A gene therapy treatment for alpha 1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency is provided comprising a plasmid or viral, e.g., an AAV, vector coding for an elastase- or cathepsin G-inhibiting, oxidation-resistant human AAT with a substitution at, for example, Met358 and/or Met351.

The present invention relates to in vivo methods of delivering recombinant virions or viral vectors to a subject, including a human diagnosed with or suspected of having liver fibrosis. The disclosure also relates to methods in which recombinant virions, such as AAV virions, are introduced into the myofibroblasts of the liver and to deliver therapeutic nucleic acids, including those nucleic acids necessary to differentiate a myofibroblast into a hepatocyte, thereby not only improving liver function but also reducing collagen deposition and thus liver fibrosis.

The invention provides hybrid and recombinant phagemid vectors for expressing a transgene in a target cell transduced with the vector. A recombinant phagemid particle comprises at least one transgene expression cassette which encodes an agent which exerts a biological effect on the target cell, characterised in that the phagemid particle comprises a genome which lacks at least 50% of its bacteriophage genome. The invention extends to the use of such phagemid expression systems as a research tool, and for the delivery of transgenes in a variety of gene therapy applications, DNA and/or peptide vaccine delivery and imaging techniques. The invention extends to in vitro, in vivo or in situ methods for producing viral vectors, such as recombinant adeno-associated viruses (rAAV) or lentivirus vectors (rLV), and to genetic constructs used in such methods.

The invention provides an isolated chimeric virus comprising bocavirus capsid protein and a recombinant adeno-associated viral (AAV) genome, an isolated rBoV comprising human bocavirus capsid protein and a recombinant BoV genome, and uses therefor.

Provided herein are compositions that include at least two different nucleic acid vectors, where each of the at least two different vectors includes a coding sequence that encodes a different portion of an otoferlin protein, and the use of these compositions to treat hearing loss in a subject.

The invention relates to novel adeno-associated virus (AAV) capsid proteins, AAV particles comprising a novel capsid protein, polynucleotides encoding these capsid proteins and AAV vectors expressing these capsid proteins. The invention also relates to methods of making the herein described AAV vectors expressing the novel capsid proteins of the invention and associated therapeutic uses of thereof.

An expression vector capable of disrupting the silencing of cell cycle genes in adult cells, such as adult cardiac myocytes and other quiescent cells in terminally differentiated tissues, comprising: (a) a nucleic acid sequence encoding lysine-specific demethylase 4D (KDM4D); (b) a promoter that induces or effects overexpression of KDM4D, wherein the promoter is operably linked to the nucleic acid sequence; and (c) a regulatory element that inducibly represses the overexpression of KDM4D. The vector can be administered to a subject in a method for inducing tissue-specific hyperplasia in a mammal, including cardiomyocyte proliferation. The method provides for regenerative therapy, including improving cardiac function after myocardial infarct and other forms of cardiac damage.

The present invention relates to in vivo methods of delivering recombinant virions or viral vectors to a subject, including a human diagnosed with or suspected of having liver fibrosis. The disclosure also relates to methods in which recombinant virions, such as AAV virions, are introduced into the myofibroblasts of the liver and to deliver therapeutic nucleic acids, including those nucleic acids necessary to differentiate a myofibroblast into a hepatocyte, thereby not only improving liver function but also reducing collagen deposition and thus liver fibrosis.

Provided herein are compositions that include at least two different nucleic acid vectors, where each of the at least two different vectors includes a coding sequence that encodes a different portion of an otoferlin protein, and the use of these compositions to treat hearing loss in a subject.

An expression cassette containing overlapping open reading frames and an application thereof are provided. The overlapping open reading frames are overlapping open reading frames of a first ORF and a second ORF and include in sequence from a 5 end to a 3 end: a first promoter at least used to drive gene transcription of the first ORF; a 5 part of a gene of the first ORF; an intron; and a 3 part of a gene of the second ORF, the intron including a second promoter used only to drive gene transcription of the second ORF. By arranging two promoters in a single expression cassette in the disclosure, the two promoters are used to drive the expression of proteins of the overlapping reading frames and regulate the relative expression time and expression intensity of different proteins.