Lentivirus Gene Engineering Protocols

Book excerpt: Cell gene engineering is emerging as a field with outstanding impact, not only in medicine/biology, but also, and perhaps most importantly, in agriculture and in all those food sciences involved in the fight against world hunger. Lentivirus vector-based technologies represent the last frontier in the development of powerful and reliable methods for both in vitro and in vivo gene transfer in eukaryotic animal cells. Although the design of lentivirus vectors is closely reminiscent of those already successfully applied to the construction of oncoretroviral vectors, some unique features, e.g., the ef- ciency in transducing both postmitotic and stem cells, render the use of lentivirus vectors invaluable. It has been a great pleasure to edit Lentivirus Gene Engineering Pro- cols, owing in part to the high level of enthusiasm that the authors dem- strated in contributing to this book. The fact that so many outstanding scientists engaged in lentivirus vector research have provided articles renders it so- thing more than a technical handbook. In addition to detailed descriptions of the most innovative methodologies, the reader may find very informative ov- views concerning both theoretical and practical aspects of the origin and the development of diverse lentivirus vector types. This, in my opinion, rep- sents a unique added value of this volume, which should help our work resist the passage of time, to which books such as this are particularly sensitive.