Gene therapy for donor hearts: ex vivo liposome-mediated transfection

Liposomes may be an appropriate transfection vehicle for transplanted hearts, avoiding the use of viruses in immunosuppressed hosts and allowing transfection of nondividing cells. To study whether liposome-mediated transfection could be accomplished during transplantation, we used a liposome-reporter gene system in a rabbit model of allograft cardiac transplantation.

After aortic crossclamping, Stauffland donor hearts were injected with 10 ml Stanford cardioplegic solution; then a 1.3 to 2.0 mg/kg dose of chloramphenicol acetyl transferase in 1:1 deoxyribonucleic acid-liposome complexes was injected proximal to the aortic crossclamp for coronary artery perfusion. The hearts were transplanted into New Zealand White rabbit recipients in the heterotopic cervical position (n = 11 transplants). Recipients were sacrificed at 24 hours. Myocardial specimens (right and left ventricles) and vascular specimens (epicardial coronary artery, aortic root, and coronary sinus) from both the transplanted and native hearts were analyzed for chloramphenicol acetyl transferase protein by means of the enzymatic liquid scintillation assay (counts per minute per milligram of total protein).

In the recipient, myocardial chloramphenicol acetyl transferase activity was significantly greater in treated donor hearts (mean 4.6 x 10(5) cpm/mg +/- 1.1 x 10(5) [standard error]) than in native hearts (mean 4.1 x 10(2) cpm/mg +/- 72 [standard error], p < 0.01, Mann-Whitney U test). In treated donor hearts, right and left ventricular specimens, as well as apical and basal myocardial specimens, were transfected equally. Chloramphenicol acetyl transferase activity in vascular specimens also indicated transfection (mean 5.4 x 10(5) cpm/mg +/- 2.5 x 10(5) [standard error]). Chloramphenicol acetyl transferase activity in the coronary sinus was comparable with that in the coronary arteries, which suggests that liposomes can transverse the coronary capillary beds.

These findings demonstrate that ex vivo transfection of donor hearts with a liposome-reporter gene system results in significant in vivo expression of the transfected gene product after cardiac transplantation. Genetic alteration of myocardium and cardiac vasculature has potential clinical applications in the prevention of posttransplantation rejection, ischemia-reperfusion injury, and both transplant and nontransplant coronary artery disease.