Prevention of cardiac hypertrophy by angiotensin II type-2 receptor gene transfer.

The role of the angiotensin II type-2 receptor (AT2R) in cardiac hypertrophy remains elusive despite its demonstrated involvement in cardiovascular development. We have previously shown that a lentiviral vector gene delivery system is able to transduce cardiac tissue with high efficiency in vivo. Using such an approach, our objectives in the present study were 2-fold: (1) to overexpress the AT2R in cardiac tissue after completion of natural embryonic development of the heart and (2) to determine the effects of this overexpression on cardiac hypertrophy and basal blood pressure (BP).

Efficient large-scale production and concentration of HIV-1-based lentiviral vectors for use in vivo.

The aim of this study was to develop an efficient method for packaging and concentrating lentiviral vectors that consistently yields high-titer virus on a scale suitable for in vivo applications. Transient cotransfection of 293T packaging cells with DNA plasmids encoding lentiviral vector components was optimized using SuperFect, an activated dendrimer-based transfection reagent. The use of SuperFect allowed reproducible and efficient production of high-titer lentiviral vector at concentrations greater than 1 x 10(7) transducing units per ml (TU/ml) and required less than one-third of the total amount of DNA used in traditional calcium phosphate transfection methods.

Genetic targeting of the renin-angiotensin system for long-term control of hypertension.

Although traditional approaches are effective for the treatment and control of hypertension, they have not succeeded in curing the disease, and have therefore reached a plateau. As a result of the completion of the Human Genome Project and the continuous advancement in gene delivery systems, it is now possible to investigate genetic means for the treatment and possible cure for hypertension. In this review we discuss the potential of genetic targeting of the renin-angiotensin system for the treatment of hypertension.