Developing a Novel Gene Therapy for Kcnv2 Retinopathy

Mutations in the voltage-gated (Kv) potassium channels Kv8.2 subunit are known to underlie a particular form of inherited irreversible blindness, KCNV2 retinopathy. This unique condition causes lifelong visual loss, characterized by reduced visual acuity, photoaversion, night blindness and abnormal colour vision, and presents phenotypically with a supernormal electrophysiological (ERG) retinal response to light. Livia and colleagues have previously characterised a Kv8.2 knockout mouse model of which accurately mimics the human condition. Their study investigated the suitability of an AAV-based gene therapy approach as a potential treatment. The efficacy of the gene therapy to rescue vision was evaluated via ERG, optomotor testing, histological analysis and single-cell RNASeq. The results show that treatment with either of their vectors was dose-dependent but had a significant impact on the ERG responses. Treated animals also showed recovery to wildtype levels of their scotopic contrast and acuity, and photopic acuity via optomotor responses. Their study is the first to develop and validate the efficacy of a novel gene therapy treatment for KCNV2 retinopathy.