Department of Biological Sciences, Division of Biostructures - University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy.
Nanomedicine. 2011 Dec;7(6):925-34. doi: 10.1016/j.nano.2011.04.009. Epub 2011 May 19.
Cell membranes are impermeable to most molecules that are not actively imported by living cells, including all macromolecules and even small molecules whose physiochemical properties prevent passive membrane diffusion. However, recently, we have seen the development of increasingly sophisticated methodology for intracellular drug delivery. Cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs), short peptides believed to enter cells by penetrating cell membranes, have attracted great interest in the hope of enhancing gene therapy, vaccine development and drug delivery. Nevertheless, to achieve an efficient intracellular delivery, further strategies to bypass the endocytotic pathway must be investigated. We report on a novel peptide molecule derived from glycoprotein gH of herpes simplex type I virus that is able to traverse the membrane bilayer and to transport a cargo into the cytoplasm with novel properties in comparison with existing CPPs. We use as cargo molecule quantum dots that do not significantly traverse the membrane bilayer on their own.
Cell-penetrating peptides have recently attracted great interest in optimizing gene therapy, vaccine development and drug delivery. In this study, a peptide derived from glycoprotein gH of herpes simplex I is investigated from this standpoint.
大多数细胞不能主动摄取的分子都无法穿过细胞膜，包括所有的大分子，甚至是一些小分子，这些小分子由于其物理化学性质而无法被动地通过细胞膜扩散。然而，最近，人们开发出了越来越复杂的细胞内药物传递方法。细胞穿透肽（CPPs）是一类短肽，据信能穿透细胞膜进入细胞，因其有望增强基因治疗、疫苗开发和药物传递，而受到了极大关注。然而，为了实现有效的细胞内传递，必须研究进一步的策略来绕过内吞作用途径。我们报告了一种新型的肽分子，它源自单纯疱疹 I 型病毒的糖蛋白 gH，能够穿透双层膜，并将货物输送到细胞质中，与现有的 CPP 相比具有新的特性。我们使用的货物分子量子点本身不能显著地穿透双层膜。
最近，细胞穿透肽在优化基因治疗、疫苗开发和药物传递方面引起了极大的兴趣。在这项研究中，从这个角度研究了源自单纯疱疹 I 型病毒糖蛋白 gH 的一种肽。
