Level D· Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studiesNarrative ReviewEurope PMCOpen access

Progress and prospect of minicircle as a minimized non-viral DNA vector in gene therapy and regenerative medicine

Chanani P., Rezaei N., Dormiani K., Shokatian M., Ata-Abadi NS.

Narrative Review, published in Mol Ther Nucleic Acids (2025) — summary generated from the PubMed abstract.

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Level D· Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studiesEvidence level of this study

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
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This page is generated from the PubMed record. The Thai description is an automated summary of bibliographic fields and the abstract, not a full translation, and is not medical advice.

Study type
Narrative Review
Journal
Mol Ther Nucleic Acids (2025)
Reported sample size
—
Source database
Europe PMC
PMID
41036465
PMCID
PMC12481926
DOI
10.1016/j.omtn.2025.102682
Citations
4

Abstract (original English)

The ideal and reliable genetic treatment of human diseases relies on the use of an effective vector that does not trigger serious side effects such as immunogenicity and genotoxicity. In recent years, non-viral DNA vectors have gained significant attention due to their low cytotoxicity and minimal immune responses. Minicircles are small episomal supercoiled non-viral DNA vectors derived from conventional plasmids through in vivo recombination in bacterial cells. Numerous evidences have shown promising results in the diagnostic and therapeutic applications of minicircles due to their unique features such as small size and high ectopic expression with lower side effects. Extensive studies have shown that these minimized DNA vectors can be a superior alternative to other vectors, overcoming their technical drawbacks and clinical limitations. Based on these impressive outcomes, minicircles have remarkable potential for clinical translation in the near future. In this review, we present the characteristics, production method, advantages, and disadvantages of these vectors. We also summarize key studies that highlight the diverse and promising applications of minicircle technology as an effective tool in non-viral gene therapy and regenerative medicine.

What this study does not prove

  • • This study does not prove SVF is an approved treatment or a replacement for standard care.
  • • This is a narrative review: it collects no new patient data and does not systematically appraise evidence quality.

Evidence level

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

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