Genetic mutations or engineered nucleases that disrupt the HIV co-receptor CCR5 block HIV infection of CD4+ T cells. These findings have motivated the engineering of CCR5-specific nucleases for application as HIV therapies. The efficacy of this approach relies on efficient biallelic disruption of CCR5, and the ability to efficiently target sequences that confer HIV resistance to the CCR5 locus has the potential to further improve clinical outcomes. We used RNA-based nuclease expression paired with adeno-associated virus (AAV) – mediated delivery of a CCR5-targeting donor template to achieve highly efficient targeted recombination in primary human T cells. This method consistently achieved 8 to 60% rates of homology-directed recombination into the CCR5 locus in T cells, with over 80% of cells modified with an MND-GFP expression cassette exhibiting biallelic modification. MND-GFP – modified T cells maintained a diverse repertoire and engrafted in immune-deficient mice as efficiently as unmodified cells. Using this method, we integrated sequences coding chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) into the CCR5 locus, and the resulting targeted CAR T cells exhibited antitumor or anti-HIV activity. Alternatively, we introduced the C46 HIV fusion inhibitor, generating T cell populations with high rates of biallelic CCR5 disruption paired with potential protection from HIV with CXCR4 co-receptor tropism. Finally, this protocol was applied to adult human mobilized CD34+ cells, resulting in 15 to 20% homologous gene targeting. Our results demonstrate that high-efficiency targeted integration is feasible in primary human hematopoietic cells and highlight the potential of gene editing to engineer T cell products with myriad functional properties.

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The TRPM7 (transient receptor potential melastatin 7) ion channel has been implicated in the uptake of Mg2+ into vertebrate cells, as elimination of TRPM7 expression through gene targeting in DT40 B-lymphocytes renders them unable to grow in the absence of supplemental Mg2+. However, a residual capacity of TRPM7-deficient cells to accumulate Mg2+ and proliferate when provided with supplemental Mg2+ suggests the existence of Mg2+ uptake mechanism(s) other than TRPM7. Evaluation of the expression of several members of the SLC41 (solute carrier family 41) family, which exhibit homology with the MgtE class of prokaryotic putative bivalent-cation transporters, demonstrated that one, SLC41A2 (solute carrier family 41 member 2), is expressed in both wild-type and TRPM7-deficient DT40 cells. Characterization of heterologously expressed SLC41A2 protein indicated that it is a plasma-membrane protein with an N-terminus-outside/C-terminus-inside 11-TM (transmembrane)-span topology, consistent with its functioning as a trans-plasma-membrane transporter. In contrast with a previous report of ion-channel activity associated with SLC41A2 expression in oocytes, investigation of whole cell currents in SLC41A2-expressing DT40 cells revealed no novel currents of any type associated with SLC41A2 expression. However, expression of SLC41A2 in TRPM7-deficient cells under the control of a doxycycline-inducible promoter was able to conditionally enhance their net uptake of 26Mg2+ and conditionally and dose-dependently provide them with the capacity to grow in the absence of supplemental Mg2+, observations strongly supporting a model whereby SLC41A2 directly mediates trans-plasma-membrane Mg2+ transport. Overall, our results suggest that SLC41A2 functions as a plasma-membrane Mg2+ transporter in vertebrate cells.

Summary Lymphocytes lacking the TRPM7 dual function ion channel/protein kinase exhibit a unique phenotype: they are unable to proliferate in regular media, but proliferate normally in media supplemented with 10–15 mM extracellular Mg2+. Here, we have analyzed the molecular mechanisms underlying this phenotype. We find that upon transition from proliferation-supporting Mg2+-supplemented media to regular media, TRPM7-deficient cells rapidly downregulate their rate of growth, resulting in a secondary arrest in proliferation. The downregulated growth rate of transitioning cells is associated with a deactivation of signaling downstream from phosphoinositide 3-kinase, and expression of constitutively active p110 phosphoinositide 3-kinase is sufficient to support growth and proliferation of TRPM7-deficient cells in regular media. Together, these observations indicate that TRPM7 channels are required for sustained phosphoinositide 3-kinase-dependent growth signaling, and therefore that TRPM7 is positioned alongside phosphoinositide 3-kinases as a central regulator of lymphocyte growth and proliferation.