Imaging the modulation of adenoviral kinetics and biodistribution for cancer gene therapy

Joseph D. Mocanu, Kenneth W. Yip, Nehad M. Alajez, Wei Shi, Jian Hua Li, Sarah J. Lunt, Eduardo H. Moriyama, Brian C. Wilson, Michael Milosevic, Kwok Wai Lo, Nico van Rooijen, Pierre Busson, Carlo Bastianutto, Fei Fei Liu*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

To explore systemic utilization of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-specific transcriptionally targeted adenoviruses, three vectors were constructed to examine kinetics, specificity, and biodistribution: adv.oriP.luc, expressing luciferase under EBV-specific control; adv.SV40luc, expressing luciferase constitutively; and adv.oriP.E1A.oriP.luc, a conditionally replicating adenovirus, expressing both luciferase and E1A. Bioluminescence imaging (BLI) was conducted on tumor-bearing severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice (C666-1, EBV-positive human nasopharyngeal cancer) treated intravenously (i.v.) with 3 × 108 infectious units (ifu) of the adenoviral vectors. At 72 hours, adv.oriPluc demonstrated an 8.4-fold higher tumor signal than adv.SV40luc; adv.oriP.E1A.oriP.luc was 26.7-fold higher; however, a significant liver signal was also observed, necessitating further action to improve biodistribution. Several compounds were examined to this end, including norepinephrine, serotonin, clodronate liposomes, and STI571, to determine whether any of these measures could improve adenoviral biodistribution. Each of these interventions was assessed using BLI in mice i.v. injected with adv.oriP.luc. STI571 achieved the highest increase in tumor-to-liver ratio (TLR; 6.6-fold), which was associated with a 59% reduction in tumor interstitial fluid pressure (IFP) along with a decrease in platelet-derived growth factor-β receptor (PDGFβR) activation. This study reports the favorable modulation by STI571 of the biodistribution of adenoviral vectors, providing a potential approach to improving therapeutic outcome.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)921-929
Number of pages9
JournalMolecular Therapy
Volume15
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2007
Externally publishedYes

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