Guangdong Provincial Engineering and Technological Research Center for Drug Carrier Development, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.
Guangdong Provincial Engineering and Technological Research Center for Drug Carrier Development, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, China.
Acta Biomater. 2019 Sep 15;96:436-455. doi: 10.1016/j.actbio.2019.06.043. Epub 2019 Jun 27.
As an effective and well-recognized strategy used in many delivery systems, such as polycation gene vectors, charge reversal refers to the alternation of vector surface charge from negative (in blood circulation) to positive (in the targeted tissue) in response to specific stimuli to simultaneously satisfy the requirements of biocompatibility and targeting. Although charge reversal vectors are intended to avoid interactions with blood in their application, no overall or systematic investigation has been carried out to verify the role of charge reversal in the blood compatibility. Herein, we comprehensively mapped the effects of a typical charge-reversible polycation gene vector based on pH-responsive 2,3-dimethylmaleic anhydride (DMMA)-modified polyethylenimine (PEI)/pDNA complex in terms of blood components, coagulation function, and immune response as compared to conventional PEGylated modification. The in vitro and in vivo results displayed that charge-reversal modification significantly improves the PEI/pDNA-induced abnormal effect on vascular endothelial cells, platelet activation, clotting factor activity, fibrinogen polymerization, blood coagulation process, and pro-inflammatory cytokine expression. Unexpectedly, (PEI/pDNA)-DMMA induced the cytoskeleton impairment-mediated erythrocyte morphological alternation and complement activation even more than PEI/pDNA. Further, transcriptome sequencing demonstrated that the overexpression of pro-inflammatory cytokines was correlated with vector-induced differentially expressed gene number and mediated by inflammation-related signaling pathways (MAPK, NF-κB, Toll-like receptor, and JAK-STAT) activation. By comparison, charge-reversal modification improved the hemocompatibility to a greater extent than dose PEGylation except for erythrocyte rupture. Nevertheless, it is inferior to mPEG modification in terms of immunocompatibility. These findings provide comprehensive insights to understand the molecular mechanisms of the effects of charge reversal on blood components and their function and to provide valuable information for its potential applications from laboratory to clinic. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: The seemingly revolutionary charge reversal strategy has been believed to possess stealth character with negative charge eluding interaction with blood components during circulation. However to date, no overall or systematic investigation has been carried out to verify the role of charge-reversal on the blood/immune compatibility, which impede their development from laboratory to bedside. Therefore, we comprehensively mapped the effects of a typical charge-reversible polycationic gene vector on blood components (vascular endothelial cell, platelet, clotting factors, fibrinogen, RBCs and coagulation function) and immune response (complement and pro-inflammatory cytokines) at cellular and molecular level in comparison to PEGylation modification. These findings help to elucidate the molecular mechanisms for the effects of charge-reversal on blood components and functions, and provide valuable information for the possible application in clinical settings.
作为许多输送系统中使用的一种有效且公认的策略,例如阳离子基因载体,电荷反转是指载体表面电荷从负电荷(在血液循环中)变为正电荷(在靶向组织中),以响应特定刺激,同时满足生物相容性和靶向性的要求。尽管电荷反转载体在其应用中旨在避免与血液相互作用,但尚未进行全面或系统的研究来验证电荷反转在血液相容性中的作用。在这里,我们全面绘制了基于 pH 响应的 2,3-二甲基马来酸酐(DMMA)修饰的聚乙烯亚胺(PEI)/pDNA 复合物的典型电荷反转聚阳离子基因载体的影响,相对于常规聚乙二醇化修饰,就血液成分、凝血功能和免疫反应而言。体外和体内结果显示,电荷反转修饰显着改善了 PEI/pDNA 对血管内皮细胞、血小板激活、凝血因子活性、纤维蛋白原聚合、凝血过程和促炎细胞因子表达的异常影响。出乎意料的是,(PEI/pDNA)-DMMA 引起的红细胞形态改变和补体激活比 PEI/pDNA 更为严重。此外,转录组测序表明,促炎细胞因子的过表达与载体诱导的差异表达基因数量相关,并通过炎症相关信号通路(MAPK、NF-κB、Toll 样受体和 JAK-STAT)激活介导。相比之下,电荷反转修饰在改善血液相容性方面比剂量聚乙二醇化更有效,除了红细胞破裂。然而,在免疫相容性方面,它不如 mPEG 修饰。这些发现提供了全面的见解,以了解电荷反转对血液成分及其功能的影响的分子机制,并为其从实验室到临床的潜在应用提供有价值的信息。
看似革命性的电荷反转策略被认为具有隐身特性,在血液循环过程中带负电荷以避免与血液成分相互作用。然而,迄今为止,尚未进行全面或系统的研究来验证电荷反转对血液/免疫相容性的作用,这阻碍了它们从实验室到床边的发展。因此,我们在细胞和分子水平上全面绘制了典型的电荷反转聚阳离子基因载体对血液成分(血管内皮细胞、血小板、凝血因子、纤维蛋白原、RBC 和凝血功能)和免疫反应(补体和促炎细胞因子)的影响与聚乙二醇化修饰相比。这些发现有助于阐明电荷反转对血液成分和功能的影响的分子机制,并为临床应用提供有价值的信息。