Research Development Foundation

Institut Clayton De La Recherche

Institut National De La Sante Et De La Recherche Medicale

Didier Trono

Patrick Salmon

Maciej Wiznerowicz

Romain N Zufferey

Francois-Loic Cosset

Virginie Sandrin

Bertrand Boson

Didier Negre

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are safe, highly efficient, and very potent for expressing transgenes for human gene therapy, especially, in human hematopoietic progenitor cells as well as in all other blood cell derivatives. The lentiviral vectors comprise a self-inactivating configuration for biosafety and promoters such as the EF1&#x3b1; promoter as one example. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments such as inherited and acquired lympho-hematological disorders, gene-therapies for cancers especially the hematological cancers, as well as for the study of hematopoiesis via lentivector-mediated modification of human HSCs.

Methods and compositions relating to improved lentiviral vectors and their applications

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are safe, highly efficient, and very potent for expressing transgenes for human gene therapy, especially, in human hematopoietic progenitor cells as well as in all other blood cell derivatives. The lentiviral vectors comprise promoters active to promote expression specific to cell types or tissues. Further, promoters are providing that are amenable to control by activators, enhancers, or repressors. These vectors are in a self-inactivating configuration for biosaftey. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element, without any decrease in the specificity or control exerted by the promoters. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments such as inherited and acquired lympho-hematological disorders, gene-therapies for cancers especially the hematological cancers, as well as for the study of hematopoiesis via lentivector-mediated modification of human HSCs.

Methods and compositions relating to restricted expression lentiviral vectors and their applications

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are multiply modified to create highly safe, efficient, and potent vectors for expressing transgenes for gene therapy. The lentiviral vectors comprise various combinations of an inactive central polypurine tract, a stuffer sequence, which may encode drug susceptibility genes, and a mutated hairpin in the 5' leader sequence that substantially abolishes replication. These elements are provided in conjunction with other features of lentiviral vectors, such as a self-inactivating configuration for biosafety and promoters such as the EF1&#x3b1; promoter as one example. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments for inherited and acquired disorders, gene-therapies for cancers and other disease, the creation of industrial and experimental production systems utilizing transformed cells, as well as for the study of basic cellular and genetic processes.

Methods and compositions relating to improved lentiviral vector production systems

A method is provided for producing a recombinant pseudotyped viral vector particle wherein a cell is transfecting with (i) at least one vector construct; (ii) at least one packaging construct; and (iii) an expression construct encoding a chimeric glycoprotein encoded by a nucleic acid comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1 to yield a producer cell, followed by culturing the producer cell in a medium; and separating the producer cell from the medium to recover the recombinant viral vector particle from the medium. Vectors obtained in this manner have significantly higher titers than vectors coated with the parental non-chimeric glycoprotein.

Chimeric glycoproteins and pseudotyped lentiviral vectors

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are safe, highly efficient, and very potent for expressing transgenes for human gene therapy, especially, in human hematopoietic progenitor cells as well as in all other blood cell derivatives. The lentiviral vectors comprise a self-inactivating configuration for biosafety and promoters such as the EF1 &#x3b1; promoter as one example. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments such as inherited and acquired lympho-hematological disorders, gene-therapies for cancers especially the hematological cancers, as well as for the study of hematopoiesis via lentivector-mediated modification of human HSCs.

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are multiply modified to create highly safe, efficient, and potent vectors for expressing transgenes for gene therapy. The lentiviral vectors comprise various combinations of an inactive central polypurine tract, a stuffer sequence, which may encode drug susceptibility genes, and a mutated hairpin in the 5' leader sequence that substantially abolishes replication. These elements are provided in conjunction with other features of lentiviral vectors, such as a self-inactivating configuration for biosaftey and promoters such as the EF1&#x3b1; promoter as one example. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments for inherited and acquired disorders, gene-therapies for cancers and other disease, the creation of industrial and experimental production systems utilizing transformed cells, as well as for the study of basic cellular and genetic processes.

The present invention provides improved chimeric glycoproteins (GPs) and improved lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with those glycoproteins. Also provided are methods and compositions for making such glycoproteins and vectors, and improved methods of in vitro and in vivo transduction of cells with such vectors. Improved chimeric GPs encode the extracellular and transmembrane domains of GALV or RD114 GPs fused to the cytoplasmic tail of MLV-A GP. Vectors pseudotyped with these GAL V/TR and RD 114/TR GP chimeras have significantly higher titers than vectors coated with the parental GPs. Additionally, RD114/TR-pseudotyped vectors are efficiently concentrated and are resistant to inactivation induced by the complement of both human and macaque sera. RD114 GP-pseudotyped lentiviral vectors have particular utility for in vivo gene transfer applications.

The present invention provides HIV-derived lentivectors which are safe, highly efficient, and very potent for expressing transgenes for human gene therapy, especially, in human hematopoietic progenitor cells as well as in all other blood cell derivatives. The lentiviral vectors comprise a self-inactivating configuration for biosaftey and promoters such as the EF1&#x3b1; promoter as one example. Additional promoters are also described. The vectors can also comprise additional transcription enhancing elements such as the wood chuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element. These vectors therefore provide useful tools for genetic treatments such as inherited and acquired lympho-hematological disorders, gene-therapies for cancers especially the hematological cancers, as well as for the study of hematopoiesis via lentivector-mediated modification of human HSCs.

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Collonge, Switzerland

Didier Trono