Regulation of adenovirus packaging.

The application of fundamental concepts about the packaging of the adenovirus genome has contributed significantly to the development of therapeutic viral vectors for gene therapy. The packaging of adenovirus DNA into virus particles requires a cis-acting domain at the left end of the genome. This region contains a series of repeated sequences, termed A repeats due to their AT-rich character, that direct the packaging process. A repeats are believed to represent the binding sites for viral and cellular factors that mediate viral DNA packaging. This review will focus on fundamental aspects of adenovirus DNA packaging as well as how this information has been used and may be used to augment the selectivity of viral DNA packaging in applications pertaining to gene therapy vectors.