Preclinical studies in support of phase I/II clinical trials to treat GUCY2D-associated Leber congenital amaurosis.

Mutations in GUCY2D are associated with severe early-onset retinal dystrophy, Leber congenital amaurosis type 1 (LCA1), a leading cause of blindness in children. Despite a high degree of visual disturbance stemming from photoreceptor dysfunction, patients with LCA1 largely retain normal photoreceptor structure, suggesting that they are good candidates for gene replacement therapy. The purpose of this study was to conduct the preclinical and IND-enabling experiments required to support clinical application of AAV5-hGRK1-GUCY2D in patients harboring biallelic recessive mutations in GUCY2D. Preclinical studies were conducted in mice to evaluate the effect of vector manufacturing platforms and transgene species on the therapeutic response. Dose-ranging studies were conducted in cynomolgus monkeys to establish the minimum dose required for efficient photoreceptor transduction. Good laboratory practice (GLP) studies evaluated systemic biodistribution in rats and toxicology in non-human primates (NHPs). These results expanded our knowledge of dose response for an AAV5-vectored transgene under control of the human rhodopsin kinase (hGRK1) promoter in NHPs with respect to photoreceptor transduction and safety and, in combination with the rat biodistribution and mouse efficacy studies, informed the design of a first-in-human clinical study in patients with LCA1.

An immune tolerance approach using transient low-dose methotrexate in the ERT-naïve setting of patients treated with a therapeutic protein: experience in infantile-onset Pompe disease.

PURPOSE: To investigate immune tolerance induction with transient low-dose methotrexate (TLD-MTX) initiated with recombinant human acid α-glucosidase (rhGAA), in treatment-naïve cross-reactive immunologic material (CRIM)-positive infantile-onset Pompe disease (IOPD) patients. METHODS: Newly diagnosed IOPD patients received subcutaneous or oral 0.4 mg/kg TLD-MTX for 3 cycles (3 doses/cycle) with the first 3 rhGAA infusions. Anti-rhGAA IgG titers, classified as high-sustained (HSAT; ≥51,200, ≥2 times after 6 months), sustained intermediate (SIT; ≥12,800 and <51,200 within 12 months), or low (LT; ≤6400 within 12 months), were compared with those of 37 CRIM-positive IOPD historic comparators receiving rhGAA alone. RESULTS: Fourteen IOPD TLD-MTX recipients at the median age of 3.8 months (range, 0.7-13.5 months) had a median last titer of 150 (range, 0-51,200) at median rhGAA duration ~83 weeks (range, 36-122 weeks). One IOPD patient (7.1%) developed titers in the SIT range and one patient (7.1%) developed titers in the HSAT range. Twelve of the 14 patients (85.7%) that received TLD-MTX remained LT, versus 5/37 HSAT (peak 51,200-409,600), 7/37 SIT (12,800-51,000), and 23/37 LT (200-12,800) among comparators. CONCLUSION: Results of TLD-MTX coinitiated with rhGAA are encouraging and merit a larger longitudinal study.

The influence of a polymorphism in the gene encoding angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) on treatment outcomes in late-onset Pompe patients receiving alglucosidase alfa.

Correlations between angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) genotype (I/I, I/D, D/D), disease severity at baseline and response to enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) were assessed in the Pompe disease Late-Onset Treatment Study (LOTS). No correlations were observed between ACE genotype and disease severity at baseline. However, D/D patients appeared to have a reduced response to alglucosidase alfa treatment than I/I or I/D patients, suggesting that ACE polymorphisms may influence the response to alglucosidase alfa treatment and warrants further investigation.

Inhibiting TGF-ß activity improves respiratory function in mdx mice.

Respiratory function is the main cause of mortality in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Elevated levels of TGF-ß play a key role in the pathophysiology of DMD. To determine whether therapeutic attenuation of TGF-ß signaling improves respiratory function, mdx mice were treated from 2 weeks of age to 2 months or 9 months of age with either 1D11 (a neutralizing antibody to all three isoforms of TGF-ß), losartan (an angiotensin receptor antagonist), or a combination of the two agents. Respiratory function was measured in nonanesthetized mice by plethysmography. The 9-month-old mdx mice had elevated Penh values and decreased breathing frequency, due primarily to decreased inspiratory flow rate. All treatments normalized Penh values and increased peak inspiratory flow, leading to decreased inspiration times and breathing frequency. Additionally, forelimb grip strength was improved after 1D11 treatment at both 2 and 9 months of age, whereas, losartan improved grip strength only at 2 months. Decreased serum creatine kinase levels (significant improvement for all groups), increased diaphragm muscle fiber density, and decreased hydroxyproline levels (significant improvement for 1D11 only) also suggested improved muscle function after treatment. For all endpoints, 1D11 was equivalent or superior to losartan; coadministration of the two agents was not superior to 1D11 alone. In conclusion, TGF-ß antagonism may be a useful therapeutic approach for treating DMD patients.

Enhanced efficacy of enzyme replacement therapy in Pompe disease through mannose-6-phosphate receptor expression in skeletal muscle.

Enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) with acid α-glucosidase has become available for Pompe disease; however, the response of skeletal muscle, as opposed to the heart, has been attenuated. The poor response of skeletal muscle has been attributed to the low abundance of the cation-independent mannose-6-phosphate receptor (CI-MPR) in skeletal muscle compared to heart. To further understand the role of CI-MPR in Pompe disease, muscle-specific CI-MPR conditional knockout (KO) mice were crossed with GAA-KO (Pompe disease) mice. We evaluated the impact of CI-MPR-mediated uptake of GAA by evaluating ERT in CI-MPR-KO/GAA-KO (double KO) mice. The essential role of CI-MPR was emphasized by the lack of efficacy of ERT as demonstrated by markedly reduced biochemical correction of GAA deficiency and of glycogen accumulations in double KO mice, in comparison with the administration of the same therapeutic doses in GAA-KO mice. Clenbuterol, a selective ß(2)-agonist, enhanced the CI-MPR expression in skeletal tissue and also increased efficacy from GAA therapy, thereby confirming the key role of CI-MPR with regard to enzyme replacement therapy in Pompe disease. Biochemical correction improved in both muscle and non-muscle tissues, indicating that therapy could be similarly enhanced in other lysosomal storage disorders. In summary, enhanced CI-MPR expression might improve the efficacy of enzyme replacement therapy in Pompe disease through enhancing receptor-mediated uptake of GAA.

Development of a simple and rapid method for producing non-fucosylated oligomannose containing antibodies with increased effector function.

Glycosylation in the Fc region of antibodies has been shown to play an important role in antibody function. In the current study, glycosylation of human monoclonal antibodies was metabolically modulated using a potent alpha-mannosidase I inhibitor, kifunensine, resulting in the production of antibodies with oligomannose-type N-glycans. Growing Chinese hamster ovary cells for 11 days in batch culture with a single treatment of kifunensine was sufficient to elicit this effect without any significant impact on cell viability or antibody production. Antibodies expressed in the presence of kifunensine at a concentration as low as 60 ng/mL contained mainly oligomannose-type glycans and demonstrated increased ADCC activity and affinity for FcgammaRIIIA, but reduced C1q binding. Although the kifunensine-mediated shift to oligomannose-type glycans could, in theory, result in rapid clearance of the antibody through increased mannose receptor binding, the serum levels of antibody in mice were not significantly altered up to 168 h following injection. The use of kifunensine provides a simple and rapid method for the production of antibodies with increased ADCC without the time-consuming need to re-engineer either the antibody molecule or the host cell line.

Enhanced efficacy of an AAV vector encoding chimeric, highly secreted acid alpha-glucosidase in glycogen storage disease type II.

Glycogen storage disease type II (GSD-II; Pompe disease; MIM 232300) is an inherited muscular dystrophy caused by deficiency in the activity of the lysosomal enzyme acid alpha-glucosidase (GAA). We hypothesized that chimeric GAA containing an alternative signal peptide could increase the secretion of GAA from transduced cells and enhance the receptor-mediated uptake of GAA in striated muscle. The relative secretion of chimeric GAA from transfected 293 cells increased up to 26-fold. Receptor-mediated uptake of secreted, chimeric GAA corrected cultured GSD-II patient cells. High-level hGAA was sustained in the plasma of GSD-II mice for 24 weeks following administration of an AAV2/8 vector encoding chimeric GAA; furthermore, GAA activity was increased and glycogen content was significantly reduced in striated muscle and in the brain. Administration of only 1 x 10(10) vector particles increased GAA activity in the heart and diaphragm for >18 weeks, whereas 3 x 10(10) vector particles increased GAA activity and reduced glycogen content in the heart, diaphragm, and quadriceps. Furthermore, an AAV2/2 vector encoding chimeric GAA produced secreted hGAA for >12 weeks in the majority of treated GSD-II mice. Thus, chimeric, highly secreted GAA enhanced the efficacy of AAV vector-mediated gene therapy in GSD-II mice.

Carbohydrate-remodelled acid alpha-glucosidase with higher affinity for the cation-independent mannose 6-phosphate receptor demonstrates improved delivery to muscles of Pompe mice.

To enhance the delivery of rhGAA (recombinant GAA, where GAA stands for acid alpha-glucosidase) to the affected muscles in Pompe disease, the carbohydrate moieties on the enzyme were remodelled to exhibit a high affinity ligand for the CI-MPR (cation-independent M6P receptor, where M6P stands for mannose 6-phosphate). This was achieved by chemically conjugating on to rhGAA, a synthetic oligosaccharide ligand bearing M6P residues in the optimal configuration for binding the receptor. The carbonyl chemistry used resulted in the conjugation of approx. six synthetic ligands on to each enzyme. The resulting modified enzyme [neo-rhGAA (modified recombinant human GAA harbouring synthetic oligosaccharide ligands)] displayed near-normal specific activity and significantly increased affinity for the CI-MPR. However, binding to the mannose receptor was unaffected despite the introduction of additional mannose residues in neo-rhGAA. Uptake studies using L6 myoblasts showed neo-rhGAA was internalized approx. 20-fold more efficiently than the unmodified enzyme. Administration of neo-rhGAA into Pompe mice also resulted in greater clearance of glycogen from all the affected muscles when compared with the unmodified rhGAA. Comparable reductions in tissue glycogen levels in the Pompe mice were realized using an approx. 8-fold lower dose of neo-rhGAA in the heart and diaphragm and an approx. 4-fold lower dose in the skeletal muscles. Treatment of older Pompe mice, which are more refractory to enzyme therapy, with 40 mg/kg neo-rhGAA resulted in near-complete clearance of glycogen from all the affected muscles as opposed to only partial correction with the unmodified rhGAA. These results demonstrate that remodelling the carbohydrate of rhGAA to improve its affinity for the CI-MPR represents a feasible approach to enhance the efficacy of enzyme replacement therapy for Pompe disease.

Tissue-specific inactivation of murine M6P/IGF2R.

The mannose 6-phosphate/insulin-like growth factor 2 receptor (M6P/IGF2R) encodes a multifunctional protein involved in lysosomal enzyme trafficking, fetal organogenesis, tumor suppression, and T cell- mediated immunity. M6P/IGF2R is an imprinted gene in mice with expression only from the maternal allele. Complete knockout of this gene causes neonatal lethality, thus preventing analysis of its multifunctional role postnatally. To help elucidate the biological functions of M6P/IGF2R in adulthood, we generated both complete and tissue-specific M6P/IGF2R knockout mice using the Cre/loxP system. We confirm that complete M6P/IGF2R knockout results in fetal overgrowth and neonatal lethality. In contrast, tissue-specific inactivation of this gene in either the liver or skeletal and cardiac muscle gives rise to viable animals with no obvious phenotype. The successful creation of viable tissue-specific M6P/IGF2R knockout mouse models will now allow for detailed analysis of receptor function in a number of cellular processes including brain development, carcinogenesis, lysosomal trafficking, and T cell-mediated immunity.