Lentiviral-mediated gene transfer – a patent review

Abstract

Background: Lentiviral vectors are at the forefront of gene delivery systems for research and clinical applications. This special position is mainly due to their capacity to transduce slow dividing and non-dividing cells, to insert large genetic constructs in the host chromatin, and to sustain stable long-term transgene expression. Objective: To review the current literature and patents concerning the lentiviral system, the safety improvements, the production and purification of lentiviral vectors, pseudotyping and preclinical and clinical studies to provide expert opinion about the use of lentiviral vectors for gene therapy. Methods: The National Library of Medicine (PubMed) was searched for studies investigating the lentiviral system and the patents were searched at the World Intellectual Property Organization, European Patent Office and US Patent Office websites/databases. Results/conclusion: Based on the literature, several improvements have been performed regarding the safety, pseudotyping, vector production and purification on the lentivirus system. Clinical trials are underway for five different disorders.

Keywords::

• gene therapy
• HIV-1
• lentiviral vector

Notes