Document Type
Journal Article
Date of this Version
12-14-2011
Publication Source
Human Gene Therapy
Volume
22
Issue
12
Start Page
1499
Last Page
1509
DOI
10.1089/hum.2011.102
Abstract
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a lethal, X-linked recessive disease affecting 1 in 3,500 newborn boys for which there is no effective treatment or cure. One novel strategy that has therapeutic potential for DMD is inhibition of myostatin, a negative regulator of skeletal muscle mass that may also promote fibrosis. Therefore, our goal in this study was to evaluate systemic myostatin inhibition in the golden retriever model of DMD (GRMD). GRMD canines underwent liver-directed gene transfer of a self-complementary adeno-associated virus type 8 vector designed to express a secreted dominant-negative myostatin peptide (n =4) and were compared with age-matched, untreated GRMD controls (n =3). Dogs were followed with serial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for 13 months to assess cross-sectional area and volume of skeletal muscle, then euthanized so that tissue could be harvested for morphological and histological analysis. We found that systemic myostatin inhibition resulted in increased muscle mass in GRMD dogs as assessed by MRI and confirmed at tissue harvest. We also found that hypertrophy of type IIA fibers was largely responsible for the increased muscle mass and that reductions in serum creatine kinase and muscle fibrosis were associated with long-term myostatin inhibition in GRMD. This is the first report describing the effects of long-term, systemic myostatin inhibition in a large-animal model of DMD, and we believe that the simple and effective nature of our liver-directed gene-transfer strategy makes it an ideal candidate for evaluation as a novel therapeutic approach for DMD patients.
Copyright/Permission Statement
This is a copy of an article published in the Human Gene Therapy © 2011 [copyright Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.]; Human Gene Therapy is available online at: http://www.liebertonline.com.
Recommended Citation
Bish, L. T., Sleeper, M. M., Forbes, S. C., Morine, K. J., Reynolds, C. A., Singletary, G. E., Trafny, D., Pham, J., Bogan, J., Kornegay, J. N., Vandenborne, K., Walter, G. A., & Sweeney, H. L. (2011). Long-Term Systemic Myostatin Inhibition via Liver-Targeted Gene Transfer in Golden Retriever Muscular Dystrophy. Human Gene Therapy, 22 (12), 1499-1509. http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/hum.2011.102
Included in
Comparative and Laboratory Animal Medicine Commons, Congenital, Hereditary, and Neonatal Diseases and Abnormalities Commons, Musculoskeletal Diseases Commons
Date Posted: 24 July 2013
This document has been peer reviewed.