The mission of the Center for Fetal Monkey Gene Transfer for Heart, Lung, and Blood Diseases is three-fold:

1. To use established monkey models to explore gene-based strategies for the treatment of heart, lung, and blood disorders;
2. To provide accessible monkey models to the research community in which to evaluate the safety and efficiency of gene therapy strategies as they emerge; and
3. To provide NHLBI-funded investigators with essential expertise and resources to actively pursue gene-based approaches in monkeys in their research programs.

The following topics have been investigated at the Center:

1. Efficiency of fetal gene transfer to target specific cell populations;
2. Fetal immune responses to transgene products and/or vectors;
3. Potential effects of gene transfer on prenatal and postnatal development;
4. Potential risk(s) to the fetus, infant, and mother;
5. Assessment of inadvertent germ-line transmission; and
6. In vivo imaging techniques for long-term noninvasive monitoring of gene expression.

Recent Publications:

• Fischer-Lougheed JY, Tarantal AF, Shulkin I, Mitsuhashi N, Kohn DB, Lee CC and Kearns-Jonker M. Gene therapy to inhibit xenoantibody production using lentiviral vectors in non-human primates. Gene Therapy 14:49-57, 2007.
• Tarantal AF, Lee CC, Jimenez DF and Cherry SR. Fetal Gene Transfer Using Lentiviral Vectors: In Vivo Detection of Gene Expression by microPET and Optical Imaging in Fetal and Infant Monkeys. Human Gene Therapy 17:1241-53, 2006.
• Pacak CA, Mah CS, Thattaliyath BD, Conlon TJ, Lewis MA, Cloutier DE, Zolotukhin I, Tarantal AF and Byrne BJ. Recombinant adeno-associated virus serotype 9 leads to preferential cardiac transduction in vivo.Circulation Research 99:e3-9, 2006.
• Lee CC, Ye F and Tarantal AF. Comparison of growth and differentiation of fetal and adult rhesus monkey mesenchymal stem cells. Stem Cells and Development 15:209-20, 2006.
• Kahl CA, Tarantal AF, Lee CI, Choi C, Pepper K, Peterson D, Fletcher MD, Leapley AC, Fisher J, Burns TS, Ultsch MN, Dorey FJ and Kohn DB. Effects of busulfan dose escalation on engraftment of infant rhesus monkey hematopoietic stem cells after gene marking by lentiviral vector. Experimental Hematology 34:369-81, 2006.
• Lee CI, Fletcher MD, and Tarantal AF. Effect of age on the frequency, cell cycle, and lineage maturation of rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) CD34+ and hematopoietic progenitor cells. Pediatric Research 58:315-22, 2005.
• Lee CI, Jimenez DF, Kohn DB, and Tarantal AF. Fetal gene transfer using lentiviral vectors and the potential for germ-line transmission in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). Human Gene Therapy 16:417-25, 2005.
• Tarantal AF, McDonald R, Jimenez DF, O'Shea C, Leapley AC, Won RH, Lee CI, Plopper CG, Ekert JE, Lutzko C, and Kohn DB. Intrapulmonary and intramyocardial gene transfer in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta): safety and efficiency of HIV-1-derived lentiviral vectors for fetal gene delivery. Molecular Therapy 12:87-98, 2005.
• Jimenez DF, Leapley AC, Lee CI, Ultsch MN, and Tarantal AF. Fetal CD34+ cells in the maternal circulation and long-term microchimerism in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). Transplantation 79:142-6, 2005.
• Jimenez DF, Lee CI, O'Shea CE, Kohn DB, and Tarantal AF. HIV-1-derived lentiviral vectors and fetal route of administration on transgene biodistribution and expression in rhesus monkeys. Gene Therapy 12:821-30, 2005.
• Lee CI, Kohn DB, Ekert JE, and Tarantal AF. Morphological analysis and lentiviral transduction of fetal monkey bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells. Molecular Therapy 9:112-23, 2004.
• Lee CI, Cowan MJ, Kohn DB, and Tarantal AF. Simian immunodeficiency virus infection of hematopoietic stem cells and bone marrow stromal cells. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome 36:553-561, 2004.
• Jimenez DF and Tarantal AF. Quantitative analysis of male fetal DNA in maternal serum of gravid rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). Pediatric Research 53:18-23, 2003.
• Jimenez DF and Tarantal AF. Fetal gender determination in early first trimester pregnancies of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) by fluorescent PCR analysis of maternal serum. Journal of Medical Primatology 32:315-9, 2003.