Neoadjuvant Study of In-situ REIC/Dkk-3 in Prostate Cancer

REIC (Reduced Expression in Immortalized Cells) protein is down regulated in a variety of cancer cell lines including prostate tumors. The REIC gene is identical to the Dickkopf-3 (Dkk-3) gene that is a member of the Dickkopf gene family. Ad-REIC/Dkk-3 is designed as a viral vector that delivers a DNA plasmid capable of producing intracellular REIC protein. The expression plasmid includes the full-length human cDNA sequence for REIC. The adenovirus vector is a transport mechanism to infuse the REIC/Dkk-3 plasmid into the cell providing a temporary transfusion of REIC protein.