Patent ID: 8114849

Claim:
A method of increasing the amount of Rod-Derived Cone Viability Factor (RDCVF) 1 polypeptide or RDCVF 2 polypeptide in the retinal cells of a subject suffering from retinitis pigmentosa characterized by the loss of the RDCVF 1 polypeptide or the RDCVF 2 polypeptide, the method comprising introducing a viral vector comprising a nucleic acid sequence encoding the RDCVF1 polypeptide or the RDCVF2 polypeptide into the retinal cells of the subject, wherein the nucleic acid is operably linked to a transcription control sequence, whereby expression of the nucleic acid in the retinal cells increases the amount of the RDCVF1 polypeptide or the RDCVF2 polypeptide.