Adipocytes as a vehicle for ex vivo gene therapy: Novel replacement therapy for diabetes and other metabolic diseases

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Because of its availability and recent advances in cell biology, adipose tissue is now considered an ideal target site for the preparation of recipient cells and for the transplantation of gene-transduced cells for supplementation of therapeutic proteins. Inherited or acquired serum protein deficiencies are the ideal targets for gene therapy. However, to develop an effective ex vivo gene therapy-based protein replacement treatment, the requirements for the recipient cells are different from those for standard gene therapy that is intended to correct the function of the recipient cells themselves. To meet the requirements for such a therapeutic strategy, recent in vitro and animal model studies have developed new methods for the preparation, culture, expansion and manipulation of adipose cells using advanced gene transduction methods and transplantation scaffolds. In this short review, we introduce the progress made in novel adipose tissue-based therapeutic strategies for the treatment of protein deficiencies by our group and other investigators, and describe their future applications for diabetes and other metabolic diseases. (J Diabetes Invest, doi: 10.1111/j.2040-1124.2011.00133.x, 2011).

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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