
| | - Lauren L. Truitt
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Diego A. Espinoza
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Chuanfeng Wu
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Samson Koelle
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Department of Statistics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Sandhya Panch
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Marcus A.F. Corat
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Multidisciplinary Center for Biological Research, University of Campinas, Campinas, SP 13083-877, Brazil
| | - Thomas Winkler
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Kyung-Rok Yu
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - So Gun Hong
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Aylin Bonifacino
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Allen Krouse
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Mark Metzger
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Robert E. Donahue
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Cynthia E. Dunbar
- Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Corresponding author: Cynthia E. Dunbar, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, NIH, Building 10 CRC Room 4E-5132, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
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7
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Hamilton AM, Foster PJ, Ronald JA. Evaluating Nonintegrating Lentiviruses as Safe Vectors for Noninvasive Reporter-Based Molecular Imaging of Multipotent Mesenchymal Stem Cells. Hum Gene Ther 2018; 29:1213-1225. [DOI: 10.1089/hum.2018.111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Amanda M. Hamilton
- Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute, London, Canada
| | - Paula J. Foster
- Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute, London, Canada
- Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada
| | - John A. Ronald
- Imaging Research Laboratories, Robarts Research Institute, London, Canada
- Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada
- Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Canada
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8
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Kuhn A, Ackermann M, Mussolino C, Cathomen T, Lachmann N, Moritz T. TALEN-mediated functional correction of human iPSC-derived macrophages in context of hereditary pulmonary alveolar proteinosis. Sci Rep 2017; 7:15195. [PMID: 29123113 PMCID: PMC5680188 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-14566-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2017] [Accepted: 10/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Hereditary pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (herPAP) constitutes a rare, life threatening lung disease characterized by the inability of alveolar macrophages to clear the alveolar airspaces from surfactant phospholipids. On a molecular level, the disorder is defined by a defect in the CSF2RA gene coding for the GM-CSF receptor alpha-chain (CD116). As therapeutic options are limited, we currently pursue a cell and gene therapy approach aiming for the intrapulmonary transplantation of gene-corrected macrophages derived from herPAP-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (herPAP-iPSC) employing transcriptional activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs). Targeted insertion of a codon-optimized CSF2RA-cDNA driven by the hybrid cytomegalovirus (CMV) early enhancer/chicken beta actin (CAG) promoter into the AAVS1 locus resulted in robust expression of the CSF2RA gene in gene-edited herPAP-iPSCs as well as thereof derived macrophages. These macrophages displayed typical morphology, surface phenotype, phagocytic and secretory activity, as well as functional CSF2RA expression verified by STAT5 phosphorylation and GM-CSF uptake studies. Thus, our study provides a proof-of-concept, that TALEN-mediated integration of the CSF2RA gene into the AAVS1 safe harbor locus in patient-specific iPSCs represents an efficient strategy to generate functionally corrected monocytes/macrophages, which in the future may serve as a source for an autologous cell-based gene therapy for the treatment of herPAP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Kuhn
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.,RG Reprogramming and Gene Therapy, REBIRTH Cluster of Excellence, Hannover, Germany
| | - Mania Ackermann
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.,JRG Translational Hematology of Congenital Diseases, REBIRTH Cluster of Excellence, Hannover, Germany
| | - Claudio Mussolino
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Gene Therapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Toni Cathomen
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Gene Therapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.,Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Nico Lachmann
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.,JRG Translational Hematology of Congenital Diseases, REBIRTH Cluster of Excellence, Hannover, Germany
| | - Thomas Moritz
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany. .,RG Reprogramming and Gene Therapy, REBIRTH Cluster of Excellence, Hannover, Germany.
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9
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Cornils K, Thielecke L, Winkelmann D, Aranyossy T, Lesche M, Dahl A, Roeder I, Fehse B, Glauche I. Clonal competition in BcrAbl-driven leukemia: how transplantations can accelerate clonal conversion. Mol Cancer 2017; 16:120. [PMID: 28709463 PMCID: PMC5512731 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-017-0668-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2017] [Accepted: 05/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Clonal competition in cancer describes the process in which the progeny of a cell clone supersedes or succumbs to other competing clones due to differences in their functional characteristics, mostly based on subsequently acquired mutations. Even though the patterns of those mutations are well explored in many tumors, the dynamical process of clonal selection is underexposed. Methods We studied the dynamics of clonal competition in a BcrAbl-induced leukemia using a γ-retroviral vector library encoding the oncogene in conjunction with genetic barcodes. To this end, we studied the growth dynamics of transduced cells on the clonal level both in vitro and in vivo in transplanted mice. Results While we detected moderate changes in clonal abundancies in vitro, we observed monoclonal leukemias in 6/30 mice after transplantation, which intriguingly were caused by only two different BcrAbl clones. To analyze the success of these clones, we applied a mathematical model of hematopoietic tissue maintenance, which indicated that a differential engraftment capacity of these two dominant clones provides a possible explanation of our observations. These findings were further supported by additional transplantation experiments and increased BcrAbl transcript levels in both clones. Conclusion Our findings show that clonal competition is not an absolute process based on mutations, but highly dependent on selection mechanisms in a given environmental context. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12943-017-0668-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerstin Cornils
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany. .,Present Adress: University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Pediatric Hematology and Oncology & Research Institute Children's Cancer Center Hamburg, Martinistr. 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Lars Thielecke
- Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Doreen Winkelmann
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Tim Aranyossy
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Mathias Lesche
- Deep Sequencing Group SFB 655, Biotechnology Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Andreas Dahl
- Deep Sequencing Group SFB 655, Biotechnology Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Ingo Roeder
- Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Boris Fehse
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ingmar Glauche
- Institute for Medical Informatics and Biometry, Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
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10
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Stahlhut M, Schambach A, Kustikova OS. Multimodal Lentiviral Vectors for Pharmacologically Controlled Switching Between Constitutive Single Gene Expression and Tetracycline-Regulated Multiple Gene Collaboration. Hum Gene Ther Methods 2017; 28:191-204. [PMID: 28683573 DOI: 10.1089/hgtb.2017.073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Multimodal lentiviral vectors (LVs) allow switching between constitutive and tetracycline-regulated gene co-expressions in genetically modified cells. Transduction of murine primary hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) with multimodal LVs in the absence of doxycycline ensures the constitutive expression of gene of interest 1 (GOI1) only. In the presence of doxycycline, induced tetracycline-regulated expression of a second GOI (GOI2) allows evaluation of the collaboration between two genes. Drug removal retains constitutive expression, which allows the contribution of an individual gene into created networks to be studied. Doxycycline-dependent switching can be tracked via fluorescent markers coupled to constitutive and tetracycline-regulated GOIs. This article describes transduction of murine primary HPCs with different doses of multimodal LVs, distinct cytokine conditions, and their influence on the number and viability of cells co-expressing both collaborating GOIs upon doxycycline induction. A 2-week protocol is provided for multimodal LV production, titer determination, and evaluation of tetracycline responsive promoter background activity in a murine fibroblast cell line. The power of this model to assess the dose/time/order-controlled contribution of single and multiple genes into hematopoietic networks opens new routes in reprogramming, stem cell, and leukemia biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maike Stahlhut
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany
| | - Axel Schambach
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,3 Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Olga S Kustikova
- 1 Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany .,2 Cluster of Excellence REBIRTH, Hannover Medical School , Hannover, Germany
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11
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Sherman E, Nobles C, Berry CC, Six E, Wu Y, Dryga A, Malani N, Male F, Reddy S, Bailey A, Bittinger K, Everett JK, Caccavelli L, Drake MJ, Bates P, Hacein-Bey-Abina S, Cavazzana M, Bushman FD. INSPIIRED: A Pipeline for Quantitative Analysis of Sites of New DNA Integration in Cellular Genomes. MOLECULAR THERAPY-METHODS & CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT 2016; 4:39-49. [PMID: 28344990 PMCID: PMC5363316 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2016.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2016] [Accepted: 11/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Integration of new DNA into cellular genomes mediates replication of retroviruses and transposons; integration reactions have also been adapted for use in human gene therapy. Tracking the distributions of integration sites is important to characterize populations of transduced cells and to monitor potential outgrow of pathogenic cell clones. Here, we describe a pipeline for quantitative analysis of integration site distributions named INSPIIRED (integration site pipeline for paired-end reads). We describe optimized biochemical steps for site isolation using Illumina paired-end sequencing, including new technology for suppressing recovery of unwanted contaminants, then software for alignment, quality control, and management of integration site sequences. During library preparation, DNAs are broken by sonication, so that after ligation-mediated PCR the number of ligation junction sites can be used to infer abundance of gene-modified cells. We generated integration sites of known positions in silico, and we describe optimization of sample processing parameters refined by comparison to truth. We also present a novel graph-theory-based method for quantifying integration sites in repeated sequences, and we characterize the consequences using synthetic and experimental data. In an accompanying paper, we describe an additional set of statistical tools for data analysis and visualization. Software is available at https://github.com/BushmanLab/INSPIIRED.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Sherman
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Christopher Nobles
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Charles C Berry
- Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Emmanuelle Six
- Imagine Institute, Paris Descartes-Sorbonne Paris Cité University, 75014 Paris, France; Laboratory of Human Lymphohematopoiesis, INSERM 24, 75014 Paris, France
| | - Yinghua Wu
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Anatoly Dryga
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Nirav Malani
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Frances Male
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Shantan Reddy
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Aubrey Bailey
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Kyle Bittinger
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - John K Everett
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Laure Caccavelli
- Biotherapy Department, Necker Children's Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, 75014 Paris, France; Biotherapy Clinical Investigation Center, Groupe Hospitalier Universitaire Ouest, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, INSERM, 75014 Paris, France
| | - Mary J Drake
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Paul Bates
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
| | - Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina
- Biotherapy Department, Necker Children's Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, 75014 Paris, France; Biotherapy Clinical Investigation Center, Groupe Hospitalier Universitaire Ouest, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, INSERM, 75014 Paris, France
| | - Marina Cavazzana
- Biotherapy Department, Necker Children's Hospital, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, 75014 Paris, France; Biotherapy Clinical Investigation Center, Groupe Hospitalier Universitaire Ouest, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, INSERM, 75014 Paris, France
| | - Frederic D Bushman
- Department of Microbiology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6076, USA
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12
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Towards a Safer, More Randomized Lentiviral Vector Integration Profile Exploring Artificial LEDGF Chimeras. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0164167. [PMID: 27788138 PMCID: PMC5082951 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0164167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2016] [Accepted: 09/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The capacity to integrate transgenes into the host cell genome makes retroviral vectors an interesting tool for gene therapy. Although stable insertion resulted in successful correction of several monogenic disorders, it also accounts for insertional mutagenesis, a major setback in otherwise successful clinical gene therapy trials due to leukemia development in a subset of treated patients. Despite improvements in vector design, their use is still not risk-free. Lentiviral vector (LV) integration is directed into active transcription units by LEDGF/p75, a host-cell protein co-opted by the viral integrase. We engineered LEDGF/p75-based hybrid tethers in an effort to elicit a more random integration pattern to increase biosafety, and potentially reduce proto-oncogene activation. We therefore truncated LEDGF/p75 by deleting the N-terminal chromatin-reading PWWP-domain, and replaced this domain with alternative pan-chromatin binding peptides. Expression of these LEDGF-hybrids in LEDGF-depleted cells efficiently rescued LV transduction and resulted in LV integrations that distributed more randomly throughout the host-cell genome. In addition, when considering safe harbor criteria, LV integration sites for these LEDGF-hybrids distributed more safely compared to LEDGF/p75-mediated integration in wild-type cells. This approach should be broadly applicable to introduce therapeutic or suicide genes for cell therapy, such as patient-specific iPS cells.
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13
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Everson EM, Olzsko ME, Leap DJ, Hocum JD, Trobridge GD. A comparison of foamy and lentiviral vector genotoxicity in SCID-repopulating cells shows foamy vectors are less prone to clonal dominance. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2016; 3:16048. [PMID: 27579335 PMCID: PMC4988344 DOI: 10.1038/mtm.2016.48] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2016] [Revised: 05/21/2016] [Accepted: 05/26/2016] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) gene therapy using retroviral vectors has immense potential, but vector-mediated genotoxicity limits use in the clinic. Lentiviral vectors are less genotoxic than gammaretroviral vectors and have become the vector of choice in clinical trials. Foamy retroviral vectors have a promising integration profile and are less prone to read-through transcription than gammaretroviral or lentiviral vectors. Here, we directly compared the safety and efficacy of foamy vectors to lentiviral vectors in human CD34(+) repopulating cells in immunodeficient mice. To increase their genotoxic potential, foamy and lentiviral vectors with identical transgene cassettes with a known genotoxic spleen focus forming virus promoter were used. Both vectors resulted in efficient marking in vivo and a total of 825 foamy and 460 lentiviral vector unique integration sites were recovered in repopulating cells 19 weeks after transplantation. Foamy vector proviruses were observed less often near RefSeq gene and proto-oncogene transcription start sites than lentiviral vectors. The foamy vector group were also more polyclonal with fewer dominant clones (two out of six mice) than the lentiviral vector group (eight out of eight mice), and only lentiviral vectors had integrants near known proto-oncogenes in dominant clones. Our data further support the relative safety of foamy vectors for HSC gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M Everson
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Washington State University, Spokane, Washington, USA
| | - Miles E Olzsko
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Washington State University, Spokane, Washington, USA
| | - David J Leap
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Washington State University, Spokane, Washington, USA
| | - Jonah D Hocum
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Washington State University, Spokane, Washington, USA
| | - Grant D Trobridge
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Washington State University, Spokane, Washington, USA
- School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
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14
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Safe and Efficient Gene Therapy for Pyruvate Kinase Deficiency. Mol Ther 2016; 24:1187-98. [PMID: 27138040 DOI: 10.1038/mt.2016.87] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2015] [Accepted: 03/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Pyruvate kinase deficiency (PKD) is a monogenic metabolic disease caused by mutations in the PKLR gene that leads to hemolytic anemia of variable symptomatology and that can be fatal during the neonatal period. PKD recessive inheritance trait and its curative treatment by allogeneic bone marrow transplantation provide an ideal scenario for developing gene therapy approaches. Here, we provide a preclinical gene therapy for PKD based on a lentiviral vector harboring the hPGK eukaryotic promoter that drives the expression of the PKLR cDNA. This therapeutic vector was used to transduce mouse PKD hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) that were subsequently transplanted into myeloablated PKD mice. Ectopic RPK expression normalized the erythroid compartment correcting the hematological phenotype and reverting organ pathology. Metabolomic studies demonstrated functional correction of the glycolytic pathway in RBCs derived from genetically corrected PKD HSCs, with no metabolic disturbances in leukocytes. The analysis of the lentiviral insertion sites in the genome of transplanted hematopoietic cells demonstrated no evidence of genotoxicity in any of the transplanted animals. Overall, our results underscore the therapeutic potential of the hPGK-coRPK lentiviral vector and provide high expectations toward the gene therapy of PKD and other erythroid metabolic genetic disorders.
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15
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Dai H, Wang Y, Lu X, Han W. Chimeric Antigen Receptors Modified T-Cells for Cancer Therapy. J Natl Cancer Inst 2016; 108:djv439. [PMID: 26819347 PMCID: PMC4948566 DOI: 10.1093/jnci/djv439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 184] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2015] [Accepted: 12/21/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The genetic modification and characterization of T-cells with chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) allow functionally distinct T-cell subsets to recognize specific tumor cells. The incorporation of costimulatory molecules or cytokines can enable engineered T-cells to eliminate tumor cells. CARs are generated by fusing the antigen-binding region of a monoclonal antibody (mAb) or other ligand to membrane-spanning and intracellular-signaling domains. They have recently shown clinical benefit in patients treated with CD19-directed autologous T-cells. Recent successes suggest that the modification of T-cells with CARs could be a powerful approach for developing safe and effective cancer therapeutics. Here, we briefly review early studies, consider strategies to improve the therapeutic potential and safety, and discuss the challenges and future prospects for CAR T-cells in cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanren Dai
- Affiliations of authors: Department of Immunology (HD, YW, WH) and Department of Molecular Biology (WH), Institute of Basic Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Department of Bio-therapeutic (HD, YW, WH), and Department of Hematology (XL), Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Yao Wang
- Affiliations of authors: Department of Immunology (HD, YW, WH) and Department of Molecular Biology (WH), Institute of Basic Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Department of Bio-therapeutic (HD, YW, WH), and Department of Hematology (XL), Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Xuechun Lu
- Affiliations of authors: Department of Immunology (HD, YW, WH) and Department of Molecular Biology (WH), Institute of Basic Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Department of Bio-therapeutic (HD, YW, WH), and Department of Hematology (XL), Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Weidong Han
- Affiliations of authors: Department of Immunology (HD, YW, WH) and Department of Molecular Biology (WH), Institute of Basic Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Department of Bio-therapeutic (HD, YW, WH), and Department of Hematology (XL), Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
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16
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Lentiviral vector system for coordinated constitutive and drug controlled tetracycline-regulated gene co-expression. Biomaterials 2015; 63:189-201. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.06.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2015] [Revised: 06/10/2015] [Accepted: 06/12/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
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17
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Clonal Dominance With Retroviral Vector Insertions Near the ANGPT1 and ANGPT2 Genes in a Human Xenotransplant Mouse Model. MOLECULAR THERAPY-NUCLEIC ACIDS 2014; 3:e200. [PMID: 25291142 PMCID: PMC4217076 DOI: 10.1038/mtna.2014.51] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2014] [Accepted: 08/10/2014] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Insertional leukemogenesis represents the major risk factor of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) based gene therapy utilizing integrating viral vectors. To develop a pre-clinical model for the evaluation of vector-related genotoxicity directly in the relevant human target cells, cord blood CD34+ HSCs were transplanted into immunodeficient NOD.SCID.IL2rg−/− (NSG) mice after transduction with an LTR-driven gammaretroviral vector (GV). Furthermore, we specifically investigated the effect of prolonged in vitro culture in the presence of cytokines recently described to promote HSC expansion or maintenance. Clonality of human hematopoiesis in NSG mice was assessed by high throughput insertion site analyses and validated by insertion site-specific PCR depicting a GV typical integration profile with insertion sites resembling to 25% those of clinical studies. No overrepresentation of integrations in the vicinity of cancer-related genes was observed, however, several dominant clones were identified including two clones harboring integrations in the ANGPT1 and near the ANGPT2 genes associated with deregulated ANGPT1- and ANGPT2-mRNA levels. While these data underscore the potential value of the NSG model, our studies also identified short-comings such as overall low numbers of engrafted HSCs, limited in vivo observation time, and the challenges of in-depth insertion site analyses by low contribution of gene modified hematopoiesis.
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18
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Johnston JM, Denning G, Moot R, Whitehead D, Shields J, Le Doux JM, Doering CB, Spencer HT. High-throughput screening identifies compounds that enhance lentiviral transduction. Gene Ther 2014; 21:1008-20. [PMID: 25231175 DOI: 10.1038/gt.2014.80] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2014] [Revised: 06/30/2014] [Accepted: 08/01/2014] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
A difficulty in the field of gene therapy is the need to increase the susceptibility of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) to ex vivo genetic manipulation. To overcome this obstacle a high-throughput screen was performed to identify compounds that could enhance the transduction of target cells by lentiviral vectors. Of the 1280 compounds initially screened using the myeloid-erythroid-leukemic K562 cell line, 30 were identified as possible enhancers of viral transduction. Among the positive hits were known enhancers of transduction (camptothecin, etoposide and taxol), as well as the previously unidentified phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA). The percentage of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-positive-expressing K562 cells was increased more than fourfold in the presence of PMA. In addition, the transduction of K562 cells with a lentiviral vector encoding fVIII was four times greater in the presence of PMA as determined by an increase in the levels of provirus in genetically modified cells. PMA did not enhance viral transduction of all cell types (for example, sca-1(+) mouse hematopoietic cells) but did enhance viral transduction of human bone marrow-derived CD34(+) cells. Notably, the percentage of GFP-positive CD34(+) cells was increased from 7% in the absence of PMA to greater than 22% in the presence of 1 nM PMA. PMA did not affect colony formation of CD34(+) cells or the expression of the hematopoietic markers CD34 and CD45. These data demonstrate that high-throughput screening can be used to identify compounds that increase the transduction efficiency of lentiviral vectors, identifying PMA as a potential enhancer of lentiviral HSC transduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- J M Johnston
- 1] Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA [2] Graduate Program in Molecular and Systems Pharmacology, Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - G Denning
- Expression Therapeutics, LLC, Tucker, GA, USA
| | - R Moot
- 1] Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA [2] Graduate Program in Molecular and Systems Pharmacology, Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - D Whitehead
- Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - J Shields
- Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - J M Le Doux
- Wallace H Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech and Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - C B Doering
- Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - H T Spencer
- Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
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19
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Kustikova OS, Stahlhut M, Ha TC, Scherer R, Schambach A, Baum C. Dose response and clonal variability of lentiviral tetracycline-regulated vectors in murine hematopoietic cells. Exp Hematol 2014; 42:505-515.e7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.exphem.2014.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2013] [Revised: 02/23/2014] [Accepted: 03/06/2014] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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20
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Chiriaco M, Farinelli G, Capo V, Zonari E, Scaramuzza S, Di Matteo G, Sergi LS, Migliavacca M, Hernandez RJ, Bombelli F, Giorda E, Kajaste-Rudnitski A, Trono D, Grez M, Rossi P, Finocchi A, Naldini L, Gentner B, Aiuti A. Dual-regulated lentiviral vector for gene therapy of X-linked chronic granulomatosis. Mol Ther 2014; 22:1472-1483. [PMID: 24869932 DOI: 10.1038/mt.2014.87] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2014] [Accepted: 05/18/2014] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Regulated transgene expression may improve the safety and efficacy of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) gene therapy. Clinical trials for X-linked chronic granulomatous disease (X-CGD) employing gammaretroviral vectors were limited by insertional oncogenesis or lack of persistent engraftment. Our novel strategy, based on regulated lentiviral vectors (LV), targets gp91(phox) expression to the differentiated myeloid compartment while sparing HSC, to reduce the risk of genotoxicity and potential perturbation of reactive oxygen species levels. Targeting was obtained by a myeloid-specific promoter (MSP) and posttranscriptional, microRNA-mediated regulation. We optimized both components in human bone marrow (BM) HSC and their differentiated progeny in vitro and in a xenotransplantation model, and generated therapeutic gp91(phox) expressing LVs for CGD gene therapy. All vectors restored gp91(phox) expression and function in human X-CGD myeloid cell lines, primary monocytes, and differentiated myeloid cells. While unregulated LVs ectopically expressed gp91(phox) in CD34(+) cells, transcriptionally and posttranscriptionally regulated LVs substantially reduced this off-target expression. X-CGD mice transplanted with transduced HSC restored gp91(phox) expression, and MSP-driven vectors maintained regulation during BM development. Combining transcriptional (SP146.gp91-driven) and posttranscriptional (miR-126-restricted) targeting, we achieved high levels of myeloid-specific transgene expression, entirely sparing the CD34(+) HSC compartment. This dual-targeted LV construct represents a promising candidate for further clinical development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiriaco
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
| | - Giada Farinelli
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Valentina Capo
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
| | - Erika Zonari
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Samantha Scaramuzza
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Gigliola Di Matteo
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
| | - Lucia Sergi Sergi
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Maddalena Migliavacca
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Raisa Jofra Hernandez
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Ezio Giorda
- Laboratory of Flow Cytometry and B Cell Development, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù, Rome, Italy
| | - Anna Kajaste-Rudnitski
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Didier Trono
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | - Paolo Rossi
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Finocchi
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy
| | - Luigi Naldini
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy; "Vita-Salute" S. Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Bernhard Gentner
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandro Aiuti
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Bambino Gesù and University of Rome Tor Vergata School of Medicine, Rome, Italy; San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET), Scientific Institute HS Raffaele, Milan, Italy.
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21
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Verghese SC, Goloviznina NA, Skinner AM, Lipps HJ, Kurre P. S/MAR sequence confers long-term mitotic stability on non-integrating lentiviral vector episomes without selection. Nucleic Acids Res 2014; 42:e53. [PMID: 24474068 PMCID: PMC3985655 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gku082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2013] [Revised: 12/27/2013] [Accepted: 01/06/2014] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Insertional oncogene activation and aberrant splicing have proved to be major setbacks for retroviral stem cell gene therapy. Integrase-deficient human immunodeficiency virus-1-derived vectors provide a potentially safer approach, but their circular genomes are rapidly lost during cell division. Here we describe a novel lentiviral vector (LV) that incorporates human ß-interferon scaffold/matrix-associated region sequences to provide an origin of replication for long-term mitotic maintenance of the episomal LTR circles. The resulting 'anchoring' non-integrating lentiviral vector (aniLV) achieved initial transduction rates comparable with integrating vector followed by progressive establishment of long-term episomal expression in a subset of cells. Analysis of aniLV-transduced single cell-derived clones maintained without selective pressure for >100 rounds of cell division showed sustained transgene expression from episomes and provided molecular evidence for long-term episome maintenance. To evaluate aniLV performance in primary cells, we transduced lineage-depleted murine hematopoietic progenitor cells, observing GFP expression in clonogenic progenitor colonies and peripheral blood leukocyte chimerism following transplantation into conditioned hosts. In aggregate, our studies suggest that scaffold/matrix-associated region elements can serve as molecular anchors for non-integrating lentivector episomes, providing sustained gene expression through successive rounds of cell division and progenitor differentiation in vitro and in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Santhosh Chakkaramakkil Verghese
- Department of Pediatrics, Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Department of Surgery/Surgical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Center for Biomedical Education and Research, Institute of Cell Biology, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten 58453, Germany, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Natalya A. Goloviznina
- Department of Pediatrics, Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Department of Surgery/Surgical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Center for Biomedical Education and Research, Institute of Cell Biology, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten 58453, Germany, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Amy M. Skinner
- Department of Pediatrics, Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Department of Surgery/Surgical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Center for Biomedical Education and Research, Institute of Cell Biology, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten 58453, Germany, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Hans J. Lipps
- Department of Pediatrics, Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Department of Surgery/Surgical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Center for Biomedical Education and Research, Institute of Cell Biology, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten 58453, Germany, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Peter Kurre
- Department of Pediatrics, Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Department of Surgery/Surgical Oncology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA, Center for Biomedical Education and Research, Institute of Cell Biology, University of Witten/Herdecke, Witten 58453, Germany, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
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22
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Maus MV, Fraietta JA, Levine BL, Kalos M, Zhao Y, June CH. Adoptive immunotherapy for cancer or viruses. Annu Rev Immunol 2014; 32:189-225. [PMID: 24423116 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-immunol-032713-120136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 207] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Adoptive immunotherapy, or the infusion of lymphocytes, is a promising approach for the treatment of cancer and certain chronic viral infections. The application of the principles of synthetic biology to enhance T cell function has resulted in substantial increases in clinical efficacy. The primary challenge to the field is to identify tumor-specific targets to avoid off-tumor, on-target toxicity. Given recent advances in efficacy in numerous pilot trials, the next steps in clinical development will require multicenter trials to establish adoptive immunotherapy as a mainstream technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcela V Maus
- Translational Research Program, Abramson Cancer Center and
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Zanatta DB, Tsujita M, Borelli P, Aguiar RB, Ferrari DG, Strauss BE. Genetic barcode sequencing for screening altered population dynamics of hematopoietic stem cells transduced with lentivirus. MOLECULAR THERAPY-METHODS & CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT 2014; 1:14052. [PMID: 26052520 PMCID: PMC4448734 DOI: 10.1038/mtm.2014.52] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2014] [Revised: 10/10/2014] [Accepted: 10/11/2014] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Insertional mutagenesis has been associated with malignant cell transformation in gene therapy protocols, leading to discussions about vector security. Therefore, clonal analysis is important for the assessment of vector safety and its impact on patient health. Here, we report a unique approach to assess dynamic changes in clonality of lentivirus transduced cells upon Sanger sequence analysis of a specially designed genetic barcode. In our approach, changes in the electropherogram peaks are measured and compared between successive time points, revealing alteration in the cell population. After in vitro validation, barcoded lentiviral libraries carrying IL2RG or LMO2 transgenes, or empty vector were used to transduce mouse hematopoietic (ckit+) stem cells, which were subsequently transplanted in recipient mice. We found that neither the empty nor IL2RG encoding vector had an effect on cell dynamics. In sharp contrast, the LMO2 oncogene was associated with altered cell dynamics even though hematologic counts remained unchanged, suggesting that the barcode could reveal changes in cell populations not observed by the frontline clinical assay. We describe a simple and sensitive method for the analysis of clonality, which could be easily used by any laboratory for the assessment of cellular behavior upon lentiviral transduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela B Zanatta
- Center for Translational Investigation in Oncology/LIM 24, Cancer Institute of Sao Paulo, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo , Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Maristela Tsujita
- Department of Clinical and Toxicologic Analyses, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo , Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Primavera Borelli
- Department of Clinical and Toxicologic Analyses, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Sao Paulo , Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo B Aguiar
- Center for Translational Investigation in Oncology/LIM 24, Cancer Institute of Sao Paulo, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo , Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Daniel G Ferrari
- Natural Computing Laboratory, School of Computing and Informatics, Mackenzie University , Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Bryan E Strauss
- Center for Translational Investigation in Oncology/LIM 24, Cancer Institute of Sao Paulo, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo , Sao Paulo, Brazil
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24
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Kaufmann KB, Büning H, Galy A, Schambach A, Grez M. Gene therapy on the move. EMBO Mol Med 2013; 5:1642-61. [PMID: 24106209 PMCID: PMC3840483 DOI: 10.1002/emmm.201202287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 190] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2013] [Revised: 08/13/2013] [Accepted: 08/19/2013] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The first gene therapy clinical trials were initiated more than two decades ago. In the early days, gene therapy shared the fate of many experimental medicine approaches and was impeded by the occurrence of severe side effects in a few treated patients. The understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms leading to treatment- and/or vector-associated setbacks has resulted in the development of highly sophisticated gene transfer tools with improved safety and therapeutic efficacy. Employing these advanced tools, a series of Phase I/II trials were started in the past few years with excellent clinical results and no side effects reported so far. Moreover, highly efficient gene targeting strategies and site-directed gene editing technologies have been developed and applied clinically. With more than 1900 clinical trials to date, gene therapy has moved from a vision to clinical reality. This review focuses on the application of gene therapy for the correction of inherited diseases, the limitations and drawbacks encountered in some of the early clinical trials and the revival of gene therapy as a powerful treatment option for the correction of monogenic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Hildegard Büning
- Department I of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of CologneCologne, Germany
| | | | - Axel Schambach
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical SchoolHannover, Germany
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical SchoolBoston, MA, USA
| | - Manuel Grez
- Institute for Biomedical ResearchGeorg-Speyer-Haus, Frankfurt, Germany
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25
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Wurm M, Kowalski J, Heckl D, Zhang XB, Nelson V, Beard BC, Kiem HP. Ectopic expression of HOXC6 blocks myeloid differentiation and predisposes to malignant transformation. Exp Hematol 2013; 42:114-25.e4. [PMID: 24513167 DOI: 10.1016/j.exphem.2013.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2013] [Revised: 10/07/2013] [Accepted: 10/21/2013] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Insertional mutagenesis resulting from the integration of retroviral vectors has led to the discovery of many oncogenes associated with leukemia. We investigated the role of HOXC6, identified by proximal provirus integration in a large animal hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy study, for a potential involvement in hematopoietic stem cell activity and hematopoietic cell fate decision. HOXC6 was overexpressed in the murine bone marrow transplantation model and tested in a competitive repopulation assay in comparison to the known hematopoietic stem cell expansion factor, HOXB4. We have identified HOXC6 as a factor that enhances competitive repopulation capacity in vivo and colony formation in vitro. Ectopic HOXC6 expression also induced strong myeloid differentiation and expansion of granulocyte-macrophage progenitors/common myeloid progenitors (GMPs/CMPs) in vivo, resulting in myeloid malignancies with low penetrance (3 of 17 mice), likely in collaboration with Meis1 because of a provirus integration mapped to the 3' region in the malignant clone. We characterized the molecular basis of HOXC6-induced myeloid differentiation and malignant cell transformation with complementary DNA microarray analysis. Overexpression of HOXC6 induced a gene expression signature similar to several acute myeloid leukemia subtypes when compared with normal GMPs/CMPs. These results demonstrate that HOXC6 acts as a regulator in hematopoiesis and is involved in malignant transformation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Wurm
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA
| | - John Kowalski
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA
| | - Dirk Heckl
- Division of Hematology, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Xiao-Bing Zhang
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA
| | - Veronica Nelson
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA
| | - Brian C Beard
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA.,Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195, USA
| | - Hans-Peter Kiem
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, 98109, USA.,Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195, USA
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Abstract
The success of immunotherapy against infectious diseases has shown us the powerful potential that such a treatment offers, and substantial work has been done to apply this strategy in the fight against cancer. Cancer is however a fiercer opponent than pathogen-caused diseases due to natural tolerance towards tumour associated antigens and tumour-induced immunosuppression. Recent gene therapy clinical trials with viral vectors have shown clinical efficacy in the correction of genetic diseases, HIV and cancer. The first successful gene therapy clinical trials were carried out with onco(γ-)retroviral vectors but oncogenesis by insertional mutagenesis appeared as a serious complication. Lentiviral vectors have emerged as a potentially safer strategy, and recently the first clinical trial of patients with advanced leukemia using lentiviral vectors has proven successful. Additionally, therapeutic lentivectors have shown clinical efficacy for the treatment of HIV, X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy, and β-thalassaemia. This review aims at describing lentivectors and how they can be utilized to boost anti-tumour immune responses by manipulating the effector immune cells.
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Liechtenstein T, Perez-Janices N, Bricogne C, Lanna A, Dufait I, Goyvaerts C, Laranga R, Padella A, Arce F, Baratchian M, Ramirez N, Lopez N, Kochan G, Blanco-Luquin I, Guerrero-Setas D, Breckpot K, Escors D. Immune modulation by genetic modification of dendritic cells with lentiviral vectors. Virus Res 2013; 176:1-15. [PMID: 23726846 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2013.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2013] [Revised: 05/13/2013] [Accepted: 05/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Our work over the past eight years has focused on the use of HIV-1 lentiviral vectors (lentivectors) for the genetic modification of dendritic cells (DCs) to control their functions in immune modulation. DCs are key professional antigen presenting cells which regulate the activity of most effector immune cells, including T, B and NK cells. Their genetic modification provides the means for the development of targeted therapies towards cancer and autoimmune disease. We have been modulating with lentivectors the activity of intracellular signalling pathways and co-stimulation during antigen presentation to T cells, to fine-tune the type and strength of the immune response. In the course of our research, we have found unexpected results such as the surprising immunosuppressive role of anti-viral signalling pathways, and the close link between negative co-stimulation in the immunological synapse and T cell receptor trafficking. Here we review our major findings and put them into context with other published work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Therese Liechtenstein
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, London, UK
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Brendel C, Hänseler W, Wohlgensinger V, Bianchi M, Tokmak S, Chen-Wichmann L, Kuzmenko E, Cesarovic N, Nicholls F, Reichenbach J, Seger R, Grez M, Siler U. Human miR223 promoter as a novel myelo-specific promoter for chronic granulomatous disease gene therapy. Hum Gene Ther Methods 2013; 24:151-9. [PMID: 23489116 DOI: 10.1089/hgtb.2012.157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Targeting transgene expression to specific hematopoietic cell lineages could contribute to the safety of retroviral vectors in gene therapeutic applications. Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD), a defect of phagocytic cells, can be managed by gene therapy, using retroviral vectors with targeted expression to myeloid cells. In this context, we analyzed the myelospecificity of the human miR223 promoter, which is known to be strongly upregulated during myeloid differentiation, to drive myeloid-restricted expression of p47(phox) and gp91(phox) in mouse models of CGD and in primary patient-derived cells. The miR223 promoter restricted the expression of p47(phox), gp91(phox), and green fluorescent protein (GFP) within self-inactivating (SIN) gamma- and lentiviral vectors to granulocytes and macrophages, with only marginal expression in lymphocytes or hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Furthermore, gene transfer into primary CD34+ cells derived from a p47(phox) patient followed by ex vivo differentiation to neutrophils resulted in restoration of Escherichia coli killing activity by miR223 promoter-mediated p47(phox) expression. These results indicate that the miR223 promoter as an internal promoter within SIN gene therapy vectors is able to efficiently correct the CGD phenotype with negligible activity in hematopoietic progenitors, thereby limiting the risk of insertional oncogenesis and development of clonal dominance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Brendel
- Biomedical Research Institute Georg-Speyer-Haus, 60596 Frankfurt, Germany
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Sadelain M, Brentjens R, Rivière I. The basic principles of chimeric antigen receptor design. Cancer Discov 2013; 3:388-98. [PMID: 23550147 DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-12-0548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 968] [Impact Index Per Article: 88.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) are recombinant receptors that provide both antigen-binding and T-cell-activating functions. A multitude of CARs has been reported over the past decade, targeting an array of cell surface tumor antigens. Their biologic functions have dramatically changed following the introduction of tripartite receptors comprising a costimulatory domain, termed second-generation CARs. These have recently shown clinical benefit in patients treated with CD19-targeted autologous T cells. CARs may be combined with costimulatory ligands, chimeric costimulatory receptors, or cytokines to further enhance T-cell potency, specificity, and safety. CARs represent a new class of drugs with exciting potential for cancer immunotherapy. SIGNIFICANCE CARs are a new class of drugs with great potential for cancer immunotherapy. Upon their expression in T lymphocytes, CARs direct potent, targeted immune responses that have recently shown encouraging clinical outcomes in a subset of patients with B-cell malignancies. This review focuses on the design of CARs, including the requirements for optimal antigen recognition and different modalities to provide costimulatory support to targeted T cells, which include the use of second- and third generation CARs, costimulatory ligands, chimeric costimulatory receptors, and cytokines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michel Sadelain
- Center for Cell Engineering, Molecular Pharmacology and Chemistry Program, and Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York 10065, USA.
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Brugman MH, Suerth JD, Rothe M, Suerbaum S, Schambach A, Modlich U, Kustikova O, Baum C. Evaluating a ligation-mediated PCR and pyrosequencing method for the detection of clonal contribution in polyclonal retrovirally transduced samples. Hum Gene Ther Methods 2013; 24:68-79. [PMID: 23384086 DOI: 10.1089/hgtb.2012.175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Retroviral gene transfer has proven therapeutic potential in clinical gene therapy trials but may also cause abnormal cell growth via perturbation of gene expression in the locus surrounding the insertion site. By establishing clonal marks, retroviral insertions are also used to describe the regenerative potential of individual cells. Deep sequencing approaches have become the method of choice to study insertion profiles in preclinical models and clinical trials. We used a protocol combining ligation-mediated polymerase chain reaction (LM-PCR) and pyrosequencing for insertion profiling and quantification in cells of various tissues transduced with various retroviral vectors. The presented method allows simultaneous analysis of a multitude of DNA-barcoded samples per pyrosequencing run, thereby allowing cost-effective insertion screening in studies with multiple samples. In addition, we investigated whether the number of pyrosequencing reads can be used to quantify clonal abundance. By comparing pyrosequencing reads against site-specific quantitative PCR and by performing spike-in experiments, we show that considerable variation exists in the quantification of insertion sites even when present in the same clone. Our results suggest that the protocol used here and similar approaches might misinterpret abundance clones defined by insertion sites, unless careful calibration measures are taken. The crucial variables causing this variation need to be defined and methodological improvements are required to establish pyrosequencing reads as a quantification measure in polyclonal situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martijn H Brugman
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
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31
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Cornils K, Bartholomae CC, Thielecke L, Lange C, Arens A, Glauche I, Mock U, Riecken K, Gerdes S, von Kalle C, Schmidt M, Roeder I, Fehse B. Comparative clonal analysis of reconstitution kinetics after transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells gene marked with a lentiviral SIN or a γ-retroviral LTR vector. Exp Hematol 2013; 41:28-38.e3. [DOI: 10.1016/j.exphem.2012.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2012] [Revised: 08/28/2012] [Accepted: 09/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Alpharetroviral vector-mediated gene therapy for X-CGD: functional correction and lack of aberrant splicing. Mol Ther 2012. [PMID: 23207695 DOI: 10.1038/mt.2012.249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Comparative integrome analysis has revealed that the most neutral integration pattern among retroviruses is attributed to alpharetroviruses. We chose X-linked chronic granulomatous disease (X-CGD) as model to evaluate the potential of self-inactivating (SIN) alpharetroviral vectors for gene therapy of monogenic diseases. Therefore, we combined the alpharetroviral vector backbone with the elongation factor-1α short promoter, both considered to possess a low genotoxic profile, to drive transgene (gp91(phox)) expression. Following efficient transduction transgene expression was sustained and provided functional correction of the CGD phenotype in a cell line model at low vector copy number. Further analysis in a murine X-CGD transplantation model revealed gene-marking of bone marrow cells and oxidase positive granulocytes in peripheral blood. Transduction of human X-CGD CD34+ cells provided functional correction up to wild-type levels and long-term expression upon transplantation into a humanized mouse model. In contrast to lentiviral vectors, no aberrantly spliced transcripts containing cellular exons fused to alpharetroviral sequences were found in transduced cells, implying that the safety profile of alpharetroviral vectors may extend beyond their neutral integration profile. Taken together, this highlights the potential of this SIN alpharetroviral system as a platform for new candidate vectors for future gene therapy of hematopoietic disorders.
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Dufait I, Liechtenstein T, Lanna A, Bricogne C, Laranga R, Padella A, Breckpot K, Escors D. Retroviral and lentiviral vectors for the induction of immunological tolerance. SCIENTIFICA 2012; 2012:694137. [PMID: 23526794 PMCID: PMC3605697 DOI: 10.6064/2012/694137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Retroviral and lentiviral vectors have proven to be particularly efficient systems to deliver genes of interest into target cells, either in vivo or in cell cultures. They have been used for some time for gene therapy and the development of gene vaccines. Recently retroviral and lentiviral vectors have been used to generate tolerogenic dendritic cells, key professional antigen presenting cells that regulate immune responses. Thus, three main approaches have been undertaken to induce immunological tolerance; delivery of potent immunosuppressive cytokines and other molecules, modification of intracellular signalling pathways in dendritic cells, and de-targeting transgene expression from dendritic cells using microRNA technology. In this review we briefly describe retroviral and lentiviral vector biology, and their application to induce immunological tolerance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inès Dufait
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
- Department of Physiology and Immunology, Medical School, Free University of Brussels, Laarbeeklaan 103, 1090 Jette, Belgium
| | - Therese Liechtenstein
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
| | - Alessio Lanna
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
| | - Christopher Bricogne
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
| | - Roberta Laranga
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
| | - Antonella Padella
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
| | - Karine Breckpot
- Department of Physiology and Immunology, Medical School, Free University of Brussels, Laarbeeklaan 103, 1090 Jette, Belgium
| | - David Escors
- Division of Infection and Immunity, Rayne Institute, University College London, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK
- *David Escors:
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Themis M. Monitoring for potential adverse effects of prenatal gene therapy: genotoxicity analysis in vitro and on small animal models ex vivo and in vivo. Methods Mol Biol 2012; 891:341-70. [PMID: 22648780 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-61779-873-3_16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/09/2023]
Abstract
Gene delivery by integrating vectors has the potential to cause genotoxicity in the host by insertional mutagenesis (IM). Previously, the risk of IM by replication incompetent retroviral vectors was believed to be small. However, the recent observation of leukaemic events due to gamma retroviral vector insertion and activation of the LMO-2 proto-oncogene in patients enrolled in the French and British gene therapy trials for X-SCID demonstrates the need to understand vector associated genotoxicity in greater detail. These findings have led to the development of in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo assays designed to predict genotoxic risk and to further our mechanistic understanding of this process at the molecular level. In vitro assays include transformation of murine haematopoietic stem cells by integrating retroviral (RV) or lentiviral (LV) vectors and measurement of cell survival resulting from transformation due to integration mainly into the Evi1 oncogene. Ex vivo assays involve harvesting haematopoietic stem cells from mice followed by gene transfer and re-infusion of RV or LV infected cells to reconstitute the immune system. Insertional mutagenesis is then determined by analysis of clonally dominant populations of cells. The latter model has also been made highly sensitive using cells from mice predisposed to oncogenesis by lack of the P53 and Rb pathways. Our investigations on fetal gene therapy discovered a high incidence of liver tumour development that appears to be associated with vector insertions into cancer-related genes. Many genes involved in growth and differentiation are actively transcribed in early developmental and are therefore in an open chromatin configuration, which favours provirus insertion. Some of these genes are known oncogenes or anti-oncogenes and are not usually active during adulthood. We found that in utero injection of primate HIV-1, HR'SIN-cPPT-S-FIX-W does not result in oncogenesis as opposed to administration of non-primate equine infectious anaemia virus (EIAV), SMART 2 lentivirus vectors and, most recently, the non-primate pLIONhAATGFP (FIV) vector, which both give rise to high frequency hepatocellular carcinoma. The peculiar integration pattern into cancer-related genes observed in this model makes the fetal mouse a sensitive tool, not only to investigate long-term vector-mediated gene expression, but also vector safety in an in vivo system with minimal immunological interference. The identification of distinct differences in genotoxic outcome between the applied vector systems i.e. EIAV or FIV vectors versus HIV may indicate a particular biosafety profile of the HIV-1-based vector, which renders it potentially suitable for safe prenatal gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Themis
- Gene Therapy and Genotoxicity Research Group, Brunel University, London, UK.
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35
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Pharmacological targeting of the thrombomodulin-activated protein C pathway mitigates radiation toxicity. Nat Med 2012; 18:1123-9. [PMID: 22729286 PMCID: PMC3491776 DOI: 10.1038/nm.2813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2012] [Accepted: 04/24/2012] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Tissue damage induced by ionizing radiation in the hematopoietic and gastrointestinal systems is the major cause of lethality in radiological emergency scenarios and underlies some deleterious side effects in patients undergoing radiation therapy. The identification of target-specific interventions that confer radiomitigating activity is an unmet challenge. Here we identify the thrombomodulin (Thbd)-activated protein C (aPC) pathway as a new mechanism for the mitigation of total body irradiation (TBI)-induced mortality. Although the effects of the endogenous Thbd-aPC pathway were largely confined to the local microenvironment of Thbd-expressing cells, systemic administration of soluble Thbd or aPC could reproduce and augment the radioprotective effect of the endogenous Thbd-aPC pathway. Therapeutic administration of recombinant, soluble Thbd or aPC to lethally irradiated wild-type mice resulted in an accelerated recovery of hematopoietic progenitor activity in bone marrow and a mitigation of lethal TBI. Starting infusion of aPC as late as 24 h after exposure to radiation was sufficient to mitigate radiation-induced mortality in these mice. These findings suggest that pharmacologic augmentation of the activity of the Thbd-aPC pathway by recombinant Thbd or aPC might offer a rational approach to the mitigation of tissue injury and lethality caused by ionizing radiation.
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Abstract
Genetic engineering has emerged as a powerful mechanism for understanding biological systems and a potential approach for redressing congenital disease. Alongside, the emergence of these technologies in recent decades has risen the complementary analysis of the ethical implications of genetic engineering techniques and applications. Although viral-mediated approaches have dominated initial efforts in gene transfer (GT) methods, an emerging technology involving engineered restriction enzymes known as zinc finger nucleases (ZFNs) has become a powerful new methodology for gene editing. Given the advantages provided by ZFNs for more specific and diverse approaches in gene editing for basic science and clinical applications, we discuss how ZFN research can address some of the ethical and scientific questions that have been posed for other GT techniques. This is of particular importance, given the momentum currently behind ZFNs in moving into phase I clinical trials. This study provides a historical account of the origins of ZFN technology, an analysis of current techniques and applications, and an examination of the ethical issues applicable to translational ZFN genetic engineering in early phase clinical trials.
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Baum C, Modlich U, Göhring G, Schlegelberger B. Concise review: managing genotoxicity in the therapeutic modification of stem cells. Stem Cells 2012; 29:1479-84. [PMID: 21898683 DOI: 10.1002/stem.716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
The therapeutic use of procedures for genetic stem cell modification is limited by potential adverse events related to uncontrolled mutagenesis. Prominent findings have been made in hematopoietic gene therapy, demonstrating the risk of clonal, potentially malignant outgrowth on the basis of mutations acquired during or after therapeutic genome modification. The incidence and the growth rate of insertional mutants have been linked to the "stemness" of the target cells and vector-related features such as the integration pattern, the architecture, and the exact content of transgene cassettes. Milieu factors supporting the survival and expansion of mutants may eventually allow oncogenic progression. Similar concerns apply for medicinal products based on pluripotent stem cells. Focusing on the genetic stress induced by insertional mutagenesis and culture adaptation, we propose four conclusions. (a) Mutations occurring in the production of stem cell-based medicines may be unavoidable and need to be classified according to their risk to trigger the formation of clones that are sufficiently long-lived and mitotically active to acquire secondary transforming mutations. (b) The development of rational prevention strategies depends upon the identification of the specific mutations forming such "dominant clones" (which can also be addressed as cancer stem cell precursors) and a better knowledge of the mechanisms underlying their creation, expansion, and homeostatic control. (c) Quantitative assay systems are required to assess the practical value of preventive actions. (d) Improved approaches for the genetic modification of stem cells can address all critical steps in the origin and growth control of mutants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Baum
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
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Tan WS, Carlson DF, Walton MW, Fahrenkrug SC, Hackett PB. Precision editing of large animal genomes. ADVANCES IN GENETICS 2012; 80:37-97. [PMID: 23084873 PMCID: PMC3683964 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-404742-6.00002-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Transgenic animals are an important source of protein and nutrition for most humans and will play key roles in satisfying the increasing demand for food in an ever-increasing world population. The past decade has experienced a revolution in the development of methods that permit the introduction of specific alterations to complex genomes. This precision will enhance genome-based improvement of farm animals for food production. Precision genetics also will enhance the development of therapeutic biomaterials and models of human disease as resources for the development of advanced patient therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenfang Spring Tan
- Center for Genome Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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39
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Physiological regulation of transgene expression by a lentiviral vector containing the A2UCOE linked to a myeloid promoter. Gene Ther 2011; 19:1018-29. [PMID: 22071971 DOI: 10.1038/gt.2011.167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Protection against epigenetic silencing is a desirable feature of future gene therapy vectors, in particular for those applications in which transgene expression will not confer growth advantage to gene-transduced cells. The ubiquitous chromatin opening element (UCOE) consisting of the methylation-free CpG island encompassing the dual divergently transcribed promoters of the human HNRPA2B1-CBX3 housekeeping genes (A2UCOE) has been shown to shield constitutive active heterologous promoters from epigenetic modifications and chromosomal position effects. However, it is unclear if this element can be used to improve expression from tissue-specific enhancer/promoters, while maintaining tissue specificity in hematopoietic cells. Here, we evaluated the potential of the A2UCOE in combination with the myeloid-specific myeloid related protein 8 (MRP8) promoter to target transgene expression specifically to myeloid cells in vitro and in vivo from a self-inactivating lentiviral vector. The inclusion of the A2UCOE did not interfere with specific upregulation of MRP8 promoter activity during myeloid differentiation and mediated sustained and vector copy-dependent expression in myeloid cells. Notably, the A2UCOE did not protect the MRP8 promoter from methylation in the P19 embryonal carcinoma cell line, suggesting that this element maintains the inherent epigenetic state and transcriptional activity of cellular promoters in their native configuration. Thus, the A2UCOE could represent a useful protective genetic element in gene therapy vectors, ensuring physiological transcriptional regulation of tissue-specific promoters independent of the chromosomal integration site.
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40
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Hackett PB, Aronovich EL, Hunter D, Urness M, Bell JB, Kass SJ, Cooper LJN, McIvor S. Efficacy and safety of Sleeping Beauty transposon-mediated gene transfer in preclinical animal studies. Curr Gene Ther 2011; 11:341-9. [PMID: 21888621 PMCID: PMC3728161 DOI: 10.2174/156652311797415827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2011] [Revised: 06/25/2011] [Accepted: 06/28/2011] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposons have been effective in delivering therapeutic genes to treat certain diseases in mice. Hydrodynamic gene delivery of integrating transposons to 5-20% of the hepatocytes in a mouse results in persistent elevated expression of the therapeutic polypeptides that can be secreted into the blood for activity throughout the animal. An alternative route of delivery is ex vivo transformation with SB transposons of hematopoietic cells, which then can be reintroduced into the animal for treatment of cancer. We discuss issues associated with the scale-up of hydrodynamic delivery to the liver of larger animals as well as ex vivo delivery. Based on our and others' experience with inefficient delivery to larger animals, we hypothesize that impulse, rather than pressure, is a critical determinant of the effectiveness of hydrodynamic delivery. Accordingly, we propose some alterations in delivery strategies that may yield efficacious levels of gene delivery in dogs and swine that will be applicable to humans. To ready hydrodynamic delivery for human application we address a second issue facing transposons used for gene delivery regarding their potential to "re-hop" from one site to another and thereby destabilize the genome. The ability to correct genetic diseases through the infusion of DNA plasmids remains an appealing goal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perry B Hackett
- Dept. of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, 321 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
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41
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Abstract
Despite the tremendous advances in antiretroviral combination therapy over the last decade, eradication of HIV from the infected organism is still an elusive goal. Lifelong therapy is associated with potential long-term toxicity, adherence problems, and development of drug resistance. Thus, gene therapy approaches targeting viral eradication are still attractive. Here a number of studies have failed to show a clear clinical benefit yet. Current approaches were mainly limited by a low number of transduced cells and genotoxicity. The use of new vector systems and the right choice of target cells and improved transduction protocols may overcome these obstacles. Recent reports on the use of newly developed transgenes either allowing for an enrichment of transduced cells by an in vivo selection advantage or restoration of a functional immune system which is resistant to HIV infection nourished the hope for continuous progress in this field. Indeed the intriguing finding that HIV seems to be eradicated in an individual case study after stem cell transplantation with a mutant coreceptor (CCR5 delta 32 deletion) underlines the proof of the concept.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan van Lunzen
- Infectious Diseases Unit, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistr. 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.
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42
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Newrzela S, Cornils K, Heinrich T, Schläger J, Yi JH, Lysenko O, Kimpel J, Fehse B, von Laer D. Retroviral insertional mutagenesis can contribute to immortalization of mature T lymphocytes. Mol Med 2011; 17:1223-32. [PMID: 21826372 DOI: 10.2119/molmed.2010.00193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2010] [Accepted: 07/26/2011] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Several cases of T-cell leukemia caused by gammaretroviral insertional mutagenesis in children treated for x-linked severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) by transplantation of autologous gene-modified stem cells were reported. In a comparative analysis, we recently showed that mature T cells, on the contrary, are highly resistant to transformation by gammaretroviral gene transfer. In the present study, we observed immortalization of a single T-cell clone in vitro after gammaretroviral transduction of the T-cell protooncogene LMO2. This clone was CD4/CD8 double-negative, but expressed a single rearranged T-cell receptor. The clone was able to overgrow nonmanipulated competitor T-cell populations in vitro, but no tumor formation was observed after transplantation into Rag-1 deficient recipients. The retroviral integration site (RIS) was found to be near the IL2RA and IL15RA genes. As a consequence, both receptors were constitutively upregulated on the RNA and protein level and the immortalized cell clone was highly IL-2 dependent. Ectopic expression of both, the IL2RA chain and LMO2, induced long-term growth in cultured primary T cells. This study demonstrates that insertional mutagenesis can contribute to immortalization of mature T cells, although this is a rare event. Furthermore, the results show that signaling of the IL-2 receptor and the protooncogene LMO2 can act synergistically in maligniant transformation of mature T lymphocytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Newrzela
- Senckenberg Institute of Pathology, Goethe-University Hospital Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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43
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Lineage- and stage-restricted lentiviral vectors for the gene therapy of chronic granulomatous disease. Gene Ther 2011; 18:1087-97. [PMID: 21544095 DOI: 10.1038/gt.2011.65] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Insertional mutagenesis represents a serious adverse effect of gene therapy with integrating vectors. However, although uncontrolled activation of growth-promoting genes in stem cells can predictably lead to oncological processes, this is far less likely if vector transcriptional activity can be restricted to fully differentiated cells. Diseases requiring phenotypic correction only in mature cells offer such an opportunity, provided that lineage/stage-restricted systems can be properly tailored. In this study, we followed this reasoning to design lentiviral vectors for the gene therapy of chronic granulomatous disease (CGD), an immune deficiency due a loss of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase in phagocytes, most often secondary to mutations in gp91(phox). Using self-inactivating HIV1-derived vectors as background, we first expressed enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) from a minimal gp91(phox) promoter, adding various natural or synthetic transcriptional regulatory elements to foster both specificity and potency. The resulting vectors were assessed either by transplantation or by lentiviral transgenesis, searching for combinations conferring strong and specific expression into mature phagocytic cells. The most promising vector was modified to express gp91(phox) and used to treat CGD mice. High-level restoration of NADPH activity was documented in granulocytes from the treated animals. We propose that this lineage-specific lentiviral vector is a suitable candidate for the gene therapy of CGD.
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44
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Baum C. [Prevention of insertional mutagenesis. Inevitable or manageable?]. PHARMAZIE IN UNSERER ZEIT 2011; 40:248-252. [PMID: 21698614 DOI: 10.1002/pauz.201100420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Baum
- Abteilung für Experimentelle Hämatologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover, Hannover.
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45
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Abstract
Cell-based therapies are fast-growing forms of personalized medicine that make use of the steady advances in stem cell manipulation and gene transfer technologies. In this Review, I highlight the latest developments and the crucial challenges for this field, with an emphasis on haematopoietic stem cell gene therapy, which is taken as a representative example given its advanced clinical translation. New technologies for gene correction and targeted integration promise to overcome some of the main hurdles that have long prevented progress in this field. As these approaches marry with our growing capacity for genetic reprogramming of mammalian cells, they may fulfil the promise of safe and effective therapies for currently untreatable diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luigi Naldini
- HSR-TIGET, San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy and Vita Salute San Raffaele University, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, via Olgettina 58, 20132 Milan, Italy.
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46
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Polyclonal fluctuation of lentiviral vector–transduced and expanded murine hematopoietic stem cells. Blood 2011; 117:3053-64. [DOI: 10.1182/blood-2010-08-303222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Gene therapy has proven its potential to cure diseases of the hematopoietic system. However, severe adverse events observed in clinical trials have demanded improved gene-transfer conditions. Whereas progress has been made to reduce the genotoxicity of integrating gene vectors, the role of pretransplantation cultivation is less well investigated. We observed that the STIF (stem cell factor [SCF], thrombopoietin [TPO], insulin-like growth factor-2 [IGF-2], and fibroblast growth factor-1 [FGF-1]) cytokine cocktail developed to effectively expand murine hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) also supports the expansion of leukemia-initiating insertional mutants caused by gammaretroviral gene transfer. We compared 4 protocols to examine the impact of prestimulation and posttransduction culture in STIF in the context of lentiviral gene transfer. Observing 56 transplanted mice for up to 9.5 months, we found consistent engraftment and gene-marking rates after prolonged ex vivo expansion. Although a lentiviral vector with a validated insertional-mutagenic potential was used, longitudinal analysis identifying > 7000 integration sites revealed polyclonal fluctuations, especially in “expanded” groups, with de novo detection of clones even at late time points. Posttransduction expansion in STIF did not enrich clones with insertions in proto-oncogenes but rather increased clonal diversity. Our data indicate that lentiviral transduction in optimized media mediates intact polyclonal hematopoiesis without selection for growth-promoting hits by posttransduction expansion.
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47
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Türkmen S, Riehn M, Klopocki E, Molkentin M, Reinhardt R, Burmeister T. A BACH2-BCL2L1 fusion gene resulting from a t(6;20)(q15;q11.2) chromosomal translocation in the lymphoma cell line BLUE-1. Genes Chromosomes Cancer 2011; 50:389-96. [PMID: 21412927 DOI: 10.1002/gcc.20863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2010] [Accepted: 01/27/2011] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Abnormalities of the long arm of chromosome 6 are a common feature in various B-cell malignancies. In most cases, the genes involved have not yet been clearly identified. We have molecularly characterized the recently established Burkitt lymphoma cell line BLUE-1 that carries a t(6;20)(q15;q11.2) rearrangement in addition to the typical t(8;14) with MYC-IGH fusion. To identify the gene loci involved on both chromosomes we applied a sequential BAC clone mapping strategy. By using RT-PCR we were finally able to detect a chimeric mRNA transcript showing a fusion of the first (non-coding) exon of BACH2 (BTB and CNC homology 1, basic leucine zipper transcription factor 2) on 6q15 to the second exon of BCL2L1 (BCL-X) on 20q11. Various fusion transcripts were detected for different BCL2L1 (BCL-XL) isoforms. The fusion ultimately results in strong expression of the BCL2L1 (BCL-XL) anti-apoptosis protein, as demonstrated by immunoblotting. This is the first report that shows the involvement of both BCL2L1 and the transcription factor BACH2 in a chromosomal rearrangement. It points to BACH2 as a possibly important target in lymphomas with 6q aberrations, although other genes on 6q are probably also involved in these cases. Moreover, it suggests that members of the BCL2 anti-apoptosis gene family other than BCL2 itself might also be involved in lymphoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seval Türkmen
- Institut für Medizinische Genetik, Charité CVK, Berlin, Germany
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48
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Distribution of lentiviral vector integration sites in mice following therapeutic gene transfer to treat β-thalassemia. Mol Ther 2011; 19:1273-86. [PMID: 21386821 DOI: 10.1038/mt.2011.20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A lentiviral vector encoding β-globin flanked by insulator elements has been used to treat β-thalassemia (β-Thal) successfully in one human subject. However, a clonal expansion was observed after integration in the HMGA2 locus, raising the question of how commonly lentiviral integration would be associated with possible insertional activation. Here, we report correcting β-Thal in a murine model using the same vector and a busulfan-conditioning regimen, allowing us to investigate efficacy and clonal evolution at 9.2 months after transplantation of bone marrow cells. The five gene-corrected recipient mice showed near normal levels of hemoglobin, reduced accumulation of reticulocytes, and normalization of spleen weights. Mapping of integration sites pretransplantation showed the expected favored integration in transcription units. The numbers of gene-corrected long-term repopulating cells deduced from the numbers of unique integrants indicated oligoclonal reconstitution. Clonal abundance was quantified using a Mu transposon-mediated method, indicating that clones with integration sites near growth-control genes were not enriched during growth. No integration sites involving HMGA2 were detected. Cells containing integration sites in genes became less common after prolonged growth, suggesting negative selection. Thus, β-Thal gene correction in mice can be achieved without expansion of cells harboring vectors integrated near genes involved in growth control.
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49
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Highly efficient lentiviral transduction of phenotypically and genotypically characterized endothelial progenitor cells from adult peripheral blood. Blood Coagul Fibrinolysis 2011; 21:464-73. [PMID: 20595824 DOI: 10.1097/mbc.0b013e328339cc1c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Postnatal vasculogenesis has been implicated as an important mechanism for neovascularization via bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) circulating in peripheral blood. In preparation of the utilization of EPCs in clinical protocols, we have generated blood-derived EPCs according to two established protocols by culturing either nonadherent mononuclear cells on fibronectin or adherent mononuclear cells on collagen. To explore the feasibility of these EPCs for their potential clinical use as target cells for genetic transduction to enhance their thromboresistance, newly designed retroviral and lentiviral gene ontology expression vectors were tested. Whereas cell clusters derived from the nonadherent cells demonstrated an only limited proliferative potential, cell colonies derived from collagen-adherent cells expanded more than a million-fold. Characterization of the exponentially growing cells by surface antigen and gene expression profiling revealed a consistently strong expression of characteristic endothelial markers, whereas expression of leukocyte markers was gradually lost. Using a single-step transduction protocol, we were able to achieve gene transfer efficiency of up to 99%. Our results suggest that the generated blood-derived EPC population might be attractive target cells for tissue engineering and gene therapy protocols due to their well defined phenotype, extensive proliferative potential, and efficient genetic transducibility, three important qualities that need to be defined prior to any clinical use.
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50
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Biasco L, Ambrosi A, Pellin D, Bartholomae C, Brigida I, Roncarolo MG, Di Serio C, von Kalle C, Schmidt M, Aiuti A. Integration profile of retroviral vector in gene therapy treated patients is cell-specific according to gene expression and chromatin conformation of target cell. EMBO Mol Med 2011; 3:89-101. [PMID: 21243617 PMCID: PMC3060339 DOI: 10.1002/emmm.201000108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2010] [Revised: 11/19/2010] [Accepted: 11/22/2010] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The analysis of genomic distribution of retroviral vectors is a powerful tool to monitor ‘vector-on-host’ effects in gene therapy (GT) trials but also provides crucial information about ‘host-on-vector’ influences based on the target cell genetic and epigenetic state. We had the unique occasion to compare the insertional profile of the same therapeutic moloney murine leukemia virus (MLV) vector in the context of the adenosine deaminase-severe combined immunodeficiency (ADA-SCID) genetic background in two GT trials based on infusions of transduced mature lymphocytes (peripheral blood lymphocytes, PBL) or a single infusion of haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSC). We found that vector insertions are cell-specific according to the differential expression profile of target cells, favouring, in PBL-GT, genes involved in immune system and T-cell functions/pathways as well as T-cell DNase hypersensitive sites, differently from HSC-GT. Chromatin conformations and histone modifications influenced integration preferences but we discovered that only H3K27me3 was cell-specifically disfavoured, thus representing a key epigenetic determinant of cell-type dependent insertion distribution. Our study shows that MLV vector insertional profile is cell-specific according to the genetic/chromatin state of the target cell both in vitro and in vivo in patients several years after GT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Biasco
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (HSR-TIGET), Milano, Italy
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