Current Gene Therapy - Volume 16, Issue 1, 2016

Advanced cardiac failure is a progressive intractable disease and is the main cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Since this pathology is represented by a definite decrease in cardiomyocyte number, supplementation of functional cardiomyocytes into the heart would hypothetically be an ideal therapeutic option. Recently, unlimited in vitro production of human functional cardiomyocytes was established by using induce Read More

Cardiovascular disorders and associated morbidities remain the leading cause of premature death worldwide. Since the regeneration of diseased hearts is very limited and the insufficient supply of donor organs persists, hopes rely on new therapies for heart repair. Reviving the proliferation of endogenous cardiomyocytes (CMs) or the administration of adult stem cells to the heart was of limited curative success to date. Thus, th Read More

This review focuses on the possibilities for intraoperative processing and isolation of autologous cells, particularly atrial appendage-derived cells (AADCs) and cellular micrografts, and their straightforward use in cell transplantation for heart failure therapy. We review the potential of autologous tissues to serve as sources for cell therapy and consider especially those tissues that are used in surgery but from which the Read More

Numerous diseases affect the respiratory tract and the aerosol administration has been widely considered as an adapted and non-invasive method for local delivery. This pathway induces a lung concentration and thus also limits, systemic side effects. However, aerosol delivery of active pharmaceutical ingredients represents a real challenge, due to numerous obstacles such as the specific respiratory movement, the pres Read More

Previously unidentified viruses, such as Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, continue to emerge and threaten populations, while powerful new techniques have identified many new human and animal viruses. Similarly, existing viruses, from Ebola virus to chikungunya virus, are reemerging and spreading to new geographical regions. These viruses often pose a challenge for researchers to study due to their highl Read More

Immunodeficient mice reconstituted with human CD4+ T cells, which can be achieved either by transfer of mature cells or immature progenitors, represent the only animal model to study HIV-1 infection of human lymphocytes in vivo. However, the immunocompromised status of most of these models currently rule out their use for vaccine studies. Nevertheless, the model might be ideally suited for HIV-1 gene therapy studies si Read More

We report the correction of hyperglycemia of STZ induced diabetic mice using one intravenous systemic administration of a single stranded serotype 8 pseudotyped adeno-associated virus (ssAAV2/8) vector encoding the human proinsulin gene under a constitutive liver specific promoter. In vivo dose titration experiments were carried out and we identified an optimal range that achieved maintenance of euglycaemia or a Read More