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Signoria I, van der Pol WL, Groen EJN. Innovating spinal muscular atrophy models in the therapeutic era. Dis Model Mech 2023; 16:dmm050352. [PMID: 37787662 PMCID: PMC10565113 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.050352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a severe, monogenetic, neuromuscular disease. A thorough understanding of its genetic cause and the availability of robust models has led to the development and approval of three gene-targeting therapies. This is a unique and exciting development for the field of neuromuscular diseases, many of which remain untreatable. The development of therapies for SMA not only opens the door to future therapeutic possibilities for other genetic neuromuscular diseases, but also informs us about the limitations of such treatments. For example, treatment response varies widely and, for many patients, significant disability remains. Currently available SMA models best recapitulate the severe types of SMA, and these models are genetically and phenotypically more homogeneous than patients. Furthermore, treating patients is leading to a shift in phenotypes with increased variability in SMA clinical presentation. Therefore, there is a need to generate model systems that better reflect these developments. Here, we will first discuss current animal models of SMA and their limitations. Next, we will discuss the characteristics required to future-proof models to assist the field in the development of additional, novel therapies for SMA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Signoria
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, 3584 CX Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - W. Ludo van der Pol
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, 3584 CX Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Ewout J. N. Groen
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, 3584 CX Utrecht, the Netherlands
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Qiu J, Wu L, Qu R, Jiang T, Bai J, Sheng L, Feng P, Sun J. History of development of the life-saving drug “Nusinersen” in spinal muscular atrophy. Front Cell Neurosci 2022; 16:942976. [PMID: 36035257 PMCID: PMC9414009 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2022.942976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive disorder with an incidence of 1/6,000–1/10,000 and is the leading fatal disease among infants. Previously, there was no effective treatment for SMA. The first effective drug, nusinersen, was approved by the US FDA in December 2016, providing hope to SMA patients worldwide. The drug was introduced in the European Union in 2017 and China in 2019 and has so far saved the lives of several patients in most parts of the world. Nusinersen are fixed sequence antisense oligonucleotides with special chemical modifications. The development of nusinersen progressed through major scientific discoveries in medicine, genetics, biology, and other disciplines, wherein several scientists have made substantial contributions. In this article, we will briefly describe the pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies of SMA, summarize the timeline of important scientific findings during the development of nusinersen in a detailed, scientific, and objective manner, and finally discuss the implications of the development of nusinersen for SMA research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaying Qiu
- Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration of Jiangsu and Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Tissue Engineering Technology Products, Jiangsu Clinical Medicine Center of Tissue Engineering and Nerve Injury Repair, Nantong University, Nantong, China
- Department of Prenatal Screening and Diagnosis Center, Affiliated Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Liucheng Wu
- Laboratory Animal Center, Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Ruobing Qu
- Biomedical Polymers Laboratory, College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Tao Jiang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Jialin Bai
- College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China
| | - Lei Sheng
- Department of Orthopedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
| | - Pengchao Feng
- Nanjing Antisense Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Nanjing, China
| | - Junjie Sun
- Key Laboratory of Neuroregeneration of Jiangsu and Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, NMPA Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Tissue Engineering Technology Products, Jiangsu Clinical Medicine Center of Tissue Engineering and Nerve Injury Repair, Nantong University, Nantong, China
- *Correspondence: Junjie Sun
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Rossoll W, Singh RN. Commentary: Current Status of Gene Therapy for Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Front Cell Neurosci 2022; 16:916065. [PMID: 35656408 PMCID: PMC9152110 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2022.916065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Wilfried Rossoll
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, United States
- *Correspondence: Wilfried Rossoll
| | - Ravindra N. Singh
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
- Ravindra N. Singh
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Kotulska K, Fattal-Valevski A, Haberlova J. Recombinant Adeno-Associated Virus Serotype 9 Gene Therapy in Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Front Neurol 2021; 12:726468. [PMID: 34721262 PMCID: PMC8548432 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.726468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive neuromuscular disease caused by deletion or mutation of the SMN1 gene. It is characterized by a progressive loss of motor neurons resulting in muscle weakness. The disease affects 1 in 11,000 live births and before the era of treatment SMA was a leading genetic cause of mortality in infants. Recently, disease modifying therapies have been introduced in clinical practice. They include intrathecal and oral antisense oligonucleotides binding to pre-mRNA of SMN2 gene and increasing the translation of fully functional SMN protein as well as SMN1 gene replacement therapy. Onasemnogene abeparvovec uses the adeno-associated virus 9 (AAV9) vector to deliver the SMN1 gene. Phase 1 and phase 3 clinical trials showed that a single administration of onasemnogene abeparvovec resulted in improvement of motor functions in the majority of infants with SMA. Currently, phase 3 trials in SMA1 and SMA2 patients, as well as presymptomatic infants diagnosed with SMA, are ongoing. The drug was approved for medical use in the US in 2019, and in Japan and the European Union in 2020. Thus, first real-world data on efficacy and safety of onasemnogene abeparvovec in SMA patients are available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna Kotulska
- Department of Neurology and Epileptology, The Children's Memorial Health Institute, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Aviva Fattal-Valevski
- Pediatric Neurology Institute, "Dana-Dwek" Children Hospital, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Jana Haberlova
- Neuromuscular Center, Department of Pediatric Neurology, Faculty Hospital Motol, 2nd School of Medicine Charles University, Prague, Czechia
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