Li Jing, Song Wenzhe, Li Feng
Frontiers Science Center for Synthetic Biology, Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Engineering, Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (MOE), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300350, China.
State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China.
Gels. 2023 Mar 18;9(3):239. doi: 10.3390/gels9030239.
The biomolecule deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which acts as the carrier of genetic information, is also regarded as a block copolymer for the construction of biomaterials. DNA hydrogels, composed of three-dimensional networks of DNA chains, have received considerable attention as a promising biomaterial due to their good biocompatibility and biodegradability. DNA hydrogels with specific functions can be prepared via assembly of various functional sequences containing DNA modules. In recent years, DNA hydrogels have been widely used for drug delivery, particularly in cancer therapy. Benefiting from the sequence programmability and molecular recognition ability of DNA molecules, DNA hydrogels prepared using functional DNA modules can achieve efficient loading of anti-cancer drugs and integration of specific DNA sequences with cancer therapeutic effects, thus achieving targeted drug delivery and controlled drug release, which are conducive to cancer therapy. In this review, we summarized the assembly strategies for the preparation of DNA hydrogels on the basis of branched DNA modules, hybrid chain reaction (HCR)-synthesized DNA networks and rolling circle amplification (RCA)-produced DNA chains, respectively. The application of DNA hydrogels as drug delivery carriers in cancer therapy has been discussed. Finally, the future development directions of DNA hydrogels in cancer therapy are prospected.
生物分子脱氧核糖核酸(DNA)作为遗传信息的载体,也被视为构建生物材料的嵌段共聚物。由DNA链的三维网络组成的DNA水凝胶,因其良好的生物相容性和生物降解性,作为一种有前途的生物材料受到了广泛关注。具有特定功能的DNA水凝胶可以通过组装包含DNA模块的各种功能序列来制备。近年来,DNA水凝胶已被广泛用于药物递送,尤其是在癌症治疗中。得益于DNA分子的序列可编程性和分子识别能力,使用功能性DNA模块制备的DNA水凝胶可以实现抗癌药物的高效负载以及具有癌症治疗效果的特定DNA序列的整合,从而实现靶向药物递送和可控药物释放,这有利于癌症治疗。在这篇综述中,我们分别总结了基于分支DNA模块、杂交链反应(HCR)合成的DNA网络和滚环扩增(RCA)产生的DNA链制备DNA水凝胶的组装策略。讨论了DNA水凝胶作为药物递送载体在癌症治疗中的应用。最后,展望了DNA水凝胶在癌症治疗中的未来发展方向。