Nuova metodica di terapia genica per indurre l osteogenesi: risultati della sperimentazione in Fase I in tre differenti modelli animali

[Autom. eng. transl.] Numerous gene therapy techniques have been tested in the orthopedic field in recent years in order to improve bone regeneration in various pathological conditions. In this paper we present a new ex vivo gene therapy method to induce osteogenesis. To this end, cultures of autologous skin fibroblasts have been used, whose realization in vitro is extremely simple and which have the considerable advantage of being obtainable rapidly with a simple skin biopsy. The cells thus obtained were then modified ex vivo with Ad-LMP-3 (Adenovirus for the expression of Lim Mineralization Protein-3) and retransplanted, through an osteoconductive scaffold in hydroxyapatite and collagen (HA / Col), in three different animal models experimental: ectopic bone formation in the triceps muscle, vertebral fusion in immunocompetent mice and healing of a model of mandibular critical bone defect in immunocompetent rats. The method described here was effective in all the models used for bone induction, confirming the in vivo properties of hLMP-3 (human Lim Mineralization Protein-3), the efficacy of the HA / Col scaffold model, but above all opening interesting perspectives for a possible clinical experimentation on man.