Lecture 21 - Viral Vectors Flashcards
Difference between transfection and transduction
Transfection is inserting naked DNA into a cell.
Transduction is inserting DNA into a cell using a viral vector.
How to initiate viral replication from a nucleic acid
1)
2)
3)
1) Infect cells with virus
2) Reverse transcribe RNA genome into DNA, place into a plasmid. Transfect plasmid into cells
3) Enzymatically synthesise RNA from viral genome inserted into a plasmid using bacteriophage polymerase. Transfect cell with RNA.
Things that viral vectors can be engineered for 1) 2) 3) 4)
1) Protein expression
2) Functional RNA expression
3) Gene therapy
4) Vaccines
Necessary measure for biosafety of viral vectors
Vectors must be replication-deficient
Ways to make viral vectors replication-deficient
Deletion of one or more genes necessary for replication.
Can separate replication and packaging of genome.
What is needed to make a viral genome incorporate into a virion?
Packaging sequence (psi)
Type of cells that vectors should ideally be able to infect
Terminally-differentiated as well as dividing cells
Basic viral vector design requirements 1) 2) 3) 4)
1) Include appropriate promotor elements (CMV immediate-early promotor common)
2) Include foreign gene of interest and a poly-adenylation sequence
3) Genome size must be within packaging limit of virus
4) Virus mustn’t be able to replicate
Necessary steps involved in creating a viral vector 1) 2) 3) 4)
1) Remove viral sequences for pathogenicity, replication
2) Separate viral sequences required for replication and for production of viral particles.
3) Flank transgene (transgene cassette) with essential cis-acting sequences and packaging signals (EG: psi)
4) Provide viral proteins required for packaging that have been deleted from the viral genome in either the cell line, or in a helper plasmid.
Viral vector that produces the highest titres
Adenovirus (10^11 virions)
Viral vectors with a good ability to manipulate tropism
1)
2)
3)
1) Adenovirus
2) Retrovirus
3) Lentivirus
Viral vectors with a poor ability to manipulate tropism
1)
2)
3)
1) Adeno-associated viruses
2) Herpesviruses
3) RNA replicons (not viruses)
Viral vector with a high immunogenicity
Adenovirus
Viral vector that can’t infect non-dividing cells
Retrovirus
Size of possible retrovirus insert
1-7kb
Size of adenovirus possible insert
2-38kb
Size of lentivirus possible insert
7-18kb
Size of herpesvirus possible insert
30kb
Size of AAV possible insert
4.5kb
Design and manufacture of integrating viral vectors 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)
1) Use lentiviruses or retroviruses
2) Essential to retain LTRs, poly-purine primer near U3
3) Remove LTR promoter in U3.
4) Replace gag, pol and env with heterologous gene (gag, pol, env supplied by packaging cell line)
5) Remove vif, vpu, vpr, nef, tat (vpr is necessary for infection of non-dividing cells)
Vectors that can integrate into non-dividing cells
Lentivectors
Problems with retroviral gene vectors 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)
1) Regeneration of replication-competent retrovirus
2) Viral transcription elements are a biosafety concern, as they might insert into endogenous retroviruses in genome and reactivate them
3) Insertional mutagenesis can result in cancers
4) Limited envelope tropism
5) Heterologous tropism wanes with time
Solutions to the danger of regeneration of replication retrovirus from a retroviral vector
1)
2)
3)
1) Inactivate LTR promoter
2) Express structural proteins for packaging in different vectors (gag, env, pol)
3) Packaging cells used to amplify virus must not express endogenous retroviruses