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J. Virol., 12 1997, 9231-9247, Vol 71, No. 12
CC Yang, X Xiao, X Zhu, DC Ansardi, ND Epstein, MR Frey, AG Matera and RJ Samulski
The human parvovirus adeno-associated virus (AAV) is unique in its ability
to target viral integration to a specific site on chromosome 19 (ch-19).
Recombinant AAV (rAAV) vectors retain the ability to integrate but have
apparently lost this ability to target. In this report, we characterize the
terminal-repeat-mediated integration for wild-type (wt), rAAV, and in vitro
systems to gain a better understanding of these differences. Cell lines
latent for either wt or rAAV were characterized by a variety of techniques,
including PCR, Southern hybridization, and fluorescence in situ
hybridization analysis. More than 40 AAV-rAAV integration junctions were
cloned, sequenced, and then subjected to comparison and analysis. In both
immortalized and normal diploid human cells, wt AAV targeted integration to
ch-19. Integrated provirus structures consisted of head-to-tail tandem
arrays with the majority of the junction sequences involving the AAV
inverted terminal repeats (ITRs). No complete viral ITRs were directly
observed. In some examples, the AAV p5 promoter sequence was found to be
fused at the virus-cell junction. Data from dot blot analysis of PCR
products were consistent with the occurrence of inversions of genomic
and/or viral DNA sequences at the wt integration site. Unlike wt provirus
junctions, rAAV provirus junctions mapped to a subset of non-ch-19
sequences. Southern analysis supported the integration of proviruses from
two independent cell lines at the same locus on ch-2. In addition, provirus
terminal repeat sequences existed in both the flip and flop orientations,
with microhomology evident at the junctions. In all cases with the
exception of the ITRs, the vector integrated intact. rAAV junction sequence
data were consistent with the occurrence of genomic rearrangement by
deletion and/or rearrangement-translocation at the integration locus.
Finally, junctions formed in an in vitro system between several AAV
substrates and the ch-19 target site were isolated and characterized.
Linear AAV substrates typically utilized the end of the virus DNA substrate
as the point of integration, whereas products derived from AAV terminal
repeat hairpin structures in the presence or absence of Rep protein
resembled AAV-ch-19 junctions generated in vivo. These results describing
wt AAV, rAAV, and in vitro integration junctions suggest that the viral
integration event itself is mediated by terminal repeat hairpin structures
via nonviral cellular recombination pathways, with specificity for ch-19 in
vivo requiring additional viral components. These studies should have an
important impact on the use of rAAV vectors in human gene therapy.
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology
Cellular recombination pathways and viral terminal repeat hairpin structures are sufficient for adeno-associated virus integration in vivo and in vitro
Gene Therapy Center and Department of Pharmacology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 27599-7352, USA.
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