title: Phage as gene delivery vectors.
abstract: Bacteriophage can be considered as a natural system to efficiently condense and package DNA. They tolerate many different types of mutations, including those that lead to the display of polypeptides as a fusion to any of the structural proteins comprising the phage particle. In addition, they are a powerful biological system for generating and screening mutants with the desired functional properties. It has also been shown that phage vectors can be engineered for receptor-mediated gene transfer to mammalian cells. The attractive features offered by this system have paved the way for various attempts to develop phage as a vector for gene therapy applications.
authors.affiliation: Molecular & Cellular Biology Department, Istituto di Ricerche di Biologia Molecolare, via Pontina km 30.6, Pornezia, Italy. paolo_monaci@merck.com
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Monaci
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Urbanelli
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fontana
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001435:Bacteriophages / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004705:Endocytosis / Q000502:physiology; D015723:Gene Library; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D008024:Ligands; D010455:Peptides / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D008024:Ligands; D010455:Peptides; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D004247:DNA