Artificial viruses and their application to gene delivery. Size-controlled gene coating with glycocluster nanoparticles.

摘要: Number- and size-controlled macromolecular associations are common in biology with viruses as a typical example. We report here novel example of artificial viruses, which the double-helical DNA is coated 4-nm sized neutral glycocluster nanoparticles (GNPs) coating stoichiometry ∼2 GNPs per helical pitch (10 base pairs), where GNP arises from micellization cone-shaped, quadruple-chain amphiphile having eight saccharide moieties β-glucoside termini on calix[4]resorcarene macrocycle. The resulting “glycoviruses” compactly packed (54 nm case 7040 base-pair plasmid pCMVluc), well charge-shielded (ζ ≅ ∼0 mV), effectively transfect cell cultures without notable cytotoxicity. use viral vectors thus allows new (nonamine/noncationic/nonpolymeric) access to gene delivery, potential but still tough subject has been studied extensively over last 15 years by using or amine-based cationic vectors. remarkable ad...