Split AAV-Mediated Gene Therapy Restores Ureagenesis in a Murine Model of Carbamoyl Phosphate Synthetase 1 Deficiency

The urea cycle enzyme carbamoyl phosphate synthetase 1 (CPS1) catalyzes the initial step of the urea cycle; bi-allelic mutations typically present with hyperammonemia, vomiting, ataxia, lethargy progressing into coma, and death due to brain edema if ineffectively treated. The enzyme deficiency is particularly difficult to treat; early recognition is essential to minimize injury to the brain. Even under optimal conditions, therapeutic interventions are of limited scope and efficacy, with most patients developing long-term neurologic sequelae. One significant encumberment to gene therapeutic development is the size of the CPS1 cDNA, which, at 4.5 kb, nears the packaging capacity of adeno-associated virus (AAV). Herein we developed a split AAV (sAAV)-based approach, packaging the large transgene and its regulatory cassette into two separate vectors, thereby delivering therapeutic CPS1 by a dual vector system with testing in a murine model of the disorder. Cps1-deficient mice treated with sAAVs survive long-term with markedly improved ammonia levels, diminished dysregulation of circulating amino acids, and increased hepatic CPS1 expression and activity. In response to acute ammonia challenging, sAAV-treated female mice rapidly incorporated nitrogen into urea. This study demonstrates the first proof-of-principle that sAAV-mediated therapy is a viable, potentially clinically translatable approach to CPS1 deficiency, a devastating urea cycle disorder.