All articles tagged with #adeno associated virus
Researchers at Wuhan University have developed a modified CRISPR protein, enEbCas12a, that is small enough to be packaged within an adeno-associated virus for gene therapy. This new protein shows efficient gene-editing activity and has successfully reduced cholesterol levels in mice, suggesting potential for future clinical applications.
Researchers have developed a versatile system for in vivo transgene delivery using adeno-associated virus (AAV) that allows for efficient and tissue-specific transgene expression by regulating the expression of the gene encoding the AAV receptor, thereby precisely targeting AAV to the cell type of interest. This system has broad utility in biomedical research for achieving cell type-specific transgene expression in mice.
Scientists have identified adeno-associated virus type 2 (AAV-2) as a likely cause of a surge of severe hepatitis that affected children around the world last year. AAV-2 is a common but usually not pathogenic virus that was found to be strongly associated with the cases, likely aided by co-infection with other common viruses. The affected children might have been genetically unlucky as well. The virus is a satellite virus that can only make more of itself inside a cell when another “helper” virus is infecting that same cell. The studies suggest that most of the cases carried the same variant of a gene that’s known to influence our immune response, making the children more vulnerable to the unlikely scenario that led to their hepatitis.
A new study has found that adeno-associated virus type 2 (AAV2) may be a cause of acute severe hepatitis in children in the United States. The study analyzed liver tissue samples from 31 children with acute severe hepatitis of unknown cause and found that 10 of them had evidence of AAV2 infection. AAV2 is a common virus that usually causes no symptoms, but in rare cases can cause liver disease. The findings suggest that AAV2 should be considered as a potential cause of acute severe hepatitis in children.