Intratumoral versus intravenous gene therapy using a transcriptionally targeted viral vector in an orthotopic hepatocellular carcinoma rat model

Young Il Kim, Byeong Cheol Ahn, John A. Ronald, Regina Katzenberg, Abhinav Singh, Ramasamy Paulmurugan, Sunetra Ray, Sanjiv S. Gambhir, Lawrence V. Hofmann

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the feasibility of intratumoral delivery of adenoviral vector carrying a bidirectional two-step transcriptional amplification (TSTA) system to amplify transcriptional strength of cancer-specific Survivin promoter in a hepatocellular carcinoma model. Materials and Methods: MCA-RH7777 cells were implanted in rat liver, and tumor formation was confirmed with [ 18F]fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET). The adenoviral vector studied had Survivin promoter driving a therapeutic gene (tumor necrosis factor-α-related apoptosis-inducing ligand [TRAIL]) and a reporter gene (firefly luciferase [FL]; Ad-pSurvivin-TSTA-TRAIL-FL). Tumor-bearing rats were administered Ad-pSurvivin-TSTA-TRAIL-FL intravenously (n = 7) or intratumorally (n = 8). For control groups, adenovirus FL under cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter (Ad-pCMV-FL) was administered intravenously (n = 3) or intratumorally (n = 3). One day after delivery, bioluminescence imaging was performed to evaluate transduction. At 4 and 7 days after delivery, 18F-FDG-PET was performed to evaluate therapeutic efficacy. Results: With intravenous delivery, Ad-pSurvivin-TSTA-TRAIL-FL showed no measurable liver tumor FL signal on day 1 after delivery, but showed better therapeutic efficacy than Ad-pCMV-FL on day 7 (PET tumor/liver ratio, 3.5 ± 0.58 vs 6.0 ± 0.71; P =.02). With intratumoral delivery, Ad-pSurvivin-TSTA-TRAIL-FL showed positive FL signal from all tumors and better therapeutic efficacy than Ad-pCMV-FL on day 7 (2.4 ± 0.50 vs 5.4 ± 0.78; P =.01). In addition, intratumoral delivery of Ad-pSurvivin-TSTA-TRAIL-FL demonstrated significant decrease in tumoral viability compared with intravenous delivery (2.4 ± 0.50 vs 3.5 ± 0.58; P =.03). Conclusions: Intratumoral delivery of a transcriptionally targeted therapeutic vector for amplifying tumor-specific effect demonstrated better transduction efficiency and therapeutic efficacy for liver cancer than systemic delivery, and may lead to improved therapeutic outcome for future clinical practice.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)704-711
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology
Volume23
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2012
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Intratumoral versus intravenous gene therapy using a transcriptionally targeted viral vector in an orthotopic hepatocellular carcinoma rat model'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this