1
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Cirillo S, Zhang B, Brown S, Zhao X. Antimicrobial peptide A 9K as a gene delivery vector in cancer cells. Eur J Pharm Biopharm 2024; 198:114244. [PMID: 38467336 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpb.2024.114244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Revised: 02/24/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024]
Abstract
Designed peptides are promising biomaterials for biomedical applications. The amphiphilic cationic antimicrobial peptide (AMP), A9K, can self-assemble into nano-rod structures and has shown cancer cell selectivity and could therefore be a promising candidate for therapeutic delivery into cancer cells. In this paper, we investigate the selectivity of A9K for cancer cell models, examining its effect on two human cancer cell lines, A431 and HCT-116. Little or no activity was observed on the control, human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs). In the cancer cell lines the peptide inhibited cellular growth through changes in mitochondrial morphology and membrane potential while remaining harmless towards HDFs. In addition, the peptide can bind to and protect nucleic acids while transporting them into both 2D cultures and 3D spheroids of cancer cells. A9K showed high efficiency in delivering siRNA molecules into the centre of the spheroids. A9K was also explored in vivo, using a zebrafish (Danio rerio) development toxicity assay, showing that the peptide is safe at low doses. Finally, a high-content imaging screen, using RNA interference (RNAi) targeted towards cellular uptake, in HCT-116 cells was carried out. Our findings suggest that active cellular uptake is involved in peptide internalisation, mediated through clathrin-mediated endocytosis. These new discoveries make A9K attractive for future developments in clinical and biotechnological applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Cirillo
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Bo Zhang
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Stephen Brown
- The Sheffield RNAi Screening Facility, Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK; School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
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2
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Xiang K, Li Y, Cong H, Yu B, Shen Y. Peptide-based non-viral gene delivery: A comprehensive review of the advances and challenges. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 266:131194. [PMID: 38554914 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.131194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2024] [Accepted: 03/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
Gene therapy is the most effective treatment option for diseases, but its effectiveness is affected by the choice and design of gene carriers. The genes themselves have to pass through multiple barriers in order to enter the cell and therefore require additional vectors to carry them inside the cell. In gene therapy, peptides have unique properties and potential as gene carriers, which can effectively deliver genes into specific cells or tissues, protect genes from degradation, improve gene transfection efficiency, and enhance gene targeting and biological responsiveness. This paper reviews the research progress of peptides and their derivatives in the field of gene delivery recently, describes the obstacles encountered by foreign materials to enter the interior of the cell, and introduces the following classes of functional peptides that can carry materials into the interior of the cell, and assist in transmembrane translocation of carriers, thus breaking through endosomal traps to enable successful entry of genetic materials into the nucleus of the cell. The paper also discusses the combined application of peptide vectors with other vectors to enhance its transfection ability, explores current challenges encountered by peptide vectors, and looks forward to future developments in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Xiang
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China
| | - Yanan Li
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China
| | - Hailin Cong
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China.
| | - Bing Yu
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China.
| | - Youqing Shen
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, Center for Bio nanoengineering, and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
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3
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Chang DH, Lee MR, Wang N, Lynn DM, Palecek SP. Establishing Quantifiable Guidelines for Antimicrobial α/β-Peptide Design: A Partial Least-Squares Approach to Improve Antimicrobial Activity and Reduce Mammalian Cell Toxicity. ACS Infect Dis 2023; 9:2632-2651. [PMID: 38014670 PMCID: PMC10807133 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.3c00468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are promising candidates to combat pathogens that are resistant to conventional antimicrobial drugs because they operate through mechanisms that involve membrane disruption. However, the use of AMPs in clinical settings has been limited, at least in part, by their susceptibility to proteolytic degradation and their lack of selectivity toward pathogenic microbes vs mammalian cells. We recently reported on the design of α- and β-peptide oligomers structurally templated upon the naturally occurring α-helical AMP aurein 1.2. These α/β-peptide oligomers are more proteolytically stable than aurein 1.2 and have several other attributes that render them attractive as alternatives to conventional AMPs. This study describes the influence of peptide physicochemical properties on the broad-spectrum activity of aurein 1.2-based α/β-peptide mimics against nine bacterial, fungal, and mammalian cell lines. We used a partial least-squares regression (PLSR)-supervised machine learning model to quantify and visualize relationships between experimentally determined physicochemical properties (e.g., hydrophobicity, charge, and helicity) and experimentally measured cell-type-specific activities of 21 peptides in a 149-member α/β-peptide library. Using this approach, we identified several peptides that were predicted to exhibit enhanced broad-spectrum selectivity, a measure that evaluates antimicrobial activity relative to mammalian cell toxicity compared to aurein 1.2. Experimental validation demonstrated high model predictive performance, and characterization of compounds with the highest broad-spectrum selectivity revealed peptide hydrophobicity, helicity, and helical rigidity to be strong predictors of broad-spectrum selectivity. The most selective peptide identified from the model prediction has more than a 13-fold improvement in broad-spectrum selectivity than that of aurein 1.2, demonstrating the ability of using PLSR models to identify quantitative structure-function relationships for nonstandard amino acid-containing peptides. Overall, this work establishes quantifiable guidelines for the rational design of helical antimicrobial α/β-peptides and identifies promising new α/β-peptides with significantly reduced mammalian toxicities and improved antifungal and antibacterial activities relative to aurein 1.2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglas H. Chang
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1415 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Myung-Ryul Lee
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1415 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Nathan Wang
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1415 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - David M. Lynn
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1415 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1101 University Ave., Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Sean P. Palecek
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1415 Engineering Dr., Madison, WI 53706, USA
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4
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Liu Q, Wang L, He D, Wu Y, Liu X, Yang Y, Chen Z, Dong Z, Luo Y, Song Y. Application Value of Antimicrobial Peptides in Gastrointestinal Tumors. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:16718. [PMID: 38069041 PMCID: PMC10706433 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242316718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Gastrointestinal cancer is a common clinical malignant tumor disease that seriously endangers human health and lacks effective treatment methods. As part of the innate immune defense of many organisms, antimicrobial peptides not only have broad-spectrum antibacterial activity but also can specifically kill tumor cells. The positive charge of antimicrobial peptides under neutral conditions determines their high selectivity to tumor cells. In addition, antimicrobial peptides also have unique anticancer mechanisms, such as inducing apoptosis, autophagy, cell cycle arrest, membrane destruction, and inhibition of metastasis, which highlights the low drug resistance and high specificity of antimicrobial peptides. In this review, we summarize the related studies on antimicrobial peptides in the treatment of digestive tract tumors, mainly oral cancer, esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, and colorectal cancer. This paper describes the therapeutic advantages of antimicrobial peptides due to their unique anticancer mechanisms. The length, net charge, and secondary structure of antimicrobial peptides can be modified by design or modification to further enhance their anticancer effects. In summary, as an emerging cancer treatment drug, antimicrobial peptides need to be further studied to realize their application in gastrointestinal cancer diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Liu
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Lei Wang
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Dongxia He
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Yuewei Wu
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Xian Liu
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Yahan Yang
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Zhizhi Chen
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Zhan Dong
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Ying Luo
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Yuzhu Song
- College of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
- Medical College, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
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5
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Xia Y, Xu R, Ye S, Yan J, Kumar P, Zhang P, Zhao X. Microfluidic Formulation of Curcumin-Loaded Multiresponsive Gelatin Nanoparticles for Anticancer Therapy. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2023. [PMID: 37140447 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.3c00318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Current anticancer research shows that a combination of multiple treatment methods can greatly improve the killing of tumor cells. Using the latest microfluidic swirl mixer technology, combined with chemotherapy and photothermal-ablation therapy, we developed multiresponsive targeted antitumor nanoparticles (NPs) made of folate-functionalized gelatin NPs under 200 nm in size and with encapsulated CuS NPs, Fe3O4 NPs, and curcumin (Cur). By exploring gelatin's structure, adjusting its concentration and pH, and fine-tuning the fluid dynamics in the microfluidic device, the best preparation conditions were obtained for gelatin NPs with an average particle size of 90 ± 7 nm. The comparative targeting of the drug delivery system (DDS) was demonstrated on lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells (low level of folate receptors) and breast adenocarcinoma MCF-7 cells (high level of folate receptors). Folic acid helps achieve targeting and accurate delivery of NPs to the MCF-7 tumor cells. The synergistic photothermal ablation and curcumin's anticancer activity are achieved through infrared light irradiation (980 nm), while Fe3O4 is guided with an external magnetic field to target gelatin NPs and accelerate the uptake of drugs, thus efficiently killing tumor cells. The method described in this work is simple, easy to repeat, and has great potential to be scaled up for industrial production and subsequent clinical use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Xia
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Ruicheng Xu
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Siyuan Ye
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Jiaxuan Yan
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Piyush Kumar
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, U.K
| | - Peng Zhang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, U.K
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6
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Xu R, Tang J, Hadianamrei R, Liu S, Lv S, You R, Pan F, Zhang P, Wang N, Cai Z, Zhao X. Antifungal activity of designed α-helical antimicrobial peptides. Biomater Sci 2023; 11:2845-2859. [PMID: 36857655 DOI: 10.1039/d2bm01797k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/16/2023]
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a major global health concern prompting the quest for new antibiotics with higher efficiency and less proneness to drug resistance. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) offer such properties and have therefore gained increasing attention as a new generation of antibiotics to overcome AMR. In an attempt to develop new highly selective and highly efficient antifungal peptides, a sequence (named At1) originating from the natural AMP Ponericin-W1 was used as a lead sequence for rational design of a series of short cationic antifungal peptides named At2-At12. The charge, hydrophobicity, and terminal amino acids of the peptides were modified in a systematic way to investigate the effect of such structural changes on the biological activity of the peptides. Among all the designed peptides, three peptides (coded as At3, At5 and At10) exhibited high antifungal activity without any significant hemolytic activity in human red blood cells. The higher selectivity of these peptides for fungal cells over human cells was further confirmed in cocultures of Candida albicans and human foreskin fibroblasts. These three peptides lacked any hydrophilic residues in their hydrophobic domain, contained lysine residues in their hydrophilic region and had an overall charge of 7+. They also had a higher helical content in microbial membrane mimicking DPPG SUVs than the rest of the peptides. The fungi did not develop any resistance to the designed antifungal peptides even after 25 generations indicating low AMR. At5 was also used in vivo for the treatment of wounds infected with Candida albicans in mice and showed superiority over fluconazole for treating infection and accelerating wound healing. There was an interplay between the hydrophobicity and positive charge density to determine the antifungal activity of the peptides. The results from this study suggest this class of antifungal peptides as promising candidates for antifungal drugs with high efficiency, high biocompatibility and low propensity for drug resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruicheng Xu
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Jing Tang
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Roja Hadianamrei
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK.,School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Science, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, PO1 2UP, UK
| | - Suyu Liu
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Songwei Lv
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Rongrong You
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Fang Pan
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Peng Zhang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Nan Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Zhiqiang Cai
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China. .,Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
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7
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Advances in Self-Assembled Peptides as Drug Carriers. Pharmaceutics 2023; 15:pharmaceutics15020482. [PMID: 36839803 PMCID: PMC9964150 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15020482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Revised: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/28/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, self-assembled peptide nanotechnology has attracted a great deal of attention for its ability to form various regular and ordered structures with diverse and practical functions. Self-assembled peptides can exist in different environments and are a kind of medical bio-regenerative material with unique structures. These materials have good biocompatibility and controllability and can form nanoparticles, nanofibers and hydrogels to perform specific morphological functions, which are widely used in biomedical and material science fields. In this paper, the properties of self-assembled peptides, their influencing factors and the nanostructures that they form are reviewed, and the applications of self-assembled peptides as drug carriers are highlighted. Finally, the prospects and challenges for developing self-assembled peptide nanomaterials are briefly discussed.
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8
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Silva PSE, Guindo AS, Oliveira PHC, de Moraes LFRN, Boleti APDA, Ferreira MA, de Oliveira CFR, Macedo MLR, Rossato L, Simionatto S, Migliolo L. Evaluation of the Synthetic Multifunctional Peptide Hp-MAP3 Derivative of Temporin-PTa. Toxins (Basel) 2023; 15:42. [PMID: 36668862 PMCID: PMC9866994 DOI: 10.3390/toxins15010042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, antimicrobial peptides isolated from amphibian toxins have gained attention as new multifunctional drugs interacting with different molecular targets. We aimed to rationally design a new peptide from temporin-PTa. Hp-MAP3 (NH2-LLKKVLALLKKVL-COOH), net charge (+4), hydrophobicity (0.69), the content of hydrophobic residues (69%), and hydrophobic moment (0.73). For the construction of the analog peptide, the physicochemical characteristics were reorganized into hydrophilic and hydrophobic residues with the addition of lysines and leucines. The minimum inhibitory concentration was 2.7 to 43 μM against the growth of Gram-negative and positive bacteria, and the potential for biofilm eradication was 173.2 μM. Within 20 min, the peptide Hp-MAP3 (10.8 μM) prompted 100% of the damage to E. coli cells. At 43.3 μM, eliminated 100% of S. aureus within 5 min. The effects against yeast species of the Candida genus ranged from 5.4 to 86.6 μM. Hp-MAP3 presents cytotoxic activity against tumor HeLa at a concentration of 21.6 μM with an IC50 of 10.4 µM. Furthermore, the peptide showed hemolytic activity against murine erythrocytes. Structural studies carried out by circular dichroism showed that Hp-MAP3, while in the presence of 50% trifluoroethanol or SDS, an α-helix secondary structure. Finally, Amphipathic Hp-MAP3 building an important model for the design of new multifunctional molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia Souza e Silva
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Alexya Sandim Guindo
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Pedro Henrique Cardoso Oliveira
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | | | - Ana Paula de Araújo Boleti
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Marcos Antonio Ferreira
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Caio Fernando Ramalho de Oliveira
- Laboratório de Purificação de Proteínas e suas Funções Biológicas, Unidade de Tecnologia de Alimentos e da Saúde Pública, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande 79070-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Maria Ligia Rodrigues Macedo
- Laboratório de Purificação de Proteínas e suas Funções Biológicas, Unidade de Tecnologia de Alimentos e da Saúde Pública, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande 79070-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Luana Rossato
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados UFGD, Dourados 79825-070, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Simone Simionatto
- Laboratório de Pesquisa em Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados UFGD, Dourados 79825-070, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Ludovico Migliolo
- S-Inova Biotech, Postgraduate Program in Biotechnology, Universidade Católica Dom Bosco, Campo Grande 79117-900, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
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9
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Hyper-Branched Cationic Cyclodextrin Polymers for Improving Plasmid Transfection in 2D and 3D Spheroid Cells. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14122690. [PMID: 36559184 PMCID: PMC9785855 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14122690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Revised: 11/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
In this article, we used monolayer two dimensional (2D) and 3D multicellular spheroid models to improve our understanding of the gene delivery process of a new modified cationic hyper-branched cyclodextrin-based polymer (Ppoly)-loaded plasmid encoding Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein (EGFP). A comparison between the cytotoxicity effect and transfection efficiency of the plasmid DNA (pDNA)-loaded Ppoly system in 2D and 3D spheroid cells determined that the transfection efficiency and cytotoxicity of Ppoly-pDNA nanocomplexes were lower in 3D spheroids than in 2D monolayer cells. Furthermore, histopathology visualization of Ppoly-pDNA complex cellular uptake in 3D spheroids demonstrated that Ppoly penetrated into the inner layers. This study indicated that the Ppoly, as a non-viral gene delivery system in complex with pDNA, is hemocompatible, non-toxic, high in encapsulation efficiency, and has good transfection efficiency in both 2D and 3D cell cultures compared to free pDNA and lipofectamine (as the control).
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10
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Yang Y, Liu Z, Ma H, Cao M. Application of Peptides in Construction of Nonviral Vectors for Gene Delivery. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 12:nano12224076. [PMID: 36432361 PMCID: PMC9693978 DOI: 10.3390/nano12224076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Revised: 11/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Gene therapy, which aims to cure diseases by knocking out, editing, correcting or compensating abnormal genes, provides new strategies for the treatment of tumors, genetic diseases and other diseases that are closely related to human gene abnormalities. In order to deliver genes efficiently to abnormal sites in vivo to achieve therapeutic effects, a variety of gene vectors have been designed. Among them, peptide-based vectors show superior advantages because of their ease of design, perfect biocompatibility and safety. Rationally designed peptides can carry nucleic acids into cells to perform therapeutic effects by overcoming a series of biological barriers including cellular uptake, endosomal escape, nuclear entrance and so on. Moreover, peptides can also be incorporated into other delivery systems as functional segments. In this review, we referred to the biological barriers for gene delivery in vivo and discussed several kinds of peptide-based nonviral gene vectors developed for overcoming these barriers. These vectors can deliver different types of genetic materials into targeted cells/tissues individually or in combination by having specific structure-function relationships. Based on the general review of peptide-based gene delivery systems, the current challenges and future perspectives in development of peptidic nonviral vectors for clinical applications were also put forward, with the aim of providing guidance towards the rational design and development of such systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yujie Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, Department of Biological and Energy Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), 66 Changjiang West Road, Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Zhen Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, Department of Biological and Energy Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), 66 Changjiang West Road, Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Hongchao Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, Department of Biological and Energy Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), 66 Changjiang West Road, Qingdao 266580, China
| | - Meiwen Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, Department of Biological and Energy Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), 66 Changjiang West Road, Qingdao 266580, China
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11
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Development of WRAP5 Peptide Complexes for Targeted Drug/Gene Co-Delivery toward Glioblastoma Therapy. Pharmaceutics 2022; 14:pharmaceutics14102213. [PMID: 36297647 PMCID: PMC9607428 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics14102213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the great progress over the past few decades in both the diagnosis and treatment of a great variety of human cancers, glioblastoma remains the most lethal brain tumor. In recent years, cancer gene therapy focused on non-viral vectors which emerged as a promising approach to glioblastoma treatment. Transferrin (Tf) easily penetrates brain cells of the blood–brain barrier, and its receptor is highly expressed in this barrier and glioblastoma cells. Therefore, the development of delivery systems containing Tf appears as a reliable strategy to improve their brain cells targeting ability and cellular uptake. In this work, a cell-penetrating peptide (WRAP5), bearing a Tf-targeting sequence, has been exploited to condense tumor suppressor p53-encoding plasmid DNA (pDNA) for the development of nanocomplexes. To increase the functionality of developed nanocomplexes, the drug Temozolomide (TMZ) was also incorporated into the formulations. The physicochemical properties of peptide/pDNA complexes were revealed to be dependent on the nitrogen to phosphate groups ratio and can be optimized to promote efficient cellular internalization. A confocal microscopy study showed the capacity of developed complexes for efficient glioblastoma cell transfection and consequent pDNA delivery into the nucleus, where efficient gene expression took place, followed by p53 protein production. Of promise, these peptide/pDNA complexes induced a significant decrease in the viability of glioblastoma cells. The set of data reported significantly support further in vitro research to evaluate the therapeutic potential of developed complexes against glioblastoma.
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12
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Tomeh MA, Hadianamrei R, Xu D, Brown S, Zhao X. Peptide-functionalised magnetic silk nanoparticles produced by a swirl mixer for enhanced anticancer activity of ASC-J9. Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2022; 216:112549. [PMID: 35636321 DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2022.112549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Silk fibroin is an FDA approved biopolymer for clinical applications with great potential in nanomedicine. However, silk-based nanoformulations are still facing several challenges in processing and drug delivery efficiency (such as reproducibility and targetability), especially in cancer therapy. To address these challenges, robust and controllable production methods are required for generating nanocarriers with desired properties. This study aimed to develop a novel method for the production of peptide-functionalized magnetic silk nanoparticles with higher selectivity for cancer cells for targeted delivery of the hydrophobic anticancer agent ASC-J9. A new microfluidic device with a swirl mixer was designed to fabricate magnetic silk nanoparticles (MSNP) with desired size and narrow size distribution. The surface of MSNPs was functionalized with a cationic amphiphilic anticancer peptide, G(IIKK)3I-NH2 (G3), to enhance their selectivity towards cancer cells. The G3-MSNPs increased the cellular uptake and anticancer activity of G3 in HCT 116 colorectal cancer cells compared to free G3. Moreover, the G3-MSNPs exhibited considerably higher cellular uptake and cytotoxicity in HCT 116 colorectal cancer cells compared to normal cells (HDFs). Encapsulating ASC-J9 in G3-MSNPs resulted in augmented anticancer activity compared to free ASC-J9 and non-functionalized ASC-J9 loaded MSNPs within its biological half-life. Hence, functionalizing MSNPs with G3 enabled targeted delivery of ASC-J9 to cancer cells and enhanced its anticancer effect. Functionalization of nanoparticles with anticancer peptides could be regarded as a new strategy for targeted delivery and enhanced efficiency of anticancer drugs. Furthermore, the microfluidic device introduced in this paper offers a robust and reproducible method for fabrication of small sized homogenous nanoparticles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mhd Anas Tomeh
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Roja Hadianamrei
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Defeng Xu
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China
| | - Stephen Brown
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 2TN, UK
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK; School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
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13
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Lv S, Wang J, You R, Liu S, Ding Y, Hadianamrei R, Tomeh MA, Pan F, Cai Z, Zhao X. Highly selective performance of rationally designed antimicrobial peptides based on ponericin-W1. Biomater Sci 2022; 10:4848-4865. [PMID: 35861280 DOI: 10.1039/d2bm00744d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) or host-defence peptides act by penetrating and disrupting the bacterial membranes and are therefore less prone to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) compared to conventional antibiotics. However, there are still many challenges in the clinical application of the naturally occurring AMPs which necessitates further studies to establish the relationship between the chemical structure of AMPs and their antimicrobial activity and selectivity. Herein, we report a study on the relationship between the chemical structure and the biological activity of a series of rationally designed AMPs derived from Ponericin-W1, a naturally occurring AMP from ants. The peptides were designed by modification of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions of the lead peptide sequence in a systematic way. Their antibacterial and hemolytic activities were determined in vitro. The antibacterial activity of a representative peptide, At5 was also tested in a mouse model of skin wound infection. Furthermore, the relationship between the physicochemical properties of the peptides and their antibacterial activity was investigated. Replacing the cationic amino acids in the hydrophobic region of the peptides with hydrophobic amino acids enhanced their antibacterial activity and increasing the number of cationic amino acids in the hydrophilic region reduced their toxicity to human red blood cells and thus improved their selectivity for bacteria. Four of the designed peptides, coded as At3, At5, At8, and At10, displayed considerable antibacterial activity and high selectivity for bacteria. At5 also accelerated the wound healing in mice indicating high in vivo efficiency of this peptide. The peptides were more effective against Gram-negative bacteria and no AMR was developed against them in the bacteria even after 25 generations. The results from this study can provide a better understanding of the structural features required for strong antibacterial activity and selectivity, and serve as a guide for the future rational design of AMPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Songwei Lv
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Jingfang Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Rongrong You
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Suyu Liu
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China. .,Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Yujie Ding
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Roja Hadianamrei
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Mhd Anas Tomeh
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
| | - Fang Pan
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Zhiqiang Cai
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China. .,Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK
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14
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Kumar R. Materiomically Designed Polymeric Vehicles for Nucleic Acids: Quo Vadis? ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2022; 5:2507-2535. [PMID: 35642794 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.2c00346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Despite rapid advances in molecular biology, particularly in site-specific genome editing technologies, such as CRISPR/Cas9 and base editing, financial and logistical challenges hinder a broad population from accessing and benefiting from gene therapy. To improve the affordability and scalability of gene therapy, we need to deploy chemically defined, economical, and scalable materials, such as synthetic polymers. For polymers to deliver nucleic acids efficaciously to targeted cells, they must optimally combine design attributes, such as architecture, length, composition, spatial distribution of monomers, basicity, hydrophilic-hydrophobic phase balance, or protonation degree. Designing polymeric vectors for specific nucleic acid payloads is a multivariate optimization problem wherein even minuscule deviations from the optimum are poorly tolerated. To explore the multivariate polymer design space rapidly, efficiently, and fruitfully, we must integrate parallelized polymer synthesis, high-throughput biological screening, and statistical modeling. Although materiomics approaches promise to streamline polymeric vector development, several methodological ambiguities must be resolved. For instance, establishing a flexible polymer ontology that accommodates recent synthetic advances, enforcing uniform polymer characterization and data reporting standards, and implementing multiplexed in vitro and in vivo screening studies require considerable planning, coordination, and effort. This contribution will acquaint readers with the challenges associated with materiomics approaches to polymeric gene delivery and offers guidelines for overcoming these challenges. Here, we summarize recent developments in combinatorial polymer synthesis, high-throughput screening of polymeric vectors, omics-based approaches to polymer design, barcoding schemes for pooled in vitro and in vivo screening, and identify materiomics-inspired research directions that will realize the long-unfulfilled clinical potential of polymeric carriers in gene therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ramya Kumar
- Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, 1613 Illinois St, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
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15
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Tharmatt A, Chhina A, Saini M, Trehan K, Singh S, Bedi N. Novel Therapeutics Involving Antibiotic Polymer Conjugates for Treating Various Ailments: A Review. Assay Drug Dev Technol 2022; 20:137-148. [DOI: 10.1089/adt.2022.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Abhay Tharmatt
- Department of Pharmacy, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, Rajasthan, India
| | - Aashveen Chhina
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India
| | - Muskaan Saini
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India
| | - Karan Trehan
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India
| | - Sahilpreet Singh
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India
| | - Neena Bedi
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, India
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16
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Hadianamrei R, Wang J, Brown S, Zhao X. Rationally designed cationic amphiphilic peptides for selective gene delivery to cancer cells. Int J Pharm 2022; 617:121619. [PMID: 35218898 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2022.121619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2021] [Revised: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2022] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Gene therapy has gained increasing attention as an alternative to pharmacotherapy for treatment of various diseases. The extracellular and intracellular barriers to gene delivery necessitate the use of gene vectors which has led to the development of myriads of gene delivery systems. However, many of these gene delivery systems have pitfalls such as low biocompatibility, low loading efficiency, low transfection efficiency, lack of tissue selectivity and high production costs. Herein, we report the development of a new series of short cationic amphiphilic peptides with anticancer activity for selective delivery of small interfering RNA (siRNA) and antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) to cancer cells. The peptides consist of alternating dyads of hydrophobic (isoleucine (I) or leucine (L)) and hydrophilic (arginine (R) or lysine (L)) amino acids. The peptides exhibited higher preference for transfection of HCT 116 colorectal cancer cells compared to human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) and induced higher level of gene silencing in the cancer cells. The nucleic acid complexation and transfection efficiency of the peptides was a function of their secondary structure, their hydrophobicity and their C-terminal amino acid. The peptides containing L in their hydrophobic domain formed stronger complexes with siRNA and successfully delivered it to the cancer cells but were unable to release their cargo inside the cells and therefore could not induce any gene silencing. On the contrary, the peptides containing I in their hydrophobic domain were able to release their associated siRNA and induce considerable gene silencing in cancer cells. The peptides exhibited higher selectivity for colorectal cancer cells and induced less gene silencing in fibroblasts compared to the lipid-based commercial transfection reagent DharmaFECT™ 1. The results from this study can serve as a tool for rational design of new peptide-based gene vectors for high selective gene delivery to cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roja Hadianamrei
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, S1 3JD, UK
| | - Jiqian Wang
- Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology, China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266555, China
| | - Stephen Brown
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - Xiubo Zhao
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, S1 3JD, UK; School of Pharmacy, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China.
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17
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Hadianamrei R, Zhao X. Current state of the art in peptide-based gene delivery. J Control Release 2022; 343:600-619. [PMID: 35157938 DOI: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2022.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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18
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Wang Y, Sun H. Polymeric Nanomaterials for Efficient Delivery of Antimicrobial Agents. Pharmaceutics 2021; 13:2108. [PMID: 34959388 PMCID: PMC8709338 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics13122108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacterial infections have threatened the lives of human beings for thousands of years either as major diseases or complications. The elimination of bacterial infections has always occupied a pivotal position in our history. For a long period of time, people were devoted to finding natural antimicrobial agents such as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), antibiotics and silver ions or synthetic active antimicrobial substances including antimicrobial peptoids, metal oxides and polymers to combat bacterial infections. However, with the emergence of multidrug resistance (MDR), bacterial infection has become one of the most urgent problems worldwide. The efficient delivery of antimicrobial agents to the site of infection precisely is a promising strategy for reducing bacterial resistance. Polymeric nanomaterials have been widely studied as carriers for constructing antimicrobial agent delivery systems and have shown advantages including high biocompatibility, sustained release, targeting and improved bioavailability. In this review, we will highlight recent advances in highly efficient delivery of antimicrobial agents by polymeric nanomaterials such as micelles, vesicles, dendrimers, nanogels, nanofibers and so forth. The biomedical applications of polymeric nanomaterial-based delivery systems in combating MDR bacteria, anti-biofilms, wound healing, tissue engineering and anticancer are demonstrated. Moreover, conclusions and future perspectives are also proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yin Wang
- School of Public Health and Management, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, China;
| | - Hui Sun
- State Key Laboratory of High-Efficiency Coal Utilization and Green Chemical Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China
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