. HIV-1 infection of NOD-scid IL2r-/- mice engrafted with CCR
. HIV-1 infection of NOD-scid IL2r-/- mice engrafted with CCR5-NP reated PBMCs demonstrated functional disruption of CCR5 because the mice showed recovery of CD4+ T-cell numbers with low to undetectable levels of viral RNA inside the plasma, unlike mice engrafted with blank NP-treated cells. Stabilization of CD4+ T-cell levels was observed as early as 10 days postviral challenge and by day 21, xenogeneic expansion restored CD4+ T cells to levels similar to those in uninfected control mice. Importantly, preservation of CD4+ T-cell levels was achieved even with CCR5 modification at a frequency of 1 , indicating that this level of CCR5 gene editing by triplex-forming PNAs and donor DNAs might be adequate for a functional effect in vivo at the very least in cellsmoleculartherapy.org/mtnaspecific antibodies). Importantly, at 4 weeks posttransplantation, the targeted CCR5 modification was detected in splenic lymphocytes only from the mouse transplanted with PBMCs treated with CCR5-NPs but not in the cells in the engrafted mice in the handle groups (Figure 4b). To ask no matter if targeted CCR5 disruption via PNA/ DNA-containing NPs confers resistance of the modified PBMCs to HIV-1, PBMCs heterozygous for the CCR5-32 mutation had been treated with either blank or CCR5-NPs. Twenty-four hours posttreatment, an aliquot of both cell populations was harvested, and analysis in the genomic DNA by AS-PCR confirmed the presence on the CCR5-targeted modification in only the CCR5-NP reated cells (consistent using the results above; data not shown). The experimental and manage cell populations have been then transplanted into adult NOD-scid IL2r-/- mice and permitted to engraft. Fourteen days posttransplantation, engraftment was confirmed by flow cytometric staining of mouse peripheral blood with antibodies certain for human T cells, then the mice had been infected together with the CCR5-tropic HIV-1BaL by intraperitoneal injection (Figure 5a). Peripheral blood was analyzed periodically over the course of three weeks to assess the dynamics of human CD4+ T-cell levels in response to the viral infection by flow cytometry. HIV-1 RNA levels in the plasma were assessed by the Amplicor (Roche Molecular Diagnostics, Indianapolis, IN) assay to provide a quantitative measure of viral infection.Nanoparticles Confer HIV Resistance In Vivo Schleifman et al.a-16 -15 -7Timeline (days) 4 7 ten 14BleedBleed BleedBleedBleedBleedTransplantationInfection Day 7 29.six Day ten 21.six Day 14 six.35 Day 21 5.41bBlank-NP104 103 10 10 ten ten CCR5-NP2 1Day four 33.6104 103 102 1104 103 102 1104 103 102 1104 103 102100 101 102 10310100 101 102 10310100 101 102 10310100 101 102 103100100 101 102 10334.325.420.123.133.0103 102 101103 102 101 100 101 102 103 104103 102 101 100 101 102 103 104103 102 101 one CDK14 Formulation hundred 101 102 103 104103 102 101 one hundred 101 102 103 104 one hundred 104 103 102 101 one hundred 101 102 103 104 100 100 101 102 103 104 100 101 102 103CD+104 Uninfected 103 102 10157.4104 103 102144.7104 103 IL-15 custom synthesis 102141.9104 103 102152.352.1100 101 102 103100 101 102 103100 101 102 103 104 CD+c*CD3+CD4+ T cells CD3+CD4+ T cells one hundred 80 60 40 20 0 one hundred 80 60 40 20**NS CD3+CD4+ T cells one hundred 80 60 40 20*P 0.05 **P 0.—Day post-infection 1,000,000 one hundred,000 ten,000 1,000 10 1 1,000,000 100,000 10,000 1,000 10Day post-infection 1,000,000 one hundred,000 10,000 1,000 10Day post-infectionHIV-1 copies/mlHIV-1 copies/mlHIV-1 copies/mlDay post-infection Blank-NPDay post-infection CCR5-NPDay post-infection UninfectedFigure 5 Mice reconstituted with CCR5-targeted nanoparticle.