Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Mckenna G. G. Hanson, Christian J. J. Grimme, Nicholas W. W. Kreofsky, Sidharth Panda, Theresa M. M. Reineke
Summary: Nucleic acid-based medicines and vaccines are playing an increasingly important role in our therapeutic toolbox. Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are a key genetic medicine that can downregulate protein production. However, they need a delivery vehicle to enter cells. This study aimed to develop a method to rapidly discover new micelle formulations using mixed diblock polymers, which show improved delivery efficiency compared to linear nonmicelle variants.
BIOCONJUGATE CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Eivina Radzeviciute-Valciuke, Jovita Gecaite, Augustinas Zelvys, Aukse Zinkeviciene, Rokas Zalneravicius, Veronika Malysko-Ptasinske, Ausra Nemeikaite-Ceniene, Vytautas Kaseta, Natalija German, Jurij Novickij, Almira Ramanaviciene, Julita Kulbacka, Vitalij Novickij
Summary: This study demonstrates that MHz frequency bursts of nanosecond pulses can enhance gene delivery and investigates the potential of gold nanoparticles in this process. The combination of microsecond pulses and gold nanoparticles significantly improves gene delivery, depending on the surface charge and size of the nanoparticles. Gold nanoparticles are ineffective in nanosecond pulse treatment, but MHz pulse treatment remains competitive, with high gene delivery efficiency, low reactive oxygen species generation, preserved cellular viability, and easier operation.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Jose Antonio Lebron, Pilar Lopez-Cornejo, Elena Garcia-Dionisio, Pablo Huertas, Margarita Garcia-Calderon, Maria Luisa Moya, Francisco Jose Ostos, Manuel Lopez-Lopez
Summary: The tendency of surfactants to self-aggregate plays a key role in determining their efficiency for compacting nucleic acids, with 12NBr showing the most effectiveness as a DNA compacting agent. Lipoplexes of DOPE/12NBr/pEGFP-C1 were prepared and characterized, with investigations into their cytotoxicity and transfection efficiency.
Review
Biochemical Research Methods
Andrew Hamann, Angela K. Pannier
Summary: Although human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) have not yet been approved by the FDA for clinical use, research is ongoing to develop gene delivery methods for therapeutic applications. Strategies, such as innovative carriers and chemical and physical priming, have been developed to improve transfection efficiency in hMSCs. These strategies aim to optimize cell phenotypes for enhanced immunomodulation and tissue regeneration, as well as for functions like tumor-killing and tissue engineering.
CURRENT OPINION IN BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Bryn D. Monnery
Summary: Polyplex-mediated gene transfection is complex, with untargeted polyplexes not following traditional mechanisms and targeting syndecans. Endocytosis requires free polycations to disrupt cell membranes and promote polyplex escape. Polyplexes release plasmids into the nucleus from the endosome, but only a small proportion of plasmids ultimately express.
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Shintaro Fumoto, Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, Kazuya Okami, Yuina Maemura, Chisato Terada, Asako Yamayoshi, Koyo Nishida
Summary: Nucleic acid and genetic medicines show great potential in treating various intractable diseases. Understanding their in vivo fate is crucial for rational design and development of drugs. Plasma protein binding can be utilized to manipulate pharmacokinetics, while ligand conjugation method is widely used for controlling drug distribution in the body.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
C. Bellefroid, C. Reusch, A. Lechanteur, B. Evrard, F. Debacq-Chainiaux, D. Mottet, G. Piel
Summary: This study aimed to develop a suitable gene delivery formulation for topical use on skin, and found that different lipid combinations can effectively deliver plasmid DNA into skin cells. Certain formulations showed high transfection rates with limited cytotoxicity, presenting promising potential for gene therapy in treating skin diseases.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICS
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Eivina Radzeviciute, Veronika Malysko-Ptasinske, Jurij Novickij, Vitalij Novickij, Irute Girkontaite
Summary: In this study, the researchers transferred protein-encoding plasmids into different types of cells using sub-microsecond pulsed electric fields. They found that nanosecond pulses resulted in higher transfection efficiency, and the size and concentration of the plasmids also affected the transfection efficiency. Additionally, there was no significant difference in transfection efficiency between immature and mature immune cells.
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Roberto Di Blasi, Masue M. Marbiah, Velia Siciliano, Karen Polizzi, Francesca Ceroni
Summary: Transient transfections are commonly used in basic and synthetic biology studies to investigate pathway regulation and circuit design, but resource competition for gene expression can lead to biases in data interpretation, emphasizing the need for better transfection controls to ensure reliable results.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Jaidev Chakka, Mohammed Maniruzzaman
Summary: In this study, a novel extrusion-based Sprayed Multi Adsorbed-droplet Reposing Technology (SMART) was used to prepare 150 nm plasmid DNA nanoparticles, which were successfully applied in vitro transfection experiments with cancer cells.
MOLECULAR PHARMACEUTICS
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Christian J. Grimme, Mckenna G. Hanson, Louis G. Corcoran, Theresa M. Reineke
Summary: This study examined the complexation and biological delivery of a short single-stranded antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) payload with four polymer derivatives. The results showed that micelleplexes, templated by the size and shape of unloaded micelles, are superior delivery vehicles for ASOs. DB micelleplexes promoted the largest gene silencing, internalization, and tolerable toxicity, while ObDB micelleplexes displayed enhanced colloidal stability and highly efficient payload trafficking despite having lower cellular uptake.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yizong Hu, Yining Zhu, Nolan D. Sutherland, David R. Wilson, Marion Pang, Ester Liu, Jacob R. Staub, Cynthia A. Berlinicke, Donald J. Zack, Jordan J. Green, Sashank K. Reddy, Hai-Quan Mao
Summary: A kinetics-based approach has been developed for assembling size-controlled polyelectrolyte complex particles from plasmid DNA and poly(ethylenimine), improving the production quality and consistency of lentiviral vectors for gene therapy. This new method not only streamlines the viral manufacturing process but also enhances production scalability and particle stability.
Article
Polymer Science
Vera Chernonosova, Marianna Khlebnikova, Victoriya Popova, Ekaterina Starostina, Elena Kiseleva, Boris Chelobanov, Ren Kvon, Elena Dmitrienko, Pavel Laktionov
Summary: Biomaterial-mediated, spatially localized gene delivery is important for tissue engineering. This study investigated the release of pDNA from electrospun scaffolds loaded with silica nanoparticles and the interaction between cells and scaffolds. It was found that the size of the nanoparticles was suitable for cell transfection and the pDNA-loaded scaffolds did not have significant cytotoxicity.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Lyubov Agafonova, Dmitry Zhdanov, Yulia Gladilina, Sergey Kanashenko, Victoria Shumyantseva
Summary: An electrochemical approach for assessing transient DNA transfection efficiency in eukaryotic cells was proposed and demonstrated significant differences in behavior between transfected and control cells using differential pulse voltammetry. This method allows registration of 4000 cells per electrode and can be used for incorporating therapeutic genes into cells without the use of reporter genes.
JOURNAL OF ELECTROANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yuting Huang, Robert L. Kruse, Hui Ding, Mohamad I. Itani, Jonathan Morrison, Zack Z. Wang, Florin M. Selaru, Vivek Kumbhari
Summary: The study conducted hydrodynamic injections in pigs and found that they could tolerate multiple injections without major organ damage. By adjusting injection parameters, suitable parameters for human-sized animal models were identified. Future investigations will explore the impact of higher flow rates and pressure on DNA delivery efficiency.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Die Li, Jing Chen, Mei Hong, Yan Wang, David M. Haddleton, Guang-Zhao Li, Qiang Zhang
Summary: Cationic glycopolymers with similar structures to typical poly(ionic liquids) were synthesized via quaternization reaction and showed aggregation-induced emission effect and specific carbohydrate-protein recognition. These polymers interacted with different microorganisms for killing, imaging, and bacteria detection. Due to the presence of sugar units, these sugar-containing polymers exhibited relatively low hemolysis rate, making them potentially useful in the field of biomaterials.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Corrine Ying Xuan Chua, Hsuan-Chen Liu, Nicola Di Trani, Antonia Susnjar, Jeremy Ho, Giovanni Scorrano, Jessica Rhudy, Antons Sizovs, Graziano Lolli, Nathanael Hernandez, Maria Concetta Nucci, Roberto Cicalo, Mauro Ferrari, Alessandro Grattoni
Summary: Carbon fibers reinforced polymers (CFRPs) are increasingly being used in the medical field due to their potential to replace traditional metal medical implants. After comprehensive evaluation of material properties and biocompatibility, most CFRPs demonstrate biocompatibility in vitro and in small animal models. Future work will focus on further material assessment and chronic toxicity studies in larger animal models for orthopedic applications.
Review
Polymer Science
Meshari A. M. Alqarni, Christopher Waldron, Gokhan Yilmaz, C. Remzi Becer
Summary: Recent advances in polymer science have made it possible to create single chain polymer nanoparticles (SCNPs) that mimic the folding of natural macromolecules, such as proteins and nucleic acids. However, the synthesis of relatively controlled SCNPs with good folding accuracy remains challenging due to the lack of appropriate chemical synthesis techniques. Despite the development of different types of SCNPs with enhanced properties for various applications, elucidating single chain technology remains crucial.
MACROMOLECULAR RAPID COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Polymer Science
Alastair Little, Alan M. Wemyss, David M. Haddleton, Bowen Tan, Zhaoyang Sun, Yang Ji, Chaoying Wan
Summary: The study investigates the effects of various reaction conditions on the synthesis of PLGA25, showing how factors such as reaction temperature, initiator concentration, and catalyst concentration impact the molecular weight, monomer conversion, and thermal properties.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Arkadios Marathianos, Alan M. Wemyss, Evelina Liarou, Joseph R. Jones, Ataulla Shegiwal, James S. Town, Daniel W. Lester, Youngguang Li, David M. Haddleton
Summary: The research focuses on surfactant-free emulsion polymerization using pMAA oligomers as stabilizers, which shows stable latexes with good thermal stability at certain monomer to oligomer molar ratios, and the particle size characteristics of the products are related to the ratio of monomer to oligomer.
ACS APPLIED POLYMER MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Polymer Science
Nuttapol Risangud, Patrick A. J. M. de Jongh, Paul Wilson, David M. Haddleton
Summary: Powder-form biodegradable liquid-core microcapsules were fabricated using reversible deactivation radical polymerization (RDRP), isocyanate chemistry, and spray drying. Copolymers were synthesized from RDRP macroinitiators, followed by particle fabrication via interfacial polymerization and water removal using spray drying. Characterization of all polymers and particles was conducted through spectroscopic, chromatographic, and microscopy analyses.
EUROPEAN POLYMER JOURNAL
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Claire N. Brodie, Timothy M. Boyd, Lia Sotorrios, David E. Ryan, Eimear Magee, Steven Huband, James S. Town, Guy C. Lloyd-Jones, David M. Haddleton, Stuart A. Macgregor, Andrew S. Weller
Summary: The study demonstrates the selective synthesis of N-methylpolyaminoborane using a specific air-tolerant precatalyst, revealing the reaction mechanism and key steps involved. This provides a theoretical basis for further research in this field.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2021)
Article
Polymer Science
Congkai Ma, Ting Han, Niu Niu, Lucas Al-Shok, Spyridon Efstathiou, Daniel Lester, Steven Huband, David Haddleton
Summary: In this work, a robust synthetic route was optimized for the preparation of a diverse range of water-soluble AIE polymers using aqueous Cu-mediated living radical polymerization. The polymers exhibited excellent control and high-end group fidelity, allowing for various copolymerization reactions and applications in bioimaging. The fluorescence intensity of the polymers was shown to depend on the polymer concentration, architecture of the side chains, and temperature, with potential for lysosome-specific probes in bioimaging due to their good biocompatibility, photostability, and high specificity.
Correction
Polymer Science
Ellis Hancox, Evelina Liarou, James S. Town, Glen R. Jones, Sian A. Layton, Steven Huband, Martin J. Greenall, Paul D. Topham, David M. Haddleton
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Xiuhua Yan, Wei Xu, Rong Shao, David M. Haddleton
Summary: The synthesis and modification of castor oil-based quaternary ammonium surfactant (COQA) on attapulgite (ATP) was investigated in this study. The surface activity and structural features of COQA were determined, and the modified ATP showed changes in morphology.
TENSIDE SURFACTANTS DETERGENTS
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Hannah Lindley-Hatcher, Jiarui Wang, Arturo I. Hernandez-Serrano, Joseph Hardwicke, Gabit Nurumbetov, David M. Haddleton, Emma Pickwell-MacPherson
Summary: The study shows that THz spectroscopy can observe the impact of patches on skin water content and reveal the skin's recovery after patch removal, providing important insights for the design and use of transdermal patches.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Varvara Athanasiou, Dimitra Stavroulaki, Foteini Arfara, Dimitrios Kampras, Ioannis Kleideris, Niki Roumelioti, Panagiota G. Fragouli, Georgios Patias, David Haddleton, Hermis Iatrou
Summary: A facile strategy for synthesizing hybrid nanoparticles with gold nanoshells that absorb NIR light was presented, allowing for fine-tuning of their optical properties. The nanoparticles showed significant temperature increase when irradiated with a low power laser, indicating their potential application in photothermal therapy.
ACS APPLIED NANO MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Nicola Di Trani, Fernanda P. Pons-Faudoa, Antons Sizovs, Kathryn A. Shelton, Mark A. Marzinke, Pramod N. Nehete, Alessandro Grattoni
Summary: Long-acting implantable drug delivery systems provide an effective approach for the management or prevention of chronic conditions by sustained parenteral therapeutic administration, improving adherence to treatment regimens. However, their clinical deployment is challenged by factors such as poor drug loading capacity, requiring repeated surgical replacement for continued therapy.
ADVANCED THERAPEUTICS
(2022)
Article
Polymer Science
Anna P. Constantinou, Georgios Patias, Birsen Somuncuoglu, Toby Brock, Daniel W. Lester, David M. Haddleton, Theoni K. Georgiou
Summary: In this study, a new methacrylate monomer di(propylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (diPGMA) was synthesised and homopolymerised and copolymerised for the first time via GTP. A series of ABA triblock copolymers were prepared and their self-assembly and thermoresponsive properties were investigated. The copolymers showed thermoresponse and gel formation in concentrated aqueous solutions, indicating potential applications in thermogelling materials.
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Spyridon Efstathiou, Alan M. Wemyss, Georgios Patias, Lucas Al-Shok, Maria Grypioti, Despina Coursari, Congkai Ma, Christophe J. Atkins, Ataulla Shegiwal, Chaoying Wan, David M. Haddleton
Summary: Researchers have successfully developed a Schiff base hydrogel with both good mechanical properties and self-healing abilities, and have enhanced its mechanical properties and self-healing efficiencies by introducing partially reduced graphene oxide nanosheets.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY B
(2021)