Targeting folate receptors (α1) to internalize the bleomycin loaded DNA-nanotubes into prostate cancer xenograft CWR22R cells

Targeting Cancer Cells Overexpressing Folate Receptors with New Terpolymer-Based Nanocapsules: Toward a Novel Targeted DNA Delivery System for Cancer Therapy

Chemotherapeutics represent the standard treatment for a wide range of cancers. However, these agents also affect healthy cells, thus leading to severe off-target effects. Given the non-selectivity of the commonly used drugs, any increase in the selective tumor tissue uptake would represent a significant improvement in cancer therapy. Recently, the use of gene therapy to completely remove the lesion and avoid the toxicity of chemotherapeutics has become a tendency in oncotherapy. Ideally, the genetic material must be safely transferred from the site of administration to the target cells, without involving healthy tissues. This can be achieved by encapsulating genes into non-viral carriers and modifying their surface with ligands with high selectivity and affinity for a relevant receptor on the target cells. Hence, in this work we evaluate the use of terpolymer-based nanocapsules for the targeted delivery of DNA toward cancer cells. The surface of the nanocapsules is decorated with folic acid to actively target the folate receptors overexpressed on a variety of cancer cells. The nanocapsules demonstrate a good ability of encapsulating and releasing DNA. Moreover, the presence of the targeting moieties on the surface of the nanocapsules favors cell uptake, opening up the possibility of more effective therapies.

Research progress of phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase and its inhibitors in inflammatory diseases

Phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase (PI4K) is a lipid kinase that can catalyze the transfer of phosphate group from ATP to the inositol ring of phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) resulting in the phosphorylation of PtdIns at 4-OH sites, to generate phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI4P). Studies on biological functions reveal that PI4K is closely related to the occurrence and development of various inflammatory diseases such as obesity, cancer, viral infections, malaria, Alzheimer's disease, etc. PI4K-related inhibitors have been found to have the effects of inhibiting virus replication, anti-cancer, treating malaria and reducing rejection in organ transplants, among which MMV390048, an anti-malaria drug, has entered phase II clinical trial. This review discusses the classification, structure, distribution and related inhibitors of PI4K and their role in the progression of cancer, viral replication, and other inflammation induced diseases to explore their potential as therapeutic targets.

2D DNA nanoporous scaffold promotes osteogenic differentiation of pre-osteoblasts

Biofunctional materials with nanomechanical parameters similar to bone tissue may promote the adherence, migration, proliferation, and differentiation of pre-osteoblasts. In this study, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) nanoporous scaffold (DNA-NPS) was synthesized by the polymerization of rectangular and double-crossover (DX) DNA tiles. The diagonally precise polymerization of nanometer-sized DNA tiles (A + B) through sticky end cohesion gave rise to a micrometer-sized porous giant-sheet material. The synthesized DNA-NPS exhibited a uniformly distributed porosity with a size of 25 ± 20 nm. The morphology, dimensions, sectional profiles, 2-dimensional (2D) layer height, texture, topology, pore size, and mechanical parameters of DNA-NPS have been characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The size and zeta potential of DNA-NPS have been characterized by the zeta sizer. Cell biocompatibility, proliferation, and apoptosis have been evaluated by flow cytometry. The AFM results confirmed that the fabricated DNA-NPS was interconnected and uniformly porous, with a surface roughness of 0.125 ± 0.08035 nm. The elastic modulus of the DNA-NPS was 22.45 ± 8.65 GPa, which was comparable to that of native bone tissue. DNA-NPS facilitated pre-osteoblast adhesion, proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation. These findings indicated the potential of 2D DNA-NPS in promoting bone tissue regeneration.