Immunization with DNA

[Brian Talbot]

I would like to ask a series of questions on "naked DNA" (expression vector 
plasmid) vaccination and immunization.(For those not aware of the technique 
there is a nice review in The Journal of Immunological Methods (1994) 176, 
by Donnelly et al.)  This seems to be such an extraordinarily successful 
technique (and I am such a sceptic) that it would be interesting to hear 
from someone who could define some of its disadvantages. There is always 
the possibility, however remote, that the vector promoter will integrate 
into the host genome and cause all sorts of problems. Do you think that 
this is an insurmountable objection to the commercial use of this 
technique? What are the other roadblocks that may prevent use of DNA 
vaccines (human or veterinary) in the near future? Most of the articles on 
the subject have an industrial partnership, but does anyone know who owns 
the patent rights? Lastly, there appears to be no common key-word to pull 
out the articles from a data base: any suggestions?

Thanks
BGT
Sherbrooke
B.G.T.