Gene therapy rescues cilia defects and restores olfactory function in a mammalian ciliopathy model

Jeremy C. McIntyre, Erica Ellen Davis, Ariell Joiner, Corey L. Williams, I. Chun Tsai, Paul M. Jenkins, Dyke P. McEwen, Lian Zhang, John Escobado, Sophie Thomas, Katarzyna Szymanska, Colin A. Johnson, Philip L. Beales, Eric D. Green, James C. Mullikin, Aniko Sabo, Donna M. Muzny, Richard A. Gibbs, Tania Attié-Bitach, Bradley K. YoderRandall R. Reed, Elias Nicholas Katsanis, Jeffrey R. Martens*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

95 Scopus citations

Abstract

Cilia are evolutionarily conserved microtubule-based organelles that are crucial for diverse biological functions, including motility, cell signaling and sensory perception. In humans, alterations in the formation and function of cilia manifest clinically as ciliopathies, a growing class of pleiotropic genetic disorders. Despite the substantial progress that has been made in identifying genes that cause ciliopathies, therapies for these disorders are not yet available to patients. Although mice with a hypomorphic mutation in the intraflagellar transport protein IFT88 (Ift88 Tg737Rpw mice, also known as ORPK mice) have been well studied, the relevance of IFT88 mutations to human pathology is unknown. We show that a mutation in IFT88 causes a hitherto unknown human ciliopathy. In vivo complementation assays in zebrafish and mIMCD3 cells show the pathogenicity of this newly discovered allele. We further show that ORPK mice are functionally anosmic as a result of the loss of cilia on their olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs). Notably, adenoviral-mediated expression of IFT88 in mature, fully differentiated OSNs of ORPK mice is sufficient to restore ciliary structures and rescue olfactory function. These studies are the first to use in vivo therapeutic treatment to reestablish cilia in a mammalian ciliopathy. More broadly, our studies indicate that gene therapy is a viable option for cellular and functional rescue of the complex ciliary organelle in established differentiated cells.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1423-1428
Number of pages6
JournalNature Medicine
Volume18
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2012

Funding

This work was support by US National Institutes of Health grants R01DC009606 (J.R.M.), F32DC011990 (J.C.M.), R01DC004553, R01DC008295 (R.R.R.), R01DK75996 (B.K.Y.), R01EY021872 (E.E.D.), R01HD04260, R01DK072301 and R01DK075972 (N.K.), by l\u2019Agence National pour la Recherche (ANR) 2010 FOETOCILPATH 1122 01 (T.A.-B.) and by the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hepatorenal Fibrocystic Disease Core Center (DK074083). E.E.D., C.A.J., P.L.B. and N.K. are supported by the European Community\u2019s Seventh Framework Programme FP7/2009 under grant agreement 241955, SYSCILIA. N.K. is a Distinguished Jean and George W. Brumley Professor. We thank P. Loget for referring the family for this study, S. Dugan-Rocha, U. Nagaswamy and A. Hawes for assistance with mutational screening and R. Margolskee (Mount Sinai School of Medicine of New York University) for providing antibodies.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

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