title: High-Efficiency Gene Transfection of Cells through Carbon Nanotube Arrays.
abstract: Introducing nucleic acids into mammalian cells is a crucial step to elucidate biochemical pathways, and to modify gene expression and cellular development in immortalized cells, primary cells, and stem cells. Current transfection technologies are time consuming and limited by the size of genetic cargo, the inefficient introduction of test molecules into large populations of target cells, and the cytotoxicity of the techniques. A novel method of introducing genes and biomolecules into tens of thousands of mammalian cells has been developed through an array of aligned hollow carbon nanotubes, manufactured by template-based nanofabrication processes, to achieve rapid high-efficiency transfer with low cytotoxicity. The utilization of carbon nanotube arrays for gene transfection overcomes molecular weight limits of current technologies and can be adapted to deliver drugs or proteins in addition to nucleic acids.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microsystems Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, 14623, USA.
authors.forename: Masoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Golshadi
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, 14623, USA.
authors.forename: Leslie K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA.
authors.forename: Ian M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Dickerson
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, 14623, USA.
authors.forename: Michael G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Schrlau
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006801:Humans; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D010957:Plasmids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D014162:Transfection / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon
keywords: carbon nanotubes; cell; gene transfer; nanostructures; plasmid DNA