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CLINICAL CASE
Two-step AAV8 gene delivery in a child with Crigler-Najjar syndrome type I
1 Kulakov National Medical Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology, Moscow, Russia
2 Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University (Pirogov University), Moscow, Russia
Correspondence should be addressed: Denis V. Rebrikov
Ostrovityanova, 1, Moscow, 117997, Russia; moc.liamg@vokirberd
Author contribution: Rebrikov DV — literature analysis, study planning, development of study concept and design, development of drug concept, data interpretation, manuscript preparation; Degtyareva AV — literature analysis, study planning, development of study concept and design, patient examination, data interpretation; Gautier MS, Ushakova LV, Filippova EA — patient examination; Yanushevich YuG, Gorodnicheva TV, Bavykin AS — drug development, data interpretation, manuscript preparation; Degtyarev DN, Sukhikh GT — development of study concept and design, data interpretation.
Compliance with ethical standards: the therapy was approved by Ethics Committee at the Kulakov National Medical Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology on Dec 01 2022, Protocol #12 for infusion I, and on Jul 20 2023, Protocol #7 for infusion II. The patient's legal representatives provided voluntary informed consents for the study and for each infusion of the drug.
Crigler–Najjar syndrome type I, an orphan UTG1A1 enzyme deficiency, manifests at birth with severe unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia. Here we describe sustained clinical response in a pediatric patient with Crigler–Najjar syndrome type I treated with two consecutive doses of AAV8 delivering the UTG1A1 coding sequence. Infusion I (6 × 1012 vg/kg) afforded sustained decrease in serum bilirubin, allowing substantial relaxation of the phototherapy from 12 h to 4 h daily. Infusion II at a double dose was made in 6 months; the decision was intended at complete elimination of phototherapy. However, the elimination led to a sharp increase in bilirubin levels necessitating resumption of phototherapy. The patient is currently stable on 4 h daily phototherapy for 80 weeks since the resumption and 107 weeks since the AAV8 therapy initiation. No toxic side effects were encountered. A slow incremental dynamics in serum bilirubin opens the issue of clinical advisability for subsequent infusions of the drug.
Keywords: gene therapy, Crigler–Najjar syndrome type I, AAV8