Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (MPSIIIA) is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by mutations in N-sulfoglucosamine sulfohydrolase (SGSH), resulting in heparan sulfate (HS) accumulation and progressive neurodegeneration. There are no treatments. We previously demonstrated improved neuropathology in MPSIIIA mice using lentiviral vectors (LVs) overexpressing SGSH in wild-type (WT) hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplants (HSCTs), achieved via donor monocyte/microglial engraftment in the brain. However, neurological disease was not corrected using LVs in autologous MPSIIIA HSCTs. To improve brain expression via monocyte/microglial specificity, LVs expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) under ubiquitous phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) or myeloid-specific promoters were compared in transplanted HSCs. LV-CD11b-GFP gave significantly higher monocyte/B-cell eGFP expression than LV-PGK-GFP or LV-CD18-GFP after 6 months. Subsequently, autologous MPSIIIA HSCs were transduced with either LV-PGK-coSGSH or LV-CD11b-coSGSH vectors expressing codon-optimized SGSH and transplanted into MPSIIIA mice. Eight months after HSCT, LV-PGK-coSGSH vectors produced bone marrow SGSH (576% normal activity) similar to LV-CD11b-coSGSH (473%), but LV-CD11b-coSGSH had significantly higher brain expression (11 versus 7%), demonstrating improved brain specificity. LV-CD11b-coSGSH normalized MPSIIIA behavior, brain HS, GM2 ganglioside, and neuroinflammation to WT levels, whereas LV-PGK-coSGSH partly corrected neuropathology but not behavior. We demonstrate compelling evidence of neurological disease correction using autologous myeloid driven lentiviral-HSC gene therapy in MPSIIIA mice.

The pediatric lysosomal storage disorder mucopolysaccharidosis type II is caused by mutations in IDS, resulting in accumulation of heparan and dermatan sulfate, causing severe neurodegeneration, skeletal disease, and cardiorespiratory disease. Most patients manifest with cognitive symptoms, which cannot be treated with enzyme replacement therapy, as native IDS does not cross the blood–brain barrier. We tested a brain‐targeted hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy approach using lentiviral IDS fused to ApoEII (IDS.ApoEII) compared to a lentivirus expressing normal IDS or a normal bone marrow transplant. In mucopolysaccharidosis II mice, all treatments corrected peripheral disease, but only IDS.ApoEII mediated complete normalization of brain pathology and behavior, providing significantly enhanced correction compared to IDS. A normal bone marrow transplant achieved no brain correction. Whilst corrected macrophages traffic to the brain, secreting IDS/IDS.ApoEII enzyme for cross‐correction, IDS.ApoEII was additionally more active in plasma and was taken up and transcytosed across brain endothelia significantly better than IDS via both heparan sulfate/ApoE‐dependent receptors and mannose‐6‐phosphate receptors. Brain‐targeted hematopoietic stem cell gene therapy provides a promising therapy for MPS II patients.

Tordo et al. present a novel AAV gene therapy vector, AAV-TT, which exceeds the current benchmark neurotropic serotypes AAV9 and AAVrh10 and enables unprecedented correction of a lysosomal transmembrane enzyme deficiency. AAV-TT based gene therapies may thus be suitable for the treatment of human neurological diseases characterised by global neuropathology.

This is the first report of cloning the entire human mitochondrial genome and the first step in developing a gene delivery vehicle for human mitochondrial gene therapy.