Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) Mediated Dystrophin Gene Transfer Studies and Exon Skipping Strategies for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), an X-linked inherited muscle-wasting disease primarily affecting young boys with prevalence of between1:3,5001: 5,000, is a rare genetic disease caused by defects in the gene for dystrophin. Dystrophin protein is critical to the stability of myofibers in skeletal and cardiac muscle. There is currently no cure available to ameliorate DMD and/or its patho-physiology. A number of therapeutic strategies including molecular-based therapeutics that replace or correct the missing or nonfunctional dystrophin protein have been devised to correct the patho-physiological consequences induced by dystrophin absence. We will review the current in vivo experimentation status (including preclinical models and clinical trials) for two of these approaches, namely: 1) Adeno-associated virus (AAV) mediated (micro) dystrophin gene augmentation/supplementation and 2) Antisense oligonucleotide (AON)-mediated exon skipping strategies.