AAV was discovered in 1965 and is a non-pathogenic member of the Dependovirus genus of parvoviruses, endemic in humans. Productive infection requires co-infection with a helper virus such as adenovirus or herpes virus. Since the discovery of AAV, multiple serotypes and variants have been described and identified, of which AAV2 is the most extensively studied. The single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) genome is connected by two inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) and can be replaced with any gene (up to ≈5kb) to create the rAAV vector genome. AAV vector technology has advantages that make it one of the most attractive solutions for therapeutic gene delivery. Both dividing and non-dividing cells can be transduced using AAV vectors, and long-term transgene expression can be achieved in post-mitotic cells. In addition, AAV exhibits low immunogenicity, and no adverse events have been reported in past clinical trials.
AAV is a non-enveloped virus belonging to the family Parvoviridae and the genus Dependovirus. Structurally, the AAV genome is protected by an icosahedral capsid containing a mixture of three structural proteins (VP1, VP2, and VP3) assembled in a 1:1:10 ratio into a total of 60 monomers. The viral genome consists of a ∼4.7 Kb single-stranded DNA separated by inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) at each end, encoding a total of 9 proteins obtained by alternative splicing of 2 genes (rep and cap) and alternative start codon usage and alternative open reading frames. ITRs are multipurpose elements that serve as packaging signals for encapsidation of the viral genome and as initiation sites for viral genome replication.
Neural stem/progenitor cell grafts integrate into the site of spinal cord injury (SCI) and form anatomical and electrophysiological neuronal relays at the lesion. To determine how the grafts organize synaptically and connect with the host system, calcium imaging of neural progenitor cell grafts within the SCI site was performed using in vivo imaging and spinal cord slices. The stem cell grafts organized into spontaneously active local synaptic networks. Following optogenetic stimulation of the corticospinal tract axons that regenerated into the graft host, distinct and separate neuronal networks throughout the graft responded. Furthermore, optogenetic stimulation of graft axons extending from the lesion into the denervated spinal cord also triggered responses in local host neuronal networks. In vivo imaging revealed that behavioral stimulation of the host elicited focal synaptic responses within the graft. Thus, it is noteworthy that the neural progenitor cell grafts formed functional synaptic subnetworks in a pattern parallel to the normal spinal cord.
The researchers mixed the AAV-Syn-FLEX-ChrimsonR-tdTomato vector with Syn1-Cre neural progenitor cells, which were then acutely transplanted into T12 dorsal column lesions. This resulted in graft-specific expression of ChrimsonR-tdTomato, which was readily detected in axons extending from the graft border to the distal host spinal cord (Figures 1A-1B). Three to four weeks after transplantation, AAV9-Syn-GCaMP6f was injected into the host central gray matter 1.2 mm caudal to the graft (Figures 1A-1B). When imaged 6-8 weeks after transplantation, a total of 15 host neurons were detected in sections from two animals that responded to full-field stimulation of graft axons (Figures 1C-1F). Responding cells were located in the medial and dorsal gray matter. Host responses to graft axon stimulation were abolished after DNQX administration, indicating that host responses to graft axon stimulation were mediated through excitatory synaptic transmission (Figure 1G). The latency of these responses was less than 200 ms, indicating that, as with the grafts, the responses peaked before the end of the 500 ms light stimulation (Figure 1G). Thus, the neural progenitor cell grafts were able to activate host neurons beneath the spinal cord lesion.
Figure 1. Host neurons are activated by optogenetic stimulation of axons extending from grafts. (Ceto S, et al., 2019)
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