title: Protein-polymer nanoparticles for nonviral gene delivery.
abstract: Protein-polymer conjugates were investigated as nonviral gene delivery vectors. BSA-poly(dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate (PDMA) nanoparticles (nBSA) were synthesized using in situ atom transfer radical polymerization (in situ ATRP) and BSA as a macroinitiator. The diameter and charge of nBSA was a function of the ATRP reaction time and ranged from 5 to 15 nm and +8.9 to +22.5, respectively. nBSA were able to condense plasmid DNA (pDNA) and form polyplexes with an average diameter of 50 nm. nBSA/pDNA polyplexes transfected cells with similar efficiencies or better as compared to linear and branched PEI. Interestingly, the nBSA particle diameter and charge did not affect pDNA complexation and transgene expression, indicating that the same gene delivery efficiency can be achieved with lower charge ratios. We believe that with the use of protein-polymer conjugates additional functionality could be introduced to polyplexes by using different protein cores and, thus, they pose an interesting alternative to the design of nonviral gene delivery vectors.
authors.affiliation: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department, University of California at Los Angeles, California, United States.
authors.forename: Jianjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yuguo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.forename: Anandika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dhaliwal
authors.forename: Quinn Kt
authors.initials: QK
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.forename: Juanjuan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Yunfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Tatiana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Segura
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D053758:Nanoparticles; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
chemical_list: D011108:Polymers; D011506:Proteins