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High-efficiency plasmid gene transfer into dystrophic muscle

Gene Therapy volume 10, pages 504–512 (2003)Cite this article

Abstract

The efficiency of plasmid gene transfer in skeletal muscle is significantly enhanced by pretreatment with hyaluronidase and the application of an electrical field to the muscle following the injection of plasmid DNA, a process referred to as electrotransfer. However, the presence of increased levels of connective tissue in muscular dystrophies, such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), may affect the efficiency of this process. Here we demonstrate that the efficiency of electrotransfer is not affected by increased levels of connective tissue in the mdx mouse model of DMD and that any damage induced by the electrotransfer process is not exacerbated in the dystrophic phenotype. However, increasing the concentration of hyaluronidase does not improve transfection efficiencies further. Unlike direct injection of plasmid DNA, the efficiency of electrotransfer is not dependent upon the sex and age of mice used. The combined treatment of hyaluronidase and electrotransfer results in highly efficient gene transfer in dystrophic muscle with limited muscle damage.

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Acknowledgements

We thank George Dickson (Royal Holloway, London) and Jim Owen (Royal Free Hospital, London) for the loan of the BTX electroporator and electrodes. This work was funded by the Medical Research Council of Great Britain, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign and the Wellcome Trust.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, Division of Neuroscience and Psychological Medicine, Gene Targeting Unit, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, Charing Cross Hospital, London, UK

    H Gollins, J McMahon, K E Wells & D J Wells

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  1. H Gollins
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  2. J McMahon
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  3. K E Wells
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  4. D J Wells
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Gollins, H., McMahon, J., Wells, K. et al. High-efficiency plasmid gene transfer into dystrophic muscle. Gene Ther 10, 504–512 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.gt.3301927

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