The AAV (FLEX) conditional Cre-On gene expression vector combines VectorBuilder’s highly versatile AAV vector system with the Cre-responsive (FLEX) conditional gene expression system to help you achieve AAV-mediated in vitro and in vivo delivery of Cre-responsive FLEX Cre-On switches. The FLEX Cre-On switch utilizes two pairs of LoxP-variant recombination sites flanking a gene of interest in an arrangement which completely inhibits gene expression in the absence of Cre and activates gene expression upon Cre-dependent inversion of the coding sequence.
The FLEX Cre-On switch consists of two pairs of heterotypic LoxP-variant recombination sites, namely LoxP, having the wild type sequence and Lox2272, having a mutated sequence, flanking an ORF which is in the reverse (antisense) orientation relative to the promoter. Both LoxP variants are recognized by Cre, but only identical pairs of LoxP sites can recombine with each other and not with any other variant. The LoxP and Lox2272 sites are organized in an alternating fashion, with an antiparallel orientation for each pair. In the absence of Cre recombinase, the ORF is not expressed due to its antisense orientation relative to the promoter. In the presence of Cre, the LoxP and Lox2272 sites undergo recombination with the other LoxP and Lox2272 sites respectively, resulting in the inversion of the ORF to a sense orientation and excision of one from each pair of identical recombination sites. This allows the user-selected promoter to drive the transcription of the gene of interest. Since the ORF is now flanked by two different LoxP-variant sites, no further recombination events will take place even when Cre is present.
An AAV vector is first constructed as a plasmid in E. coli. It is then transfected into packaging cells along with helper plasmids, where the region of the vector between the two inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) is packaged into live virus. For the AAV (FLEX) conditional Cre-On gene expression vector, the FLEX Cre-On switch described above is placed in-between the two ITRs during vector construction, which is introduced into target cells along with the rest of viral genome. Gene expression can then be activated in the presence of Cre recombinase upon Cre-mediated inversion of the coding sequence.
The wild-type AAV genome is a linear single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) with two ITRs forming a hairpin structure on each end. It is therefore also known as ssAAV. In order to express genes on ssAAV vectors in host cells, the ssDNA genome needs to first be converted to double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) through two pathways: 1) synthesis of second-strand DNA by the DNA polymerase machinery of host cells using the existing ssDNA genome as the template and the 3' ITR as the priming site; 2) formation of intermolecular dsDNA between the plus- and minus-strand ssAAV genomes. The former pathway is the dominant one.
AAV genomic DNA forms episomal concatemers in the host cell nucleus. In non-dividing cells, these concatemers can remain for the life of the host cells. In dividing cells, AAV DNA is lost through the dilution effect of cell division, because the episomal DNA does not replicate alongside host cell DNA. Random integration of AAV DNA into the host genome can occur but is extremely rare. This is desirable in many gene therapy settings where the potential oncogenic effect of vector integration can pose a significant concern.A major practical advantage of AAV is that in most cases AAV can be handled in biosafety level 1 (BSL1) facilities. This is due to AAV being inherently replication-deficient, producing little or no inflammation, and causing no known human disease. Due to their low immunogenicity in host organisms, AAV is the ideal viral vector for many animal studies.
Many strains of AAV have been identified in nature. They are divided into different serotypes based on different antigenicity of the capsid protein on the viral surface. Different serotypes can render the virus with different tissue tropism (i.e. tissue specificity of infection). When our AAV vectors are packaged into virus, different serotypes can be conferred to the virus by using different capsid proteins for the packaging. The table below lists different AAV serotypes and their tissue tropism.
List by Serotype
List by Tissue Type
Serotype |
Tissue tropism |
AAV1 |
Smooth muscle, skeletal muscle, CNS, brain, lung, retina, inner ear, pancreas, heart, liver |
AAV2 |
Smooth muscle, CNS, brain, liver, pancreas, kidney, retina, inner ear, testes |
AAV3 |
Smooth muscle, liver, lung |
AAV4 |
CNS, retina, lung, kidney, heart |
AAV5 |
Smooth muscle, CNS, brain, lung, retina, heart |
AAV6 |
Smooth muscle, heart, lung, pancreas, adipose, liver |
AAV6.2 |
Lung, liver, inner ear |
AAV7 |
Smooth muscle, retina, CNS, brain, liver |
AAV8 |
Smooth muscle, CNS, brain, retina, inner ear, liver, pancreas, heart, kidney, adipose |
AAV9 |
Smooth muscle, skeletal muscle, lung, liver, heart, pancreas, CNS, retina, inner ear, testes, kidney, adipose |
AAVrh10 |
Smooth muscle, lung, liver, heart, pancreas, CNS, retina, kidney |
AAV-DJ |
Liver, heart, kidney, spleen |
AAV-DJ/8 |
Liver, brain, spleen, kidney |
AAV-PHP.eB |
CNS |
AAV-PHP.S |
PNS |
AAV2-retro |
Spinal nerves |
AAV2-QuadYF |
Endothelial cell, retina |
AAV2.7m8 |
Retina, inner ear |
Tissue type |
Recommended AAV serotypes |
Smooth muscle |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV3, AAV5, AAV6, AAV7, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10 |
Skeletal muscle |
AAV1, AAV9 |
CNS |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV4, AAV5, AAV7, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10, AAV-PHP.eB |
PNS |
AAV-PHP.S |
Brain |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV5, AAV7, AAV8, AAV-DJ/8 |
Retina |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV4, AAV5, AAV7, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10, AAV2-QuadYF, AAV2.7m8 |
Inner ear |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV6.2, AAV8, AAV9, AAV2.7m8 |
Lung |
AAV1, AAV3, AAV4, AAV5, AAV6, AAV6.2, AAV9, AAVrh10 |
Liver |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV3, AAV6, AAV6.2, AAV7, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10, AAV-DJ, AAV-DJ/8 |
Pancreas |
AAV1, AAV2, AAV6, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10 |
Heart |
AAV1, AAV4, AAV5, AAV6, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10, AAV-DJ |
Kidney |
AAV2, AAV4, AAV8, AAV9, AAVrh10, AAV-DJ, AAV-DJ/8 |
Adipose |
AAV6, AAV8, AAV9 |
Testes |
AAV2, AAV9 |
Spleen |
AAV-DJ, AAV-DJ/8 |
Spinal nerves |
AAV2-retro |
Endothelial cells |
AAV2-QuadYF |
For further information about this vector system, please refer to the papers below.