Self-assembled peptide-poloxamine nanoparticles enable in vitro and in vivo genome restoration for cystic fibrosis.

Developing safe and efficient non-viral delivery systems remains a major challenge for in vivo applications of gene therapy, especially in cystic fibrosis. Unlike conventional cationic polymers or lipids, the emerging poloxamine-based copolymers display promising in vivo gene delivery capabilities. However, poloxamines are invalid for in vitro applications and their in vivo transfection efficiency is still low compared with viral vectors. Here, we show that peptides developed by modular design approaches can spontaneously form compact and monodisperse nanoparticles with poloxamines and nucleic acids via self-assembly. Both messenger RNA and plasmid DNA expression mediated by peptide-poloxamine nanoparticles are greatly boosted in vitro and in the lungs of cystic fibrosis mice with negligible toxicity. Peptide-poloxamine nanoparticles containing integrating vectors enable successful in vitro and in vivo long-term restoration of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator deficiency with a safe integration profile. Our dataset provides a new framework for designing non-viral gene delivery systems qualified for in vivo genetic modifications.

Chemically Modified Messenger RNA: Modified RNA Application for Treatment of Achilles Tendon Defects.

Different regenerative medicine approaches for tendon healing exist. Recently, especially gene therapy gained popularity. However, potential mutagenic and immunologic effects might prevent its translation to clinical research. Chemically modified mRNA (cmRNA) might bypass these limitations of gene therapy. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the early healing properties of Achilles tendon defects in rats treated with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) cmRNA. Forty male Lewis rats were used for the study and randomly assigned to two study groups: (1) treatment with cmRNA coding for bFGF and (2) noncoding cmRNA control. Protein expression was measured using in vivo bioluminescence imaging at 24, 48, and 72 h, as well as 14 days. Animals were euthanized 2 weeks following surgery. Biomechanical, histological, and immunohistological analyses were performed with the significance level set at p < 0.05. Protein expression was evident for 3 days. At 14 days, bioluminescence imaging revealed only little protein expression. Biomechanically, tendons treated with bFGF cmRNA showed a construct stiffness closer to the healthy contralateral side when compared with the control group (p = 0.034), without any significant differences in terms of load to failure. Hematoxylin and eosin staining detected no side effects of the treatment, as signs of inflammation, or necrosis. Furthermore, it revealed the shape of the nuclei to be more oval in the bFGF group in the tendon midsubstance (p = 0.043) with a reduced cell count (p = 0.035). Immunohistological staining for type I, II, III, and IV collagen did not differ significantly between the two groups. In conclusion, this pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of a novel messenger RNA (mRNA)-based therapy for Achilles tendon defects using chemically modified mRNA coding for bFGF.

Translation of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 upon Liver- and Lung-Targeted Delivery of Optimized Chemically Modified mRNA.

Changes in lifestyle and environmental conditions give rise to an increasing prevalence of liver and lung fibrosis, and both have a poor prognosis. Promising results have been reported for recombinant angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) protein administration in experimental liver and lung fibrosis. However, the full potential of ACE2 may be achieved by localized translation of a membrane-anchored form. For this purpose, we advanced the latest RNA technology for liver- and lung-targeted ACE2 translation. We demonstrated in vitro that transfection with ACE2 chemically modified messenger RNA (cmRNA) leads to robust translation of fully matured, membrane-anchored ACE2 protein. In a second step, we designed eight modified ACE2 cmRNA sequences and identified a lead sequence for in vivo application. Finally, formulation of this ACE2 cmRNA in tailor-made lipidoid nanoparticles and in lipid nanoparticles led to liver- and lung-targeted translation of significant amounts of ACE2 protein, respectively. In summary, we provide evidence that RNA transcript therapy (RTT) is a promising approach for ACE2-based treatment of liver and lung fibrosis to be tested in fibrotic disease models.

Transcript-activated collagen matrix as sustained mRNA delivery system for bone regeneration.

Transcript therapies using chemically modified messenger RNAs (cmRNAs) are emerging as safe and promising alternatives for gene and recombinant protein therapies. However, their applications have been limited due to transient translation and relatively low stability of cmRNAs compared to DNA. Here we show that vacuum-dried cmRNA-loaded collagen sponges, termed transcript activated matrices (TAMs), can serve as depots for sustained delivery of cmRNA. TAMs provide steady state protein production for up to six days, and substantial residual expression until 11days post transfection. Another advantage of this technology was nearly 100% transfection efficiency as well as low toxicity in vitro. TAMs were stable for at least 6months at room temperature. Human BMP-2-encoding TAMs induced osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells in vitro and bone regeneration in a non-critical rat femoral bone defect model in vivo. In summary, TAMs are a promising tool for bone regeneration and potentially also for other applications in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering.

A Single Methylene Group in Oligoalkylamine-Based Cationic Polymers and Lipids Promotes Enhanced mRNA Delivery.

The development of chemically modified mRNA holds great promise as a new class of biologic therapeutics. However, the intracellular delivery and endosomal escape of mRNA encapsulated in nanoparticles has not been systematically investigated. Here, we synthesized a diverse set of cationic polymers and lipids from a series of oligoalkylamines and subsequently characterized their mRNA delivery capability. Notably, a structure with an alternating alkyl chain length between amines showed the highest transfection efficiency, which was linked to a high buffering capacity in a narrow range of pH 6.2 to 6.5. Variation in only one methylene group resulted in enhanced mRNA delivery to both the murine liver as well as porcine lungs after systemic or aerosol administration, respectively. These findings reveal a novel fundamental structure-activity relationship for the delivery of mRNA that is independent of the class of mRNA carrier and define a promising new path of exploration in the field of mRNA therapeutics.

Aerosolized BC-819 inhibits primary but not secondary lung cancer growth.

Despite numerous efforts, drug based treatments for patients suffering from lung cancer remains poor. As a promising alternative, we investigated the therapeutic potential of BC-819 for the treatment of lung cancer in mouse tumor models. BC-819 is a novel plasmid DNA which encodes for the A-fragment of Diphtheria toxin and has previously been shown to successfully inhibit tumor growth in human clinical study of bladder carcinoma. In a first set of experiments, we examined in vitro efficacy of BC-819 in human lung cancer cell-lines NCI-H460, NCI-H358 and A549, which revealed >90% reduction of cell growth. In vivo efficacy was examined in an orthotopic mouse xenograft lung cancer model and in a lung metastasis model using luminescent A549-C8-luc adenocarcinoma cells. These cells resulted in peri- and intra-bronchiolar tumors upon intrabronchial application and parenchymal tumors upon intravenous injection, respectively. Mice suffering from these lung tumors were treated with BC-819, complexed to branched polyethylenimine (PEI) and aerosolized to the mice once per week for a period of 10 weeks. Using this regimen, growth of intrabronchially induced lung tumors was significantly inhibited (p = 0.01), whereas no effect could be observed in mice suffering from lung metastasis. In summary, we suggest that aerosolized PEI/BC-819 is capable of reducing growth only in tumors arising from the luminal part of the airways and are therefore directly accessible for inhaled BC-819.

Expression of therapeutic proteins after delivery of chemically modified mRNA in mice.

Current viral vectors for gene therapy are associated with serious safety concerns, including leukemogenesis, and nonviral vectors are limited by low gene transfer efficiency. Here we investigate the therapeutic utility of chemically modified mRNA as an alternative to DNA-based gene therapy. A combination of nucleotide modifications abrogates mRNA interaction with Toll-like receptor (TLR)3, TLR7, TLR8 and retinoid-inducible gene I (RIG-I), resulting in low immunogenicity and higher stability in mice. A single intramuscular injection of modified murine erythropoietin mRNA raises the average hematocrit in mice from 51.5% to 64.2% after 28 days. In a mouse model of a lethal congenital lung disease caused by a lack of surfactant protein B (SP-B), twice weekly local application of an aerosol of modified SP-B mRNA to the lung restored 71% of the wild-type SP-B expression, and treated mice survived until the predetermined end of the study after 28 days.

Targeting of the prostacyclin specific IP1 receptor in lungs with molecular conjugates comprising prostaglandin I2 analogues.

Molecular conjugates comprising targeting ligands hold great promise for site-specific gene delivery to distant tumors and individual organs including the lung. Here we show that prostaglandin I2 analogues can be used to improve gene transfer efficiency of polyethylenimine (PEI) gene vectors on bronchial and alveolar epithelial cells in vitro and lungs of mice in vivo. Prostacyclin (IP1) receptor expression was confirmed in pulmonary epithelial cell lines by western blot. Iloprost (ILO) and treprostinil (TRP), two prostaglandin I2 analogues, were conjugated to fluorescein-labeled BSA (FLUO-BSA) and compared for IP1 receptor binding/uptake in different lung cell lines. Binding of FLUO-BSA-ILO was 2-4-fold higher than for FLUO-BSA-TRP and could be specifically inhibited by free ILO and IP1 receptor antagonist CAY10449. Internalization of FLUO-BSA-ILO was confirmed by confocal microscopy. Molecular conjugates of PEI and ILO (PEI-g-ILO) were synthesized with increasing coupling degree (F(ILO) (ILO:PEI) = 2, 5, 8, 16) and analyzed for DNA binding, particle formation and transfection efficiency. At optimized conditions (N/P 4, F(ILO) = 5), gene expression using PEI-g-ILO was significantly up to 46-fold higher than for PEI gene vectors and specifically inhibited by CAY10449. Gene expression in the lungs of mice after aerosol delivery was 14-fold higher with PEI-g-ILO F(ILO) = 5 than for PEI. We suggest that targeting of IP1 receptor using ILO represents a promising approach to improve pulmonary gene transfer.

Characterization of tailor-made copolymers of oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate and N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate as nonviral gene transfer agents: influence of macromolecular structure on gene vector particle properties and transfection efficiency.

Oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylates (OEGMA) of various chain lengths (i.e., 9, 23, or 45 EG units) and N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) were copolymerized by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), yielding well-defined P(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) copolymers with increasing OEGMA molar fractions (F(OEGMA)) but a comparable degree of polymerization (DP approximately 120). Increase of both F(OEGMA) and OEGMA chain lengths correlated inversely with gene vector size, morphology, and zeta potential. P(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) copolymers prevented gene vector aggregation at high plasmid DNA (pDNA) concentrations in isotonic solution and did not induce cytotoxicity even at high concentrations. Transfection efficiency of the most efficient P(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) copolymers was found to be >10-fold lower compared with branched polyethylenimine (PEI) 25 kDa. Although OEGMA copolymerization largely reduced gene vector binding with the cell surface, cellular internalization of the bound complexes was less affected. These observations suggest that inefficient endolysosomal escape limits transfection efficiency of P(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) copolymer gene vectors. Despite this observation, optimized p(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) gene vectors remained stable under conditions for in vivo application leading to 7-fold greater gene expression in the lungs compared with PEI. Tailor-made P(DMAEMA-co-OEGMA) copolymers are promising nonviral gene transfer agents that fulfill the requirements for successful in vivo gene delivery.

Targeting of the beta(2)-adrenoceptor increases nonviral gene delivery to pulmonary epithelial cells in vitro and lungs in vivo.

Coupling of targeting ligands to polyethylenimine (PEI) has been previously used to improve transfection efficiency of PEI gene vectors. Here, we show that the beta(2)-adrenoceptor (beta(2)-AR) agonist, clenbuterol (Clen), can be used to improve gene transfer efficiency of PEI gene vectors on alveolar epithelial cells in vitro and in the lungs of mice in vivo. Clenbuterol conjugated to fluorescein-labeled bovine serum albumin resulted in clenbuterol-specific cellular uptake predominantly into alveolar but not bronchial epithelial cells. Clen-g-PEI (4/1) conjugates were combined with increasing molar ratios of PEI for transfection. At optimized PEI-g-Clen/PEI composition, transfection efficiency on alveolar epithelial cells was up to 14-fold higher than for unmodified PEI and could be inhibited by an excess of free clenbuterol. No increase of transfection efficiency was observed on bronchial epithelial cells. Increasing the PEI-g-Clen/PEI molar ratio resulted in an increase of gene vector size, decrease of the zeta potential and cytotoxicity. Aerosol delivery of optimized PEI-g-Clen/PEI (1/5) gene vectors resulted in a significant 3-fold increase of gene expression in the lungs of mice compared with unmodified PEI gene vectors. We suggest that coupling of beta(2)-adrenoceptor ligands to nonviral gene vectors represents a promising approach to improve gene delivery to the lungs.