Phenylboronic-acid-modified amphiphilic polyether as a neutral gene vector

Nanoassemblies with Effective Serum Tolerance Capability Achieving Robust Gene Silencing Efficacy for Breast Cancer Gene Therapy

The transfection efficiency of siRNA mediated by cationic polymers is limited due to the instability of polymers/siRNA complexes in the presence of serum. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) is usually applied to modify cationic polymers, so as to reduce protein and cell adsorption and then to improve siRNA transfection efficiency. However, the polymers' modification with PEG mostly consumes the free amino of the polymers, which can, in turn, reduce the charge density and limit their siRNA transfection efficacy. Here, a new PEG modification strategy that need not consume the surface aminos of polymers is proposed. Catechol-PEG polymers are coated on the surface of phenylboronic acid (PBA)-modified Generation 5 (G5) poly(amidoamine) dendrimers (G5PBA) via reversible boronate esters to establish PEG-modified dendrimer/siRNA nanoassemblies for efficient siRNA delivery. The PEG/G5PBA/siRNA nanoassemblies have positive charge and show excellent gene silencing efficacy in the absence of serum in vitro. More importantly, the PEG/G5PBA/siRNA nanoassemblies also exhibit excellent serum resistance and gene silencing efficacy in serum-containing medium. Furthermore, the effective antiserum and gene silencing efficacy elicited by these nanoassemblies lead to excellent antitumor effects in vivo. This proposed strategy constitutes an important approach to reach an excellent gene silencing efficacy in the presence of serum.

Responsive Boronic Acid-Decorated (Co)polymers: From Glucose Sensors to Autonomous Drug Delivery

Boronic acid-containing (co)polymers have fascinated researchers for decades, garnering attention for their unique responsiveness toward 1,2- and 1,3-diols, including saccharides and nucleotides. The applications of materials that exert this property are manifold including sensing, but also self-regulated drug delivery systems through responsive membranes or micelles. In this review, some of the main applications of boronic acid containing (co)polymers are discussed focusing on the role of the boronic acid group in the response mechanism. We hope that this summary, which highlights the importance and potential of boronic acid-decorated polymeric materials, will inspire further research within this interesting field of responsive polymers and polymeric materials.

pH-Activated Targeting Drug Delivery System Based on the Selective Binding of Phenylboronic Acid

Phenylboronic acid (PBA) is a tumor-targeting molecule, but its nonspecific interaction with normal cells or other components containing cis-diol residues undoubtedly limits its potential application in tumor-targeting drug delivery. Herein, we developed fructose-coated mixed micelles via PBA-terminated polyethylene glycol monostearate (PBA-PEG-C18) and Pluronic P123 (PEG20-PPG70-PEG20) to solve this problem, as the stability of borate formed by PBA and fructose was dramatically dependent on pH. The fluorescence spectroscopic results indicated that the borate formed by PBA and fructose decomposed at a decreased pH, and better binding between PBA and sialic acid (SA) was observed at a low pH. These results implied that the fructose groups decorated on the surface of the micelles could be out-competed by SA at a low pH. In vitro uptake and cytotoxicity studies demonstrated that the fructose coating on the mixed micelles improved the endocytosis and enhanced the cytotoxicity of drug-loaded mixed micelles in HepG2 cells but reduced the cytotoxicity in normal cells. These results demonstrate that a simple decorating strategy may facilitate PBA-targeted nanoparticles for tumor-specific drug delivery.

Polyglycidol, Its Derivatives, and Polyglycidol-Containing Copolymers-Synthesis and Medical Applications

Polyglycidol (or polyglycerol) is a biocompatible polymer with a main chain structure similar to that of poly(ethylene oxide) but with a ⁻CH₂OH reactive side group in every structural unit. The hydroxyl groups in polyglycidol not only increase the hydrophilicity of this polymer but also allow for its modification, leading to polymers with carboxyl, amine, and vinyl groups, as well as to polymers with bonded aliphatic chains, sugar moieties, and covalently immobilized bioactive compounds in particular proteins. The paper describes the current state of knowledge on the synthesis of polyglycidols with various topology (linear, branched, and star-like) and with various molar masses. We provide information on polyglycidol-rich surfaces with protein-repelling properties. We also describe methods for the synthesis of polyglycidol-containing copolymers and the preparation of nano- and microparticles that could be derived from these copolymers. The paper summarizes recent advances in the application of polyglycidol and polyglycidol-containing polymers as drug carriers, reagents for diagnostic systems, and elements of biosensors.

Cellular uptake: lessons from supramolecular organic chemistry

The objective of this Feature Article is to reflect on the importance of established and emerging principles of supramolecular organic chemistry to address one of the most persistent problems in life sciences. The main topic is dynamic covalent chemistry on cell surfaces, particularly disulfide exchange for thiol-mediated uptake. Examples of boronate and hydrazone exchange are added for contrast, comparison and completion. Of equal importance are the discussions of proximity effects in polyions and counterion hopping, and more recent highlights on ring tension and ion pair-π interactions. These lessons from supramolecular organic chemistry apply to cell-penetrating peptides, particularly the origin of "arginine magic" and the "pyrenebutyrate trick," and the currently emerging complementary "disulfide magic" with cell-penetrating poly(disulfide)s. They further extend to the voltage gating of neuronal potassium channels, gene transfection, and the delivery of siRNA. The collected examples illustrate that the input from conceptually innovative chemistry is essential to address the true challenges in biology beyond incremental progress and random screening.

Clustering Small Dendrimers into Nanoaggregates for Efficient DNA and siRNA Delivery with Minimal Toxicity

Cationic dendrimers are widely used as nonviral gene vectors, however, current gene materials based on dendrimers are either little effective or too toxic on the transfected cells. Here, a facile strategy is presented to prepare high efficient dendrimers with low transfection toxicity. Small dendrimers with 2 nm are clustered into nanoaggregates (≈100 nm) via phenylboronic acid modification and the self-assembled materials enable efficient DNA and siRNA delivery on several cell lines. The clustered nanostructures can disassemble into small dendrimers in acidic conditions thus exerting significantly less toxicity on the transfected cells. Further structure-function relationship studies reveal that both the phenyl group and boronic acid group play essential roles in the self-assembly and gene delivery processes. The transfection efficacy of phenylboronic acid-modified dendrimers can be down-regulated by blocking the boronic acid groups on dendrimers with diols or degrading the groups with hydrogen peroxide. This study provides a facile strategy in the development of efficient and biocompatible gene vectors based on low molecular weight polymers and clearly demonstrates the structure-function relationship of phenylboronic acid-modified polymers in gene delivery.

PGMA-based starlike polycations with flanking phenylboronic acid groups for highly efficient multifunctional gene delivery systems

A simple strategy to prepare starlike PGMA-based vectors with phenylboronic acid groups was proposed for multifunctional gene delivery systems.

Hydrophobic poly (amino acid)-modified PEI-mediated delivery of single-chain antibody scFv1C9 inhibits HepG2 cell cycle process and xenograft growth in nude mice

The safe and effective gene delivery vector remains the key step for gene therapy. Hydrophobic-modified Phe-PEI (PP80) was exhibited in advantage with biocompatibility and gene delivery with smaller size and easier penetration into cells and tissues. PP80 delivery of rev-casp-3 gene was demonstrated effectively to inhibit HeLa xenograft growth in our previous work. However, it was necessary to evaluate its applicability in other cells or tissues as gene carrier. Here, we quantitatively optimized the complex ratio of PP80 and plasmid DNA (pDNA) and evaluated the potential pyrogenicity by rabbit pyrogen test. In addition, PP80-mediated expression of scFv1C9 gene blocked HepG2 cell cycle progress in vitro. Subsequently, PP80-scFv1C9 was injected into HepG2 xenograft and significantly inhibited the xenograft growth in nude mice. Further investigation indicated that PP80 was an effective gene carrier and possible for entering hepatic xenograft. These features of PP80 made it attractive as a potential gene carrier for cancer therapy.