Potential of allospecific gene-engineered T cells in transplantation gene therapy: Specific T cell activation determines transgene expression in vitro and in vivo

T lymphocytes, regardless of their specificity, are considered key targets for genetic modification in the treatment of inherited or acquired human diseases. In this study, we generated Lewis T cell lines specific for Dark Agouti rat alloantigens and tested the potential of allospecific T lymphocytes as carriers of genes encoding therapeutic proteins in transplantation gene therapy. These allospecific T lymphocytes were successfully, stably transduced with enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) by an Mo-MuLV-based retrovirus vector. A novel gene delivery protocol was utilized, resulting in nearly 100% EGFP-expressing T cells. This approach enabled tracking of allospecific transduced T cells in vivo and illustrates their transgene production by fluorometric determination after ex vivo isolation. Quantitation of EGFP transgene expression was used to determine the influence of T cell receptor-specific activation on transgene regulation. A strict positive correlation between activation state and expression level was detected in vitro and in vivo. The activation-induced increase in transgene expression could be blocked by interference with T cell activation signaling pathways by cyclosporin A, anti-CD4 MAb, or CTLA4-Ig. These data provide strong evidence that direct or indirect effects caused by activation- induced transcription factors are crucial in transgene upregulation. Allospecific activation in spleens, lymph nodes, and transplanted grafts can be considered as antigen-specific targeting strategy. This activation might be useful in expressing therapeutic proteins such as TGF-β or IL-10 specific to these sites. T lymphocyte priming and activation might be prevented or altered by modification of the local microenvironments, thereby exerting a therapeutic influence on acute and chronic graft rejection processes.