Definition
Adeno-associated viruses (AAV) are small DNA-containing viruses that belong to the family of Parvoviridae. Thus far, 11 serotypes of adeno-associated viruses (AAV-1 to AAV-11) have been cloned from humans and primates, and multiple further isolates were identified in various other species, including birds, bovines, mice, rats, and goats. According to current knowledge, none of these naturally occurring viruses are pathogenic in humans. AAV type 2 (AAV-2) has been studied for over 40 years and is the best characterized AAV isolate, hence its frequent referral as the AAV prototype. All AAV serotypes are currently being developed and evaluated as gene transfer vectors for the human gene therapy of various inherited or acquired diseases, including different types of cancer.
Characteristics
As typical members of the Parvovirusfamily, AAV are characterized by non-enveloped, icosahedral capsids of about 18–24 nm in diameter. These capsids carry linear single-stranded DNA genomes...
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References
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© 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Grimm, D. (2011). AAV. In: Schwab, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cancer. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_8
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