Xie Yuran, Kim Na Hyung, Nadithe Venkatareddy, Schalk Dana, Thakur Archana, Kılıç Ayşe, Lum Lawrence G, Bassett David J P, Merkel Olivia M
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States.
Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States; Karmanos Cancer Institute, Detroit, MI, United States.
J Control Release. 2016 May 10;229:120-129. doi: 10.1016/j.jconrel.2016.03.029. Epub 2016 Mar 19.
Asthma is a worldwide health problem. Activated T cells (ATCs) in the lung, particularly T helper 2 cells (Th2), are strongly associated with inducing airway inflammatory responses and chemoattraction of inflammatory cells in asthma. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) as a promising anti-sense molecule can specifically silence inflammation related genes in ATCs, however, lack of safe and efficient siRNA delivery systems limits the application of siRNA as a therapeutic molecule in asthma. Here, we designed a novel pulmonary delivery system of siRNA, transferrin-polyethylenimine (Tf-PEI), to selectively deliver siRNA to ATCs in the lung. Tf-PEI polyplexes demonstrated optimal physicochemical properties such as size, distribution, zeta-potential, and siRNA condensation efficiency. Moreover, in vitro studies showed significantly enhanced cellular uptake and gene knockdown mediated by Tf-PEI polyplexes in human primary ATCs. Biodistribution of polyplexes in a murine asthmatic model confirmed that Tf-PEI polyplexes can efficiently and selectively deliver siRNA to ATCs. In conclusion, the present work proves the feasibility to target ATCs in asthma via Tf receptor. This strategy could potentially be used to design an efficient siRNA delivery system for asthma therapy.
哮喘是一个全球性的健康问题。肺中的活化T细胞(ATC),尤其是辅助性T细胞2(Th2),与哮喘中诱导气道炎症反应和炎症细胞的趋化作用密切相关。小干扰RNA(siRNA)作为一种有前景的反义分子,可以特异性沉默ATC中与炎症相关的基因,然而,缺乏安全有效的siRNA递送系统限制了siRNA作为治疗分子在哮喘中的应用。在此,我们设计了一种新型的siRNA肺部递送系统,转铁蛋白-聚乙烯亚胺(Tf-PEI),以选择性地将siRNA递送至肺中的ATC。Tf-PEI多聚体表现出最佳的物理化学性质,如大小、分布、zeta电位和siRNA缩合效率。此外,体外研究表明,Tf-PEI多聚体介导的人原代ATC中的细胞摄取和基因敲低显著增强。多聚体在小鼠哮喘模型中的生物分布证实,Tf-PEI多聚体可以有效地、选择性地将siRNA递送至ATC。总之,目前的工作证明了通过Tf受体靶向哮喘中ATC的可行性。该策略可能潜在地用于设计一种用于哮喘治疗的高效siRNA递送系统。