Genetic Modification of Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes with a Transdominant Negative Form of Rev: Safety and Toxicity

Abstract

Overview summary Expression of Rev M10, a transdominant mutant form of the Rev gene, in T cell lines confers resistance to HIV in vitro. Isertion of this Rev M10 gene into PBL appears to be nontoxic and well-tolerated by SCID mice. These results demonstrate that genetic modification of T cells by an antiviral gene can be performed safely and without overt toxicity. This finding encourages the development of therapeutic strategies to genetically protect T cells to prolong their survival in HIV-infected individuals.