In gene therapy for congenital disorders, treatments during neonate and infant stages are promising. Replication-incompetent\nadenovirus (Ad) vectors have been used in gene therapy studies of genetic disorders; however, the transduction properties of Ad\nvectors in neonates and infants have not been fully examined. Accordingly, this study examined the properties of Ad vectormediated\ntransduction in neonatal mice. A first-generation Ad vector containing a cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter-driven\nluciferase expression cassette was administered to neonatal mice on the second day of life via retro-orbital sinus. The highest Ad\nvector genome copy numbers and transgene expression were found in the neonatal liver.The neonatal heart exhibited the second\nhighest levels of transgene expression among the organs examined. There was an approximately 1500-fold difference in the transgene\nexpression levels between the adult liver and heart, while the neonatal liver exhibited only an approximately 30-fold higher level\nof transgene expression than the neonatal heart. A liver-specific promoter for firefly luciferase expression conferred a more than\n100-fold higher luciferase expression in the liver relative to the other organs. No apparent hepatotoxicity was observed in neonatal\nmice following Ad vector administration.These findings should provide valuable information for gene therapy using Ad vectors in\nneonates and infants
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