Direct interaction of human serum proteins with AAV virions to enhance AAV transduction: immediate impact on clinical applications

Recent hemophilia B clinical trials using adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene delivery have demonstrated much lower coagulation factor IX (FIX) production in patients compared with the high levels observed in animal models and AAV capsid-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte response elicited at high doses of AAV vectors. These results emphasize the necessity to explore effective approaches for enhancement of AAV transduction. Initially, we found that incubation of all AAV vectors with human serum enhanced AAV transduction. Complementary analytical experiments demonstrated that human serum albumin (HSA) directly interacted with the AAV capsid and augmented AAV transduction. The enhanced transduction was observed with clinical grade HSA. Mechanistic studies suggest that HSA increases AAV binding to target cells, and that the interaction of HSA with AAV does not interfere with the AAV infection pathway. Importantly, HSA incubation during vector dialysis also increased transduction. Finally, HSA enhancement of AAV transduction in a model of hemophilia B displayed greater than a fivefold increase in vector-derived circulating FIX, which improved the bleeding phenotype correction. In conclusion, incubation of HSA with AAV vectors supports a universal augmentation of AAV transduction and, more importantly, this approach can be immediately transitioned to the clinic for the treatment of hemophilia and other diseases.