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Plant viral and bacteriophage delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics
Author(s) -
Lam Patricia,
Steinmetz Nicole F.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
wiley interdisciplinary reviews: nanomedicine and nanobiotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.175
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1939-0041
pISSN - 1939-5116
DOI - 10.1002/wnan.1487
Subject(s) - nucleic acid , bacteriophage , immunogenicity , biology , computational biology , nanotechnology , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , genetics , immune system , materials science , escherichia coli , gene
Nucleic acid therapeutics have emerged as a powerful method for treatment of many diseases. However, the challenge lies in safe and efficient delivery of nucleic acids to their target site, as they need to cross various extracellular and intracellular barriers. Mammalian viruses have initially been favored for delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics, but safety concerns regarding their immunogenicity and potential of integration have fueled the search for alternative delivery strategies. For example, chemistry and bioengineering have led to advances in the use of nonviral vectors composed of lipids and other polymers; nevertheless, the synthetic systems often do not match the efficiency achieved using the biological systems. More recently, researchers have turned toward the development of plant viruses and bacteriophages and virus‐like particles as an alternative or complementary approach. These systems unite the properties of both the viral and nonviral systems and as such are a new exciting avenue toward nucleic acid delivery. This review highlights the benefits of plant viral and bacteriophage delivery of nucleic acids and provides a summary of the current progress in research in this field. WIREs Nanomed Nanobiotechnol 2018, 10:e1487. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1487 This article is categorized under: Biology‐Inspired Nanomaterials > Protein and Virus‐Based Structures