title: Degradable hybrid materials based on cationic acylhydrazone dynamic covalent polymers promote DNA complexation through multivalent interactions.
abstract: The design of smart nonviral vectors for gene delivery is of prime importance for the successful implementation of gene therapies. In particular, degradable analogues of macromolecules represent promising targets as they would combine the multivalent presentation of multiple binding units that is necessary for achieving effective complexation of therapeutic oligonucleotides with the controlled degradation of the vector that would in turn trigger drug release. Toward this end, we have designed and synthesized hybrid polyacylhydrazone-based dynamic materials that combine bis-functionalized cationic monomers with ethylene oxide containing monomers. Polymer formation was characterized by (1) H and DOSY NMR spectroscopy and was found to take place at high concentration, whereas macrocycles were predominantly formed at low concentration. HPLC monitoring of solutions of these materials in aqueous buffers at pH values ranging from 5.0 to 7.0 revealed their acid-catalyzed degradation. An ethidium bromide displacement assay and gel electrophoresis clearly demonstrated that, despite being dynamic, these materials are capable of effectively complexing dsDNA in aqueous buffer and biological serum at N/P ratios comparable to polyethyleneimine polymers. The self-assembly of dynamic covalent polymers through the incorporation of a reversible covalent bond within their main chain is therefore a promising strategy for generating degradable materials that are capable of establishing multivalent interactions and effectively complexing dsDNA in biological media.
authors.affiliation: Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron (IBMM), UMR 5247, Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier, 8 Rue de l'Ecole Normale, 34296 Montpellier Cedex 5 (France), Fax: (+33) 467144353.
authors.forename: Camille
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bouillon
authors.forename: Delphine
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Paolantoni
authors.forename: Jennifer C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Rote
authors.forename: Yannick
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bessin
authors.forename: Larryn W
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dumy
authors.forename: Sébastien
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ulrich
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002412:Cations / Q000737:chemistry; D002417:Cattle; D004247:DNA / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry*; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006835:Hydrazones / Q000737:chemistry*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D002412:Cations; D006835:Hydrazones; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D004247:DNA
keywords: DNA recognition; dynamic polymers; multivalency; pH-sensitive materials; self-assembly