title: Direct observation of interactions of silk-elastinlike protein polymer with adenoviruses and elastase.
abstract: Silk-elastinlike protein polymer (SELP) hydrogels have been investigated for sustained local delivery of adenoviral gene carriers to solid tumors. These polymers degrade in the presence of proteases such as elastase. A detailed understanding of the interaction of SELPs with viruses and their degradation in the presence of elastase can provide useful information about mechanisms of sustained gene delivery from these systems. In this work, we investigated the interactions of SELPs with adenoviruses (Ads) and elastase using atomic force microscopy. We observed that viral particles interacted strongly with SELP networks formed by cross-linking of nanofibers. The presence of viruses contributed to enhanced network formation. Incubation of Ad with SELPs in the liquid state induced close packing of the viral colony. Morphological changes of SELP networks cleaved by enzymatic interaction with elastase were investigated. SELP-415K fiber networks were more responsive to temperature changes and were slowly degraded by elastases compared to SELP-47K, a SELP analogue with shorter elastin units in the monomer repeat. These studies provide insight into the influence of SELP structure on degradation and potential mechanisms of increased viral stability.
authors.affiliation: †Center for Theragnosis, Biomedical Research Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Hwarangno 14-gil 5, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-791, Korea.
authors.forename: Se-Hui
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.affiliation: ‡Department of Bioengineering, College of Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Joung-Woo
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: ‡Department of Bioengineering, College of Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Chae-Ok
authors.initials: CO
authors.lastname: Yun
authors.affiliation: †Center for Theragnosis, Biomedical Research Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Hwarangno 14-gil 5, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-791, Korea.
authors.forename: Sun Hwa
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: †Center for Theragnosis, Biomedical Research Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Hwarangno 14-gil 5, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-791, Korea.
authors.forename: Ick Chan
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.affiliation: †Center for Theragnosis, Biomedical Research Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Hwarangno 14-gil 5, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 136-791, Korea.
authors.forename: Hamidreza
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ghandehari
mesh_terms: D000256:Adenoviridae / Q000737:chemistry*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D010196:Pancreatic Elastase / Q000737:chemistry*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D047011:Silk / Q000737:chemistry*; D014771:Virion / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D047011:Silk; C533249:silk-elastinlike protein 415K; C533248:silk-elastinlike protein 47K; D010196:Pancreatic Elastase
keywords: adenovirus; atomic force microscopy; elastase; silk-elastinlike protein polymers