AAV DJ/8-Cre-GFP

Adeno-associated viruses (AAV) are derived from defective parvoviruses that rely on essential helper functions provided by other viruses, such as adenoviruses and herpesviruses, for efficient viral replication and spread. AAV has no etiological association with any known disease and has been successfully used to establish efficient and long-term gene expression in vivo in a variety of tissues without significant cellular immune responses or toxicity.

AAV has a single-stranded DNA genome consisting of approximately 4.7 kb. All identified AAV serotypes share three key features, including two AAV terminal repeats (ITRs), a rep region, and a cap region. The ITRs are capable of forming T-shaped secondary structures and are the only cis-elements required for AAV replication, packaging, integration, and rescue. The rep region encodes four overlapping proteins, designated Rep78, Rep68, Rep52, and Rep40 based on the apparent molecular weight of the proteins. In addition to their well-defined role in AAV replication, the Rep proteins regulate AAV packaging and site-specific integration. The cap region encodes three structural proteins, VP1, VP2, and VP3. These three proteins share the same reading frame.