Table 1.
Main viral vector and their characteristics used in pre-clinical and clinical strategies of gene therapy for pancreatic cancer.
| Virus | Insertion Capacity | Target Cells | Delivery | Transgene Expression | Level of Expression | Pre-existant Immunity | Bio-Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AdV | 35 kb | Dividing or non dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Transient | High | Yes | Immunogenic, inflammation No integration |
| AAV | 4.8 kb | Dividing or non dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Stable | Moderate | Yes | Mutational integration |
| Retrov | 8 kb | Dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Stable | Moderate | No | Mutational integration |
| LentiV | 10 kb | Dividing or non dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Stable | High | No | Mutational integration, recombination with WT HIV |
| HSV | 30 kb | Dividing or non dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Transient | High | Yes | Mutational integration, neurotoxicity |
| Pox | 25 kb | Dividing or non dividing | In vivo or In situ | Stable | High | No | Immunogenic, Adjuvant to vaccination |
| SV40 | 5 kb | Dividing or non dividing | Ex vivo or In situ | Stable | Moderate | No | Mutational integration |
AdV: adenovirus derived vector; AAV: Adeno-associated derived vector; RetroV: retroviral derived vector; LentiV: lentiviral derived vector; HSV: herpes simplex viros derived vector; Pox: Pox and vaccinia virus derived vector; SV40: simian virus 40 (papova virus). AdV, HSV and Pox are double stranded DNA virus; AAV is a single stranded DNA virus; RetroV and LentiV are single stranded RNA virus. WT: wild type.