Intravenous AAV9-ATP7A plus subcutaneous copper histidinate optimizes outcomes in a lethal Menkes disease mouse model

Menkes disease is an X-linked recessive condition characterized by seizures, failure to thrive, and rapid, progressive neurodegeneration beginning within weeks after birth. Death usually occurs by 3 years of age. The disorder is caused by genetic variants in ATP7A, an evolutionarily conserved copper transporter that is crucial for normal brain development. The mottled-brindled mouse recapitulates salient features of the human illness. Affected male mice typically die by 14 postnatal days. We evaluated a single-dose intravenous adeno-associated virus gene therapy approach to deliver working copies of a codon-optimized version of ATP7A to male mottled-brindled mice. In conjunction with subcutaneous injections of clinical-grade copper histidinate in the first month of life, 95% long-term survival was attained, which was correlated with improvements in serum and brain copper levels, brain neurochemical profiles, somatic growth, and neuromotor function. The notable results support a trial of this treatment combination in affected male newborns with Menkes disease.

• Publication year

  2025

• Venue

  Science Advances

• Publication date

  2025-08-29

• Fields of study

  Medicine

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1126/sciadv.adw5612PMID 40880469PMCID 12396322
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

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