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Review
. 2021 Jun 23;13(7):1205.
doi: 10.3390/v13071205.

Harnessing the Natural Biology of Adeno-Associated Virus to Enhance the Efficacy of Cancer Gene Therapy

Jacquelyn J Bower  1   2 , Liujiang Song  2   3 , Prabhakar Bastola  2   3 , Matthew L Hirsch  2   3
Affiliations
Review

Harnessing the Natural Biology of Adeno-Associated Virus to Enhance the Efficacy of Cancer Gene Therapy

Jacquelyn J Bower et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) was first characterized as small "defective" contaminant particles in a simian adenovirus preparation in 1965. Since then, a recombinant platform of AAV (rAAV) has become one of the leading candidates for gene therapy applications resulting in two FDA-approved treatments for rare monogenic diseases and many more currently in various phases of the pharmaceutical development pipeline. Herein, we summarize rAAV approaches for the treatment of diverse types of cancers and highlight the natural anti-oncogenic effects of wild-type AAV (wtAAV), including interactions with the cellular host machinery, that are of relevance to enhance current treatment strategies for cancer.

Keywords: AAV; adeno-associated virus; cancer gene therapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

M.L.H. is a cofounder of Bedrock Therapeutics and RainBIO, Inc. M.L.H. has other unrelated technology licensed to Asklepios BioPharmaceutical for which he has received royalties. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of genomes of a wild-type AAV virus (left) and a recombinant AAV particle (right). Proteins encoded by each ORF are listed below the appropriate gene.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Summary of the potential attributes of AAV for cancer gene therapy.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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