Gene Therapy of Solid Cancers

Ângela Sousa, João A. Queiroz, Fani Sousa, Sousa, Ângela, Queiroz, João A., Sousa, Fani

The gene therapy approach based on reestablishment of p53 tumor suppressor, which acts as a prevailing guardian against malignant cell transformation, is raising new prospects on the outcome of an effective anticancer treatment. It is well known that the success of gene transfer to cells and subsequent expression is strictly affected by the vector manufacturing process. Therefore, several downstream methods have been proposed to achieve high quantities of supercoiled plasmid DNA with pharmaceutical grade purity. Affinity chromatography with amino acids as ligands has recently yielded interesting results because these ligands take advantage of their biological function or chemical structure to promote specific interactions with different nucleic acids. Here, we describe detailed procedures for the preparation and purification of supercoiled plasmid DNA, with the purity degree required by regulatory agencies, by using arginine affinity chromatography. With this methodology pure pDNA is obtained, efficient on eukaryotic cell transfection and biologically active, resulting in the reestablishment of the p53 protein levels in cancer cell lines.