Treatment of Hemophilia A in Utero and Postnatally using Sheep as a Model for Cell and Gene Delivery

Abstract

Hemophilia A represents the most common inheritable deficiency of the coagulation proteins. Current state-of- the-art treatment consists of frequent prophylactic infusions of plasma-derived or recombinant FVIII protein to maintain hemostasis, and has greatly increased life expectancy and quality of life for many hemophilia A patients. This treatment approach is, however, far from ideal, due to the need for lifelong intravenous infusions, the high treatment cost, and the fact that it is unavailable to a large percentage of the world's hemophiliacs. There is thus a need for novel treatments that can promise long-term or permanent correction. In contrast to existing protein based therapeutics, gene therapy offers to provide a permanent cure following few, or even a single, treatment. In the present paper, we review ongoing work towards this end, focusing on studies we have performed in a large animal model. Some of the key topics covered in this review include the unique opportunities sheep offer as a model system, the re-establishment and clinical and molecular characterization of a line of sheep with severe hemophilia A, the advantages and feasibility of treating a disease like hemophilia A in utero, and the use of Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC) as cellular delivery vehicles for the FVIII gene. The review finishes with a brief discussion of our recent success correcting ovine hemophilia A with a postnatal transplant with gene-modified MSC, and the limitations of this approach that remain to be overcome.