title: Photoluminescent and biodegradable polycitrate-polyethylene glycol-polyethyleneimine polymers as highly biocompatible and efficient vectors for bioimaging-guided siRNA and miRNA delivery.
abstract: Development of biodegradable and biocompatible non-viral vectors with intrinsical multifunctional properties such as bioimaging ability for highly efficient nucleic acids delivery still remains a challenge. Here, a biodegradable poly (1,8-octanedio-citric acid)-co-polyethylene glycol grafted with polyethyleneimine (PEI) (POCG-PEI) polymers with the photoluminescent capacity were synthesized for nucleic acids delivery (siRNA and miRNA). POCG-PEI polymers can efficiently bind various nucleic acids, protect them against enzymatic degradation and release the genes in the presence of polyanionic heparin. POCG-PEI also showed a significantly low cytotoxicity, enhanced cellular uptake and high transfection efficiency of nucleic acids, as compared to commercial transfection agents, lipofectamine 2000 (Lipo) and polyethylenimine (PEI 25K). POCG-PEI polymers demonstrate an excellent photostability, which allows for imaging the cells and real-time tracking the nucleic acids delivery. The photoluminescent property, low cytotoxicity, biodegradation, good gene binding and protection ability and high genes delivery efficiency make POCG-PEI highly competitive as a non-virus vector for genes delivery and real-time bioimaging applications. Our results may be also an important step for designing biodegradable biomaterials with multifunctional properties towards bioimaging-guided genes therapeutic applications.
  
  
  
  Here, a biodegradable poly (1,8-octanedio-citric acid)-co-polyethylene glycol grafted with polyethyleneimine (PEI) (POCG-PEI) polymers with controlled photoluminescent capacity were synthesized for nucleic acids delivery (siRNA and miRNA). POCG-PEI polymers can efficiently bind various nucleic acids, protect them against enzymatic degradation and release the genes in the presence of polyanionic heparin. POCG-PEI also showed a significantly low cytotoxicity, enhanced cellular uptake and high transfection efficiency of nucleic acids, as compared to commercial transfection agents, lipofectamine 2000 (Lipo) and polyethylenimine (PEI 25K). POCG-PEI polymers demonstrate an excellent photostability, which allows for imaging the cells and real-time tracking the nucleic acids delivery. Our results may be also an important step for designing biodegradable biomaterials with multifunctional properties towards bioimaging-guided genes therapeutic applications.
authors.affiliation: Frontier Institute of Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, State Key Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710054, China.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Frontier Institute of Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, State Key Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710054, China.
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Frontier Institute of Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, State Key Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710054, China.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Macromolecular Science and Engineering Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48109, USA.
authors.forename: Peter X
authors.initials: PX
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, China.
authors.forename: Cong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mao
authors.affiliation: Frontier Institute of Science and Technology, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, State Key Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710054, China. Electronic address: rayboo@xjtu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lei
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D063566:Biodegradable Plastics / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006801:Humans; D061986:MCF-7 Cells; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D061848:Optical Imaging / Q000379:methods; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D011094:Polyethyleneimine / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D063566:Biodegradable Plastics; D035683:MicroRNAs; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D011094:Polyethyleneimine
keywords: Bioimaging; Gene delivery; Non-virus vectors; Photoluminescence; Poly(1,8-octanedio-citric acid)-co-poly(ethylene glycol); Polyethylenimine