ABSTRACT
A number of gene therapy approaches for both inherited and acquired diseases of the lung have been proposed. Direct in vivo gene transfer has been achieved in a broad array of pulmonary cellular targets after delivery of the adenoviral vector via the airway, vascular, or lymphatic routes. The ability to accomplish targeted gene delivery to specific cells of the pulmonary system would thus greatly enhance the various current gene therapy schemas for lung disorders. Attempts to modify the tropism of adenoviral vectors should be considered with regard to strategies that have been utilized to modify the cell-binding specificity of other viral vectors. It is generally recognized that the ability to accomplish targeted, cell-specific transduction offers many advantages for gene therapy. Cell-specific targeting of retroviral vectors has also been approached by genetic modifications of the envelope designed to introduce a cell-binding domain not dictated by a second virus.
