6533b85ffe1ef96bd12c124a
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Arginine clustering on calix[4]arene macrocycles for improved cell penetration and DNA delivery
Alessandro CasnatiValentina FranceschiValentina BagnacaniMichele BassiRocco UngaroMichela LomazziFrancesco SansoneGaetano Donofriosubject
Macrocyclic CompoundsArginineStereochemistrymedia_common.quotation_subjectGeneral Physics and AstronomyArginineTransfectionGeneral Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular BiologyArticlechemistry.chemical_compoundPhenolsCalixareneAnimalsHumansInternalizationmedia_commonMultidisciplinaryGeneral ChemistryTransfectionDNAchemistryBiochemistryCovalent bondCell cultureNucleic acidCalixarenesDNAdescription
Cell-penetrating peptides are widely used as molecular transporters for the internalization inside cells of various cargo, including proteins and nucleic acids. A special role is played by arginine-rich peptides and oligoarginines covalently linked or simply mixed with the cargo. Here we report cell-penetrating agents in which arginine units are clustered on a macrocyclic scaffold. Instead of using long peptides, four single arginine units were covalently attached to either the upper or lower rim of a calix[4]arene, kept in the cone conformation building a ‘parallel’ cyclic array. These new macrocyclic carriers show high efficiency in DNA delivery and transfection in a variety of cell lines.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-04-01 | Nature Communications |