Published Online
on April 14, 2003

A more recent version of this article appeared on May 13, 2003

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Submitted on October 15, 2002
Revised on January 28, 2003
Accepted on February 7, 2003

Multiply Attenuated, Self-Inactivating Lentiviral Vectors Efficiently Deliver and Express Genes for Extended Periods of Time in Adult Rat Cardiomyocytes In Vivo

Sylvain Fleury PhD, Eleonora Simeoni PhD, Christian Zuppinger PhD, Nicole Déglon PhD, Ludwig K. von Segesser MD, Lukas Kappenberger MD, and Giuseppe Vassalli MD^*

From the Division of Cardiology (S.F., E.S., L.K., G.V.), Division of Experimental Surgery (S.F., E.S., G.V.), and Department of Cardiovascular Surgery (L.K.v.S.), University of Lausanne; the Neurosciences Institute (N.D.), Swiss Federal School of Technology, Lausanne; and the Division of Cardiology (C.Z.), University of Berne, Switzerland.

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: giuseppe.vassalli{at}chuv.hospvd.ch.

Background--Among retroviral vectors, lentiviral vectors are unique in that they transduce genes into both dividing and nondividing cells. However, their ability to provide sustained myocardial transgene expression has not been evaluated.

Methods and Results--Multiply attenuated, self-inactivating lentivectors based on human immunodeficiency virus-1 contained the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) gene under the transcriptional control of either the cytomegalovirus (CMV) immediate-early enhancer/promoter, the elongation factor-1 (EF-1) promoter, or the phosphoglycerate-kinase (PGK) promoter. Lentivectors transduced adult rat cardiomyocytes in a dose-dependent manner (transduction rates, >90%; multiplicity of infection, 5). The CMV promoter achieved higher EGFP expression levels than the EF-1 and PGK promoters. Insertion of the central polypurine tract pol sequence improved gene transfer efficiency by 2-fold. In vivo gene transfer kinetics was studied by measuring the copy number of integrated lentivirus DNA and EGFP concentrations in cardiac extracts by real-time polymerase chain reaction and ELISA, respectively. With CMV promoter-containing lentivectors, vector DNA peaked at day 3, declined by 4-fold at day 14, but then remained stable up to week 10. Similarly, EGFP expression peaked at day 7, decreased by 7-fold at day 14, but was essentially stable thereafter. In contrast, vector DNA and EGFP expression declined rapidly with EF-1 promoter-containing lentivectors. Peak EGFP expression with titer-matched adenovectors was 35% higher than with CMV lentivectors but was lost rapidly over time.

Conclusions--Lentivectors efficiently transduce and express genes for extended periods of time in cardiomyocytes in vivo. Lentivectors provide a useful tool for studying myocardial biology and a potential system for gene heart therapy.

Key words: gene therapy • myocardium • viruses

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