Gene Delivery to Neurons of the Dorsal Root Ganglia Using Adeno-Associated Viral Vectors - Gene Delivery and Therapy for Neurological Disorders - page 187

Fig. 5 Sections of DRG 2 weeks after direct injection or intrathecal delivery of AAV5-CMV-eGFP-WPRE. ( a , b )
Sections were processed for immunohistochemistry for eGFP ( green ) and III-tubulin ( red ). ( a ) Example of a

section of a transduced DRG after direct injection. ( b ) Example of a section of a transduced DRG after intrathe-
cal injection. Bar = 100

ʲ

ʼ m

Table 1
Comparison of direct injections to intrathecal injections using AAV

Direct injection Intrathecal injection

Highly effi cient transduction of DRG Effi cient transduction of DRG

Low virus quantity needed High virus quantity needed

Local transduction of single DRG Multiple DRG are targeted

Minimal leakage to adjacent tissues Leakage of virus to the cord and periphery

Complex and time consuming procedure Simple and fast procedure

High control of depth and location of needle Poor control of direction of tubing

targeted delivery might be clinically more acceptable. Figure 5
shows an example of DRG that were transduced by direct or intra-
thecal injection using AAV5. See also Table 1 .

2.7 Conclusion

The emergence of AAV vectors for gene therapy applications makes
possible many experiments in the peripheral nervous system and
opens the road to clinical gene therapy applications which may be
developed directly from experimental settings. In this review we
hope to have presented clearly the methods by which AAV vectors
can be reliably delivered to primary sensory neurons in the dorsal
root ganglion.

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for research funding provided by the
International Spinal Research Trust and the Dutch Organization
for Scientifi c Research (NWO).