Bringing macromolecules into cells and evading endosomes by oxidized carbon nanoparticles

Perspectives on conformationally constrained peptide nucleic acid (PNA): insights into the structural design, properties and applications

Peptide nucleic acid or PNA is a synthetic DNA mimic that contains a sequence of nucleobases attached to a peptide-like backbone derived from N-2-aminoethylglycine. The semi-rigid PNA backbone acts as a scaffold that arranges the nucleobases in a proper orientation and spacing so that they can pair with their complementary bases on another DNA, RNA, or even PNA strand perfectly well through the standard Watson-Crick base-pairing. The electrostatically neutral backbone of PNA contributes to its many unique properties that make PNA an outstanding member of the xeno-nucleic acid family. Not only PNA can recognize its complementary nucleic acid strand with high affinity, but it does so with excellent specificity that surpasses the specificity of natural nucleic acids and their analogs. Nevertheless, there is still room for further improvements of the original PNA in terms of stability and specificity of base-pairing, direction of binding, and selectivity for different types of nucleic acids, among others. This review focuses on attempts towards the rational design of new generation PNAs with superior performance by introducing conformational constraints such as a ring or a chiral substituent in the PNA backbone. A large collection of conformationally rigid PNAs developed during the past three decades are analyzed and compared in terms of molecular design and properties in relation to structural data if available. Applications of selected modified PNA in various areas such as targeting of structured nucleic acid targets, supramolecular scaffold, biosensing and bioimaging, and gene regulation will be highlighted to demonstrate how the conformation constraint can improve the performance of the PNA. Challenges and future of the research in the area of constrained PNA will also be discussed.

Oxidized carbon black nanoparticles induce endothelial damage through C-X-C chemokine receptor 3-mediated pathway

Oxidation of engineered nanomaterials during application in various industrial sectors can alter their toxicity. Oxidized nanomaterials also have widespread industrial and biomedical applications. In this study, we evaluated the cardiopulmonary hazard posed by these nanomaterials using oxidized carbon black (CB) nanoparticles (CBox) as a model particle. Particle surface chemistry was characterized by X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Colloidal characterization and in vitro dosimetry modeling (particle kinetics, fate and transport modeling) were performed. Lung inflammation was assessed following oropharyngeal aspiration of CB or oxidized CBox particles (20 μg per mouse) in C57BL/6J mice. Toxicity and functional assays were also performed on murine macrophage (RAW 264.7) and endothelial cell lines (C166) with and without pharmacological inhibitors. Oxidant generation was assessed by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) and via flow cytometry. Endothelial toxicity was evaluated by quantifying pro-inflammatory mRNA expression, monolayer permeability, and wound closure. XPS and FTIR spectra indicated surface modifications, the appearance of new functionalities, and greater oxidative potential (both acellular and in vitro) of CBox particles. Treatment with CBox demonstrated greater in vivo inflammatory potentials (lavage neutrophil counts, secreted cytokine, and lung tissue mRNA expression) and air-blood barrier disruption (lavage proteins). Oxidant-dependent pro-inflammatory signaling in macrophages led to the production of CXCR3 ligands (CXCL9,10,11). Conditioned medium from CBox-treated macrophages induced significant elevation in endothelial cell pro-inflammatory mRNA expression, enhanced monolayer permeability and impairment of scratch healing in CXCR3 dependent manner. In summary, this study mechanistically demonstrated an increased biological potency of CBox particles and established the role of macrophage-released chemical mediators in endothelial damage.

Understanding the interactions between inorganic-based nanomaterials and biological membranes

The interactions between inorganic-based nanomaterials (NMs) and biological membranes are among the most important phenomena for developing NM-based therapeutics and resolving nanotoxicology. Herein, we introduce the structural and functional effects of inorganic-based NMs on biological membranes, mainly the plasma membrane and the endomembrane system, with an emphasis on the interface, which involves highly complex networks between NMs and biomolecules (such as membrane proteins and lipids). Significant efforts have been devoted to categorizing and analyzing the interaction mechanisms in terms of the physicochemical characteristics and biological effects of NMs, which can directly or indirectly influence the effects of NMs on membranes. Importantly, we summarize that the biological membranes act as platforms and thereby mediate NMs-immune system contacts. In this overview, the existing challenges and potential applications in the areas are addressed. A strong understanding of the discussed concepts will promote therapeutic NM designs for drug delivery systems by leveraging the NMs-membrane interactions and their functions.

Cellular internalization and release of polystyrene microplastics and nanoplastics

Microplastics and nanoplastics can accumulate in organisms after being ingested, be transported in the food web, and ultimately threaten human health. An understanding of the cellular internalization and release of micro(nano)plastics is important to predict their cytotoxicity. In this study, 50 nm, 500 nm and 5 μm polystyrene particles (PS50, PS500 and PS5000) were exposed to both model cell membranes and rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-2H3) cells. PS50 and PS500 absorb on the model membrane due to hydrophobic interactions and Van der Waals' forces, and may also penetrate the model membrane. PS50 and PS500 are internalized into living cells via both passive membrane penetration and active endocytosis. The passive membrane penetration is due to the partition of polystyrene particles in the water-phospholipid system. The endocytosis of PS50 occurs through the clathrin-mediated pathway, the caveolin-mediated pathway and macropinocytosis, but endocytosis of PS500 is mainly via the macropinocytosis. PS5000 cannot adhere to the cell membrane or be internalized into cells due to its large size and weak Brownian motion. The endocytosed PS50 and PS500 mainly accumulate in the lysosomes. The passively internalized PS50 and PS500 initially distribute in the cytoplasm not in lysosomes, but are transported to lysosomes with energy supply. PS50 and PS500 are excreted from cells via energy-free penetration and energy-dependent lysosomal exocytosis. The masses of the internalized PS50 inside the cells and the excreted PS50 outside the cells were both higher than the masses of PS500, indicating that the smaller particles are more easily enter or leave cells than do their larger counterparts. Our findings will contribute to the risk assessment of micro(nano)plastics and their safe application.

Multifunctional Delivery Systems for Peptide Nucleic Acids

The number of applications of peptide nucleic acids (PNAs)-oligonucleotide analogs with a polyamide backbone-is continuously increasing in both in vitro and cellular systems and, parallel to this, delivery systems able to bring PNAs to their targets have been developed. This review is intended to give to the readers an overview on the available carriers for these oligonucleotide mimics, with a particular emphasis on newly developed multi-component- and multifunctional vehicles which boosted PNA research in recent years. The following approaches will be discussed: (a) conjugation with carrier molecules and peptides; (b) liposome formulations; (c) polymer nanoparticles; (d) inorganic porous nanoparticles; (e) carbon based nanocarriers; and (f) self-assembled and supramolecular systems. New therapeutic strategies enabled by the combination of PNA and proper delivery systems are discussed.

Cytotoxic or Not? Disclosing the Toxic Nature of Carbonaceous Nanomaterials through Nano-Bio Interactions

The cytotoxic influence of two different carbonaceous nanomaterials on human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) cultured in vitro was compared in the short (1-3 days) and long term (up to 60 days). Amorphous carbon and single-walled carbon nanotubes were chosen and evaluated due to their contrasting physicochemical properties. Both materials, though supposed similarly low-toxic in basic short-term cytotoxicity assays, demonstrated dramatically different properties in the long-term study. The surface chemistry and biomolecule-adsorption capacity turned out to be crucial factors influencing cytotoxicity. We proved that amorphous carbon is able to weakly bind a low-affinity protein coat (so-called soft corona), while carbon nanotubes behaved oppositely. Obtained results from zeta-potential and adsorption measurements for both nanomaterials confirmed that a hard protein corona was present on the single-walled carbon-nanotube surface that aggravated their cytotoxic influence. The long-term exposure of the mesenchymal stem cells to carbon nanotubes, coated by the strongly bound proteins, showed a significant decrease in cell-growth rate, followed by cell senescence and death. These results are of great importance in the light of increasing nanomaterial applications in biomedicine and cell-based therapies. Our better understanding of the puzzling cytotoxicity of carbonaceous nanomaterials, reflecting their surface chemistry and interactions, is helpful in adjusting their properties when tailored for specific applications.

Endocytosis: The Nanoparticle and Submicron Nanocompounds Gateway into the Cell

Nanoparticles (NPs) and submicron particles are increasingly used as carriers for delivering therapeutic compounds to cells. Their entry into the cell represents the initial step in this delivery process, being most of the nanoparticles taken up by endocytosis, although other mechanisms can contribute to the uptake. To increase the delivery efficiency of therapeutic compounds by NPs and submicron particles is very relevant to understand the mechanisms involved in the uptake process. This review covers the proposed pathways involved in the cellular uptake of different NPs and submicron particles types as well as the role that some of the physicochemical nanoparticle characteristics play in the uptake pathway preferentially used by the nanoparticles to gain access and deliver their cargo inside the cell.

Modulation of DNA and RNA by PNA

Peptide nucleic acid (PNA), a synthetic DNA mimic that is devoid of the (deoxy)ribose-phosphate backbone yet still perfectly retains the ability to recognize natural nucleic acids in a sequence-specific fashion, can be employed as a tool to modulate gene expressions via several different mechanisms. The unique strength of PNA compared to other oligonucleotide analogs is its ability to bind to nucleic acid targets with secondary structures such as double-stranded and quadruplex DNA as well as RNA. This digest aims to introduce general readers to the advancement in the area of modulation of DNA/RNA functions by PNA, its current status and future research opportunities, with emphasis on recent progress in new targeting modes of structured DNA/RNA by PNA and PNA-mediated gene editing.

Advances in Nanoparticle-based Delivery of Next Generation Peptide Nucleic Acids

BACKGROUND

Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) belong to the next generation of synthetic nucleic acid analogues. Their high binding affinity and specificity towards the target DNA or RNA make them the reagent of choice for gene therapy-based applications.

OBJECTIVE

To review important gene therapy based applications of regular and chemically modified peptide nucleic acids in combination with nanotechnology.

METHOD

Selective research of the literature.

RESULTS

Poor intracellular delivery of PNAs has been a significant challenge. Among several delivery strategies explored till date, nanotechnology-based strategies hold immense potential. Recent studies have shown that advances in nanotechnology can be used to broaden the range of therapeutic applications of PNAs. In this review, we discussed significant advances made in nanoparticle-based on PLGA polymer, silicon, oxidized carbon and graphene oxide for the delivery of PNAs.

CONCLUSION

Nanoparticles delivered PNAs can be implied in diverse gene therapy based applications including gene editing as well as gene targeting (antisense) based strategies.

Oxidized carbon nanoparticles as an effective protein antigen delivery system targeting the cell-mediated immune response

Background: The demand for an effective vaccine delivery system that drives a suitable immune response is increasing. The oxidized carbon nanosphere (OCN), a negatively charged carbon nanoparticle, has the potential to fulfill this requirement because it can efficiently deliver macromolecules into cells and allows endosomal leakage. However, fundamental insights into how OCNs are taken up by antigen-presenting cells, and the intracellular behavior of delivered molecules is lacking. Furthermore, how immune responses are stimulated by OCN-mediated delivery has not been investigated.

Purpose: In this study, the model protein antigen ovalbumin (OVA) was used to investigate the uptake mechanism and intracellular fate of OCN-mediated delivery of protein in macrophages. Moreover, the immune response triggered by OVA delivered by OCNs was characterized.

Methods: Bone-marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) from mice were used to study antigen uptake and intracellular trafficking. Mice were immunized using OCN–OVA combined with known adjuvants, and the specific immune response was measured.

Results: OCNs showed no cytotoxicity against BMDMs. OCN-mediated delivery of OVA into BMDMs was partially temperature independent process. Using specific inhibitors, it was revealed that intracellular delivery of OCN–OVA does not rely on phagocytosis or the clathrin- and lipid raft/caveolae-mediated pathways. Delivered OVA was found to colocalize with compartments containing MHC class I, but not with early endosomes, lysosomes, and autophagosomes. Immunization of OVA using OCNs in combination with the known adjuvant monophosphoryl lipid A specifically enhanced interferon gamma (IFNγ)- and granzyme B-producing cytotoxic T cells (CTLs).

Conclusion: OCNs effectively delivered protein antigens into macrophages that localized with compartments containing MHC class I partially by the temperature independent, but not clathrin- and lipid raft/caveolae-mediated pathways. Increased CD8⁺ T-cell activity was induced by OCN-delivered antigens, suggesting antigen processing toward antigen presentation for CTLs. Taken together, OCNs are a potential protein antigen delivery system that stimulates the cell-mediated immune response.

Applications of PNA-laden nanoparticles for hematological disorders

Safe and efficient genome editing has been an unmitigated goal for biomedical researchers since its inception. The most prevalent strategy for gene editing is the use of engineered nucleases that induce DNA damage and take advantage of cellular DNA repair machinery. This includes meganucleases, zinc-finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector nucleases, and Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR/Cas9) systems. However, the clinical viability of these nucleases is marred by their off-target cleavage activity (≥ 50% in RNA-guided endonucleases). In addition, in vivo applications of CRISPR require systemic administration of Cas9 protein, mRNA, or DNA, which presents a significant delivery challenge. The development of nucleic acid probes that can recognize specific double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) regions and activate endogenous DNA repair machinery holds great promise for gene editing applications. Triplex-forming oligonucleotides (TFOs), which were introduced more than 25 years ago, are among the most extensively studied oligomeric dsDNA-targeting agents. TFOs bind duplex DNA to create a distorted helical structure, which can stimulate DNA repair and the exchange of a nearby mutated region-otherwise leading to an undesired phenotype-for a short single-stranded donor DNA that contains the corrective nucleotide sequence. Recombination can be induced within several hundred base-pairs of the TFO binding site and has been shown to depend on triplex-induced initiation of the nucleotide excision repair pathway and engagement of the homology-dependent repair pathway. Since TFOs do not possess any direct nuclease activity, their off-target effects are minimal when compared to engineered nucleases. This review comprehensively covers the advances made in peptide nucleic acid-based TFOs for site-specific gene editing and their therapeutic applications.

DNA Vaccines-How Far From Clinical Use?

Two decades ago successful transfection of antigen presenting cells (APC) in vivo was demonstrated which resulted in the induction of primary adaptive immune responses. Due to the good biocompatibility of plasmid DNA, their cost-efficient production and long shelf life, many researchers aimed to develop DNA vaccine-based immunotherapeutic strategies for treatment of infections and cancer, but also autoimmune diseases and allergies. This review aims to summarize our current knowledge on the course of action of DNA vaccines, and which factors are responsible for the poor immunogenicity in human so far. Important optimization steps that improve DNA transfection efficiency comprise the introduction of DNA-complexing nano-carriers aimed to prevent extracellular DNA degradation, enabling APC targeting, and enhanced endo/lysosomal escape of DNA. Attachment of virus-derived nuclear localization sequences facilitates nuclear entry of DNA. Improvements in DNA vaccine design include the use of APC-specific promotors for transcriptional targeting, the arrangement of multiple antigen sequences, the co-delivery of molecular adjuvants to prevent tolerance induction, and strategies to circumvent potential inhibitory effects of the vector backbone. Successful clinical use of DNA vaccines may require combined employment of all of these parameters, and combination treatment with additional drugs.

Bio-cleavable nanoprobes for target-triggered catalytic hairpin assembly amplification detection of microRNAs in live cancer cells

The monitoring and imaging of intracellular microRNAs (miRNAs) with specific sequences plays a vital role in cell biology as it can potentially elucidate many cellular processes and diseases related to miRNAs in living cells with accurate information. However, the detection of trace amounts of under-expressed intracellular miRNAs in living cells represents one of the current major challenges. In an effort to address this issue, we describe the establishment of an in cell catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) signal amplification strategy for imaging under-expressed intracellular miRNAs in this work. Gold nanoparticles functionalized with FAM- and TAMRA-labeled hairpins with disulfide bonds in the stems are readily delivered into cells via endocytosis. Glutathione with evaluated concentrations in cancer cells cleaves the disulfide bonds in the hairpins by reduction to release the hairpins, and the target miRNAs further trigger CHA between the two hairpins to form many DNA duplexes, which bring the FAM and TAMRA labels into close proximity to generate apparently enhanced fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) for the sensitive monitoring of low amounts of under-expressed miRNAs in live cancer cells. Using CHA to amplify the signal output and FRET to reduce the background noise, a significantly enhanced signal-to-noise ratio, thereby high sensitivity, over conventional fluorescence imaging can be realized, making our method particularly suitable for monitoring low levels of intracellular species.

Integration of Cell-Penetrating Peptides with Rod-like Bionanoparticles: Virus-Inspired Gene-Silencing Technology

Inspired by the high gene transfer efficiency of viral vectors and to avoid side effects, we present here a 1D rod-like gene-silencing vector based on a plant virus. By decorating the transacting activator of transduction (TAT) peptide on the exterior surface, the TAT-modified tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) achieves a tunable isoelectric point (from ∼3.5 to ∼9.6) depending on the TAT dose. In addition to enhanced cell internalization, this plant virus-based vector (TMV-TAT) acquired endo/lysosomal escape capacity without inducing lysosomal damage, resulting in both high efficiency and low cytotoxicity. By loading silencer green fluorescent protein (GFP) siRNA onto the TMV-TAT vector (siRNA@TMV-TAT) and interfering with GFP-expressing mouse epidermal stem cells (ESCs/GFP) in vitro, the proportion of GFP-positive cells could be knocked down to levels even lower than 15% at a concentration of ∼100% cell viability. Moreover, by interfering with GFP-expressing highly metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma (MHCC97-H/GFP) tumors in vivo, treatment with siRNA@TMV-TAT complexes for 10 days achieved a GFP-negative rate as high as 80.8%. This work combines the high efficiency of viral vectors and the safety of nonviral vectors and may provide a promising strategy for gene-silencing technology.

Enhancing Passive Transport of Micro/Nano Particles into Cells by Oxidized Carbon Black

Uses of micro-/nano-sized particles to deliver biologically active entities into cells are common for medical therapeutics and prophylactics and also for cellular experiments. Enhancing cellular uptake and avoiding destruction by lysosomes are desirable for general particulate drug delivery systems. Here, we show that the relatively nontoxic, negatively charged oxidized carbon black particles (OCBs) can enhance cellular penetration of micro- and nano-particles. Experiments with retinal-grafted chitosan particles (PRPs) with hydrodynamic sizes of 1200 ± 51.5, 540 ± 29.0, and 430 ± 11.0 nm (three-sized model particles) indicate that only the sub-micron-sized particles can penetrate the first layer of multilayered liposomes. However, in the presence of OCBs, the micron-sized PRPs and the two submicron-sized PRPs can rapidly enter the interiors of all layers of the multilayered liposomes. Very low cellular uptakes of micro- and submicron-sized PRPs into keratinocytes cells are usually observed. However, in the presence of OCBs, faster and higher cellular uptakes of all of the three-sized PRPs are clearly noticed. Intracellular traffic monitoring of PRP uptake into HepG2 cells in the presence of OCBs revealed that the PRPs did not co-localize with endosomes, suggesting a nonendocytic uptake process. This demonstration of OCB's ability to enhance cellular uptake of micro- and submicron-particles should open up an easy strategy to effectively send various carriers into cells.

Oxidized Carbon Black: Preparation, Characterization and Application in Antibody Delivery across Cell Membrane

Modulating biomolecular networks in cells with peptides and proteins has become a promising therapeutic strategy and effective biological tools. A simple and effective reagent that can bring functional proteins into cells can increase efficacy and allow more investigations. Here we show that the relatively non-toxic and non-immunogenic oxidized carbon black particles (OCBs) prepared from commercially available carbon black can deliver a 300 kDa protein directly into cells, without an involvement of a cellular endocytosis. Experiments with cell-sized liposomes indicate that OCBs directly interact with phospholipids and induce membrane leakages. Delivery of human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs, 150 kDa) with specific affinity towards dengue viruses (DENV) into DENV-infected Vero cells by OCBs results in HuMAbs distribution all over cells' interior and effective viral neutralization. An ability of OCBs to deliver big functional/therapeutic proteins into cells should open doors for more protein drug investigations and new levels of antibody therapies and biological studies.

Hydrophilic and Cell-Penetrable Pyrrolidinyl Peptide Nucleic Acid via Post-synthetic Modification with Hydrophilic Side Chains

Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is a nucleic acid mimic in which the deoxyribose-phosphate was replaced by a peptide-like backbone. The absence of negative charge in the PNA backbone leads to several unique behaviors including a stronger binding and salt independency of the PNA-DNA duplex stability. However, PNA possesses poor aqueous solubility and cannot directly penetrate cell membranes. These are major obstacles that limit in vivo applications of PNA. In previous strategies, the PNA can be conjugated to macromolecular carriers or modified with positively charged side chains such as guanidinium groups to improve the aqueous solubility and cell permeability. In general, a preformed modified PNA monomer was required. In this study, a new approach for post-synthetic modification of PNA backbone with one or more hydrophilic groups was proposed. The PNA used in this study was the conformationally constrained pyrrolidinyl PNA with prolyl-2-aminocyclopentanecarboxylic acid dipeptide backbone (acpcPNA) that shows several advantages over the conventional PNA. The aldehyde modifiers carrying different linkers (alkylene and oligo(ethylene glycol)) and end groups (-OH, -NH₂, and guanidinium) were synthesized and attached to the backbone of modified acpcPNA by reductive alkylation. The hybrids between the modified acpcPNAs and DNA exhibited comparable or superior thermal stability with base-pairing specificity similar to those of unmodified acpcPNA. Moreover, the modified apcPNAs also showed the improvement of aqueous solubility (10-20 folds compared to unmodified PNA) and readily penetrate cell membranes without requiring any special delivery agents. This study not only demonstrates the practicality of the proposed post-synthetic modification approach for PNA modification, which could be readily applied to other systems, but also opens up opportunities for using pyrrolidinyl PNA in various applications such as intracellular RNA sensing, specific gene detection, and antisense and antigene therapy.

Lateral Tension-Induced Penetration of Particles into a Liposome

It is important that we understand the mechanism of the penetration of particles into a living cell to achieve advances in bionanotechnology, such as for treatment, visualization within a cell, and genetic modification. Although there have been many studies on the application of functional particles to cells, the basic mechanism of penetration across a biological membrane is still poorly understood. Here we used a model membrane system to demonstrate that lateral membrane tension drives particle penetration across a lipid bilayer. After the application of osmotic pressure, fully wrapped particles on a liposome surface were found to enter the liposome. We discuss the mechanism of the tension-induced penetration in terms of narrow constriction of the membrane at the neck part. The present findings are expected to provide insight into the application of particles to biological systems.

A Freeze-Concentration and Polyampholyte-Modified Liposome-Based Antigen-Delivery System for Effective Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is an exciting new approach to cancer treatment. The development of a novel freeze-concentration method is described that could be applicable in immunotherapy. The method involves freezing cells in the presence of pH-sensitive, polyampholyte-modified liposomes with encapsulated ovalbumin (OVA) as the antigen. In RAW 264.7 cells, compared to unfrozen, freeze-concentration of polyampholyte-modified liposomes encapsulating OVA resulted in efficient OVA uptake and also allowed its delivery to the cytosol. Efficient delivery of OVA to the cytosol was shown to be partly due to the pH-dependence of the polyampholyte-modified liposomes. Cytosolic OVA delivery also resulted in significant up-regulation of the major histocompatibility complex class I pathway through cross-stimulation, as well as an increase in the release of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. The results demonstrate that the combination of a simple freeze-concentration method and polyampholyte-modified liposomes might be useful in future immunotherapy applications.

Biodegradable MnO2 Nanosheet-Mediated Signal Amplification in Living Cells Enables Sensitive Detection of Down-Regulated Intracellular MicroRNA

The monitoring of intracellular microRNAs plays important roles in elucidating the biological function and biogenesis of miRNAs in living cells. However, because of their sequence similarity, low abundance, and small size, it is a great challenge to detect intracellular miRNAs, especially for those with much lower expression levels. To address this issue, we have developed an in cell signal amplification approach for monitoring down-regulated miRNAs in living cells based on biodegradable MnO₂ nanosheet-mediated and target-triggered assembly of hairpins. The MnO₂ nanosheets can adsorb and exhibit an excellent quenching effect to the dye labeled hairpin probes. Besides, due to their biodegradability, the MnO₂ nanosheets feature highly reduced cytotoxicity to the target cells. Upon entering cells, the surface-adsorbed FAM- and Tamra (TMR)-conjugated hairpins can be released due to the displacement reactions by other proteins or nucleic acids and the degradation of the MnO₂ nanosheets by cellular GSH. Subsequently, the down-regulated target miRNA-21 triggers cascaded assembly of the two hairpins into long dsDNA polymers, which brings the fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) pair, FAM (donor), and TMR (acceptor) into close proximity to generate significantly enhanced FRET signals for detecting trace miRNA-21 in living cells. By carefully tailoring the sequences of the hairpins, the developed method can offer new opportunities for monitoring various trace intracellular miRNA targets with low expression levels in living cells.

Enhanced protein internalization and efficient endosomal escape using polyampholyte-modified liposomes and freeze concentration

Here we show a new strategy for efficient freeze concentration-mediated cytoplasmic delivery of proteins, obtained via the endosomal escape property of polyampholyte-modified liposomes. The freeze concentration method successfully induces the efficient internalization of proteins simply by freezing cells with protein and nanocarrier complexes. However, the mechanism of protein internalization remains unclear. Here, we designed a novel protein delivery carrier by modifying liposomes through incorporating hydrophobic polyampholytes therein. These complexes were characterized for particle size, encapsulation efficiency, and cytotoxicity. Flow cytometry and microscopic analysis showed that the adsorption and internalization of protein-loaded polyampholyte-modified liposomes after freezing were enhanced compared with that observed in unfrozen complexes. Inhibition studies demonstrated that the internalization mechanism differs between unmodified and polyampholyte-modified liposomes. Furthermore, polyampholyte-modified liposomes exhibited high efficacy in facilitating endosomal escape to enhance protein delivery to the cytoplasm with low toxicity. These results strongly suggest that the freeze concentration-based strategy could be widely utilised for efficient cargo delivery into the cytoplasm in vitro not only in cancer treatment but also for gene therapy as well.

Penetration of Oxidized Carbon Nanospheres through Lipid Bilayer Membrane: Comparison to Graphene Oxide and Oxidized Carbon Nanotubes, and Effects of pH and Membrane Composition

Here we show that the ability of oxidized carbon particles to penetrate phospholipid bilayer membrane varies with the particle shapes, chemical functionalities on the particle surface, lipid compositions of the membrane and pH conditions. Among the similar surface charged oxidized carbon particles of spherical (oxidized carbon nanosphere, OCS), tubular (oxidized carbon nanotube, OCT), and sheet (oxidized graphene sheet, OGSh) morphologies, OCS possesses the highest levels of adhesion to lipid bilayer membrane and penetration into the cell-sized liposome. OCS preferably binds better to the disordered lipid bilayer membrane (consisting of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine) as compared to the ordered membrane (consisting of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine and cholesterol). The process of OCS-induced leak on the membrane is pH responsive and most pronounced under an acidic condition. Covalently decorating the OCS's surface with poly(ethylene oxide) or (2-aminoethyl)trimethylammonium moieties decreases its ability to interact with the membrane. When used as carriers, OCSs can deliver curcumin into nucleus of A549 human lung cancer and human embryonic kidney cells, in contrast, curcumin molecules delivered by OCTs remain in the cytoplasm. OGShs cannot significantly enter cells and cannot induce noticeable cellular uptake of curcumin.

Quantifying pulsed electric field-induced membrane nanoporation in single cells

Plasma membrane disruption can trigger a host of cellular activities. One commonly observed type of disruption is pore formation. Molecular dynamic (MD) simulations of simplified lipid membrane structures predict that controllably disrupting the membrane via nano-scale poration may be possible with nanosecond pulsed electric fields (nsPEF). Until recently, researchers hoping to verify this hypothesis experimentally have been limited to measuring the relatively slow process of fluorescent markers diffusing across the membrane, which is indirect evidence of nanoporation that could be channel-mediated. Leveraging recent advances in nonlinear optical microscopy, we elucidate the role of pulse parameters in nsPEF-induced membrane permeabilization in live cells. Unlike previous techniques, it is able to directly observe loss of membrane order at the onset of the pulse. We also develop a complementary theoretical model that relates increasing membrane permeabilization to membrane pore density. Due to the significantly improved spatial and temporal resolution possible with our imaging method, we are able to directly compare our experimental and theoretical results. Their agreement provides substantial evidence that nanoporation does occur and that its development is dictated by the electric field distribution.

Shape Effect on Particle-Lipid Bilayer Membrane Association, Cellular Uptake, and Cytotoxicity

Although computer simulation and cell culture experiments have shown that elongated spherical particles can be taken up into cells more efficiently than spherical particles, experimental investigation on effects of these different shapes over the particle-membrane association has never been reported. Therefore, whether the higher cellular uptake of an elongated spherical particles is a result of a better particle-membrane association as suggested by some calculation works or a consequence of its influence on other cellular trans-membrane components involved in particle translocation process, cannot be concluded. Here, we study the effect of particle shape on the particle-membrane interaction by monitoring the association between particles of various shapes and lipid bilayer membrane of artificial cell-sized liposomes. Among the three shaped lanthanide-doped NaYF4 particles, all with high shape purity and uniformity, similar crystal phase, and surface chemistry, the elongated spherical particle shows the highest level of membrane association, followed by the spherical particle with a similar radius, and the hexagonal prism-shaped particle, respectively. The free energy of membrane curvature calculated based on a membrane indentation induced by a particle association indicates that among the three particle shapes, the elongated spherical particle give the most stable membrane curvature. The elongated spherical particles show the highest cellular uptake into cytosol of human melanoma (A-375) and human liver carcinoma (HepG2) cells when observed through a confocal laser scanning fluorescence microscope. Quantitative study using flow cytometry also gives the same result. The elongated spherical particles also possess the highest cytotoxicity in A-375 and normal skin (WI-38) cell lines, comparing to the other two shaped particles.

Pyrrolidinyl PNA with α/β-Dipeptide Backbone: From Development to Applications

The specific pairing between two complementary nucleobases (A·T, C·G) according to the Watson-Crick rules is by no means unique to natural nucleic acids. During the past few decades a number of nucleic acid analogues or mimics have been developed, and peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is one of the most intriguing examples. In addition to forming hybrids with natural DNA/RNA as well as itself with high affinity and specificity, the uncharged peptide-like backbone of PNA confers several unique properties not observed in other classes of nucleic acid analogues. PNA is therefore suited to applications currently performed by conventional oligonucleotides/analogues and others potentially beyond this. In addition, PNA is also interesting in its own right as a new class of oligonucleotide mimics. Unlimited opportunities exist to modify the PNA structure, stimulating the search for new systems with improved properties or additional functionality not present in the original PNA, driving future research and applications of these in nanotechnology and beyond. Although many structural variations of PNA exist, significant improvements to date have been limited to a few constrained derivatives of the privileged N-2-aminoethylglycine PNA scaffold. In this Account, we summarize our contributions in this field: the development of a new family of conformationally constrained pyrrolidinyl PNA having a nonchimeric α/β-dipeptide backbone derived from nucleobase-modified proline and cyclic β-amino acids. The conformational constraints dictated by the pyrrolidine ring and the β-amino acid are essential requirements determining the binding efficiency, as the structure and stereochemistry of the PNA backbone significantly affect its ability to interact with DNA, RNA, and in self-pairing. The modular nature of the dipeptide backbone simplifies the synthesis and allows for rapid structural optimization. Pyrrolidinyl PNA having a (2'R,4'R)-proline/(1S,2S)-2-aminocyclopentanecarboxylic backbone (acpcPNA) binds to DNA with outstanding affinity and sequence specificity. It also binds to RNA in a highly sequence-specific fashion, albeit with lower affinity than to DNA. Additional characteristics include exclusive antiparallel/parallel selectivity and a low tendency for self-hybridization. Modification of the nucleobase or backbone allowing site-specific incorporation of labels and other functions to acpcPNA via click and other conjugation chemistries is possible, generating functional PNAs that are suitable for various applications. DNA sensing and biological applications of acpcPNA have been demonstrated, but these are still in their infancy and the full potential of pyrrolidinyl PNA is yet to be realized. With properties competitive with, and in some aspects superior to, the best PNA technology available to date, pyrrolidinyl PNA offers great promise as a platform system for future elaboration for the fabrication of new functional materials, nanodevices, and next-generation analytical tools.