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Autori principali: Akh, Leyla, Fajrial, Apresio K., Seelbinder, Benjamin, Xu, Xin, Tan, Wei, Slansky, Jill, Neu, Corey P., Ding, Xiaoyun
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2025
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Accesso online:https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.02468
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author Akh, Leyla
Fajrial, Apresio K.
Seelbinder, Benjamin
Xu, Xin
Tan, Wei
Slansky, Jill
Neu, Corey P.
Ding, Xiaoyun
author_facet Akh, Leyla
Fajrial, Apresio K.
Seelbinder, Benjamin
Xu, Xin
Tan, Wei
Slansky, Jill
Neu, Corey P.
Ding, Xiaoyun
contents Genetic engineering of cells has a range of applications in treating incurable diseases. Plasmid DNA is a popular choice of nucleic acid for cell engineering due to its low cost and stability. However, plasmid DNA must survive the protective mechanisms present in the cell's cytoplasm to enter the nucleus for translation. Many of the existing methods for nucleic acid delivery, such as chemical-based and virus-based delivery, suffer from drawbacks induced by the nucleic acid carrier itself. Mechanical methods present an alternative to nucleic acid carriers by physically producing openings in the cell to deliver cargos. However, in most systems, the cell membrane openings are too small to deliver large cargos, or the poration process leads to low cell viability. In this study, we present a microfluidic device with integrated high aspect ratio nanostructures that repeatably rupture the cell membrane and nuclear envelope. These sharp-tipped nanolancets penetrate the cell deep enough to allow direct delivery of cargos into the nucleus, but still allow for cell recovery after treatment. We show the device's ability to deliver cargo to a variety of cell types while maintaining high viability. Then, we demonstrate the rapid onset of plasmid DNA expression that results from direct nuclear delivery of naked DNA, showing expression speeds comparable to microinjection, but with significantly greater throughput. We envision the use of this device as a tool to quickly produce high quantities of genetically engineered cells to treat a myriad of diseases.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_02468
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Vector-free DNA transfection by nuclear envelope mechanoporation
Akh, Leyla
Fajrial, Apresio K.
Seelbinder, Benjamin
Xu, Xin
Tan, Wei
Slansky, Jill
Neu, Corey P.
Ding, Xiaoyun
Biological Physics
Genetic engineering of cells has a range of applications in treating incurable diseases. Plasmid DNA is a popular choice of nucleic acid for cell engineering due to its low cost and stability. However, plasmid DNA must survive the protective mechanisms present in the cell's cytoplasm to enter the nucleus for translation. Many of the existing methods for nucleic acid delivery, such as chemical-based and virus-based delivery, suffer from drawbacks induced by the nucleic acid carrier itself. Mechanical methods present an alternative to nucleic acid carriers by physically producing openings in the cell to deliver cargos. However, in most systems, the cell membrane openings are too small to deliver large cargos, or the poration process leads to low cell viability. In this study, we present a microfluidic device with integrated high aspect ratio nanostructures that repeatably rupture the cell membrane and nuclear envelope. These sharp-tipped nanolancets penetrate the cell deep enough to allow direct delivery of cargos into the nucleus, but still allow for cell recovery after treatment. We show the device's ability to deliver cargo to a variety of cell types while maintaining high viability. Then, we demonstrate the rapid onset of plasmid DNA expression that results from direct nuclear delivery of naked DNA, showing expression speeds comparable to microinjection, but with significantly greater throughput. We envision the use of this device as a tool to quickly produce high quantities of genetically engineered cells to treat a myriad of diseases.
title Vector-free DNA transfection by nuclear envelope mechanoporation
topic Biological Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.02468