title: Enduring high-efficiency in vivo transfection of neurons with non-viral magnetoparticles in the rat visual cortex for optogenetic applications.
abstract: This work demonstrates the successful long-term transfection in vivo of a DNA plasmid vector in rat visual cortex neurons using the magnetofection technique. The transfection rates reached values of up to 97% of the neurons after 30days, comparable to those achieved by viral vectors. Immunohistochemical treatment with anti-EGFP antibodies enhanced the detection of the EYFP-channelrhodopsin expression throughout the dendritic trees and cell bodies. These results show that magnetic nanoparticles offer highly efficient and enduring in vivo high-rate transfection in identified neurons of an adult mammalian brain and suggest that the magnetotechnique facilitates the introduction of large functional genetic material like channelrhodopsin with safe non-viral vectors using minimally invasive approaches.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Gene therapy may be one of the treatment modalities for neurological diseases in the future. The use of viral transfection remains a concern due to restrictions to the size limit of the genetic material able to be packed, as well as safety issues. In this work, the authors evaluated magnetoplexes as an alternative vehicle. The results showed very promising data in that these nanoparticles could offer high transfection efficiency.
authors: Bioengineering Institute, Miguel Hernández University (UMH), Spain; Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain. Electronic address: csoto@umh.es.
authors: Cristina
authors: C
authors: Soto-Sánchez
authors: Bioengineering Institute, Miguel Hernández University (UMH), Spain. Electronic address: gema.martinezn@umh.es.
authors: Gema
authors: G
authors: Martínez-Navarrete
authors: Bioengineering Institute, Miguel Hernández University (UMH), Spain; Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain. Electronic address: lhumphreys@umh.es.
authors: Lawrence
authors: L
authors: Humphreys
authors: Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain; NanoBioCel Group, University of País Vasco (UPV/EHU), Spain. Electronic address: gustavo.puras@ehu.es.
authors: Gustavo
authors: G
authors: Puras
authors: Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain; NanoBioCel Group, University of País Vasco (UPV/EHU), Spain. Electronic address: jon.zarate@ehu.es.
authors: Jon
authors: J
authors: Zarate
authors: Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain; NanoBioCel Group, University of País Vasco (UPV/EHU), Spain. Electronic address: joseluis.pedraz@ehu.es.
authors: José Luis
authors: JL
authors: Pedraz
authors: Bioengineering Institute, Miguel Hernández University (UMH), Spain; Biomedical Research Networking center in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN), Spain. Electronic address: e.fernandez@umh.es.
authors: Eduardo
authors: E
authors: Fernández
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003712:Dendrites / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D058185:Magnetite Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D062308:Optogenetics / Q000379:methods*; D010957:Plasmids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014162:Transfection / Q000379:methods*; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D058185:Magnetite Nanoparticles
keywords: Brain; Gene therapy; In vivo; Non-viral vectors; Optogenetics; Transfection