title: Oncolytic viruses: clinical applications as vectors for the treatment of malignant gliomas.
abstract: Gene therapy using viral vectors for the treatment of primary brain tumors has proven to be a promising novel treatment modality. Much effort in the past has been placed in utilizing replication-defective viruses to this end but they have shown many disadvantages. Much recent attention has been focused on the potential of replication-competent viruses to discriminatingly target, replicate within, and destroy tumor cells via oncolysis, leaving adjacent post-mitotic neurons unharmed. The engineered tumor-selective herpes simplex-1 virus (HSV-1) mutants G207 and HSV1716 have completed Phase I investigations in the treatment of recurrent high-grade glioma. The results of these clinical trials are reviewed here. This review also aims to examine the manipulation and development of other viruses for the treatment of malignant glioma, including Newcastle disease virus, reovirus, poliovirus, vaccinia virus, and adenoviruses, in particular the adenovirus mutant ONYX-015.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Division of Neurosurgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, South Birmingham, Alabama 35294, USA.
authors.forename: Amish C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: Dale
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Benos
authors.forename: G Yancey
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Gillespie
authors.forename: James M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Markert
mesh_terms: D000256:Adenoviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005910:Glioma / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D018259:Herpesvirus 1, Human / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012087:Reoviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D014780:Viruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents