Evaluation Of A Co-Delivery Complex Comprising A P53-Based Antitumor Miniprotein And A Gene

A novel lipid-coated ternary complex containing a p53 - based peptide and a gene was developed by the electronic interaction-induced self-assembly of the ingredients. A newly designed antitumor miniprotein Stoppin, with a cluster of positive charges, was used as the starting core, followed by absorption of negative-charged plasmids and encapsulation with cationic lipids, under an optimized +/ - /+ charge ratio of 1 : 2 : 4. The in vitro gene transfer properties of the complex were evaluated in human embryonic kidney 293T cells and the tumor-killing efficiency was assessed in human lung cancer line A549. Obviously enhanced GFP expression and 4-fold increased luciferase activity were observed when using two different plasmids to construct the ternary complexes respectively. Compared with peptide alone, a much stronger activity to tumor cells was also shown by the complex. Both enhanced gene delivery and antitumor effects suggest it might be a promising strategy to construct such a ternary complex for p53-based synergistic cancer therapy in the future.