Skip to main content

Cellular Delivery of Peptide Nucleic Acid by Cell-Penetrating Peptides

  • Protocol
Peptide Synthesis and Applications

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology™ ((MIMB,volume 298))

Abstract

Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is a promising tool in biomedical research. PNA oligomers can be synthesized according to peptide synthesis protocols, but they hybridize to complementary RNA and DNA strands like oligonucleotides. The main hindrance to the use of PNA oligomers has been their poor uptake by cells. Fortunately, this limitation can be overcome by the application of peptide vectors. Different strategies are used to conjugate peptide vectors and PNA oligomers. In this chapter we discuss different types of delivery vectors (receptor ligands and cellpenetrating peptides) and strategies for the design and synthesis of PNA-vector conjugates. A protocol for the delivery of antisense PNA oligomer-cell-penetrating peptide conjugates is also described. Key Words: Peptide nucleic acid; delivery; cell-penetrating peptides; transferrin; antisense.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Protocol
USD 49.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Nielsen, P. E., Egholm, M., Berg, R. H., and Buchardt, O. (1991) Sequence-selective recognition of DNA by strand displacement with a thymine-substituted polyamide. Science 254(5037), 1497–1500.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Nielsen, P. E., Egholm, M., and Buchardt, O. (1994) Peptide nucleic acid (PNA). A DNA mimic with a peptide backbone. Bioconjug. Chem. 5(sn1), 3–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Egholm, M., Buchardt, O., Christensen, L., et al. (1993) PNA hybridizes to complementary oligonucleotides obeying the Watson-Crick hydrogen-bonding rules. Nature 365(6446), 566–568.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Giesen, U., Kleider, W., Berding, C., Geiger, A., Orum, H.,and Nielsen, P.E. (1998) A formula for thermal stability (Tm) prediction of PNA/DNA duplexes. Nucleic Acids Res. 26(21), 5004–5006.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Peffer, N. J., Hanvey, J. C., Bisi, J. E., et al. (1993) Strand-invasion of duplex DNA by peptide nucleic acid oligomers. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90(22), 10,648–10,652.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Zelphati, O., Liang, X., Nguyen, C., et al. (2000) PNA-dependent gene chemistry: stable coupling of peptides and oligonucleotides to plasmid DNA. Biotechniques 28(2), 304–310, 312-314, 316.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Broude, N. E., Demidov, V. V., Kuhn, H., et al. (1999) PNA openers as a tool for direct quantification of specific targets in duplex DNA. J. Biomol. Struct. Dyn. 17(2), 237–244.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Branden, L. J., Mohamed, A. J., and Smith, C. I. (1999) A peptide nucleic acidnuclear localization signal fusion that mediates nuclear transport of DNA. Nat. Biotechnol. 17(8), 784–787.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Liang, K. W., Hoffman, E. P., and Huang, L. (2000) Targeted delivery of plasmid DNA to myogenic cells via transferrin-conjugated peptide nucleic acid. Mol. Ther. 1(3), 236–243.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Koppelhus, U. and Nielsen, P. E. (2003) Cellular delivery of peptide nucleic acid (PNA). Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 55(2), 267–280.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Nielsen, P. E. (1999) Applications of peptide nucleic acids. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 10(1), 71–75.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Braasch, D. A. and Corey, D. R. (2002) Novel antisense and peptide nucleic acid strategies for controlling gene expression. Biochemistry 41(14), 4503–4510.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Tyler, B. M., McCormick, D. J., Hoshall, C. V. et al. (1998) Specific gene block-ade shows that peptide nucleic acids readily enter neuronal cells in vivo. FEBS Lett. 421(3), 280–284.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Braun, K., Peschke, P., Pipkorn, R., et al. (2002) A biological transporter for the delivery of peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) to the nuclear compartment of living cells. J. Mol. Biol. 318(2), 237–243.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Adlerz, L., Soomets, U., Holmlund, L., Viirlaid, S., Langel, ., and Iverfeldt, K. (2003) Down-regulation of amyloid precursor protein by peptide nucleic acid oligomer in cultured rat primary neurons and astrocytes. Neurosci. Lett. 336(1), 55–59.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Rezaei, K., Xu, I. S., Wu, W. P., et al. (2001) Intrathecal administration of PNA targeting galanin receptor reduces galanin-mediated inhibitory effect in the rat spinal cord. Neuroreport 12(2), 317–320.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Pardridge, W. M., Boado, R. J., and Kang, Y. S. (1995) Vector-mediated delivery of a polyamide (“peptide”) nucleic acid analogue through the blood-brain barrier in vivo. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92(12), 5592–5596.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Lindgren, M., Hällbrink, M., Prochiantz, A., and Langel, . (2000) Cell-penetrat-ing peptides. Trends Pharmacol. Sci. 21(3), 99–103.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Oehlke, J., Birth, P., Klauschenz, E., et al. (2002) Cellular uptake of antisense oligonucleotides after complexing or conjugation with cell-penetrating model peptides. Eur. J. Biochem. 269(16), 4025–4032.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Pooga, M., Kut, C., Kihlmark, M., et al (2001) Cellular translocation of proteins by transportan. FASEB J. 15(8), 1451–1453.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Tseng, Y. L., Liu, J. J., and Hong, R. L. (2002) Translocation of liposomes into cancer cells by cell-penetrating peptides penetratin and tat: a kinetic and efficacy study. Mol. Pharmacol. 62(4), 864–872.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Langel, .,ed. (2002) Cell-Penetrating Peptides: Processes and Applications. CRC, Boca Raton, FL.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Pooga, M., Soomets, U., Hällbrink, M., et al. (1998) Cell penetrating PNA constructs regulate galanin receptor levels and modify pain transmission in vivo. Nat. Biotechnol. 16(9), 857–861.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Kaushik, N., Basu, A., Palumbo, P., Myers, R.L., and Pandey, V. N. (2002) Anti-TAR polyamide nucleotide analog conjugated with a membrane-permeating peptide inhibits human immunodeficiency virus type 1 production. J. Virol. 76(8), 3881–3891.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Koppelhus, U., Awasthi, S. K., Zachar, V., Holst, H. U., Ebbesen, P., and Nielsen, P. E. (2002) Cell-dependent differential cellular uptake of PNA, peptides, and PNA-peptide conjugates. Antisense Nucleic Acid Drug Dev. 12(2), 51–63.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Elmquist, A., Lindgren, M., Bartfai, T., and Langel, . (2001) VE-cadherin-derived cell-penetrating peptide, pVEC, with carrier functions. Exp. Cell Res. 269(2), 237–244.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Braasch, D. A. and Corey, D. R. (2001) Synthesis, analysis, purification, and intra-cellular delivery of peptide nucleic acids. Methods 23(2), 97–107.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Pooga, M., Hällbrink, M., Zorko, M., and Langel, . (1998) Cell penetration by transportan. FASEB J. 12(1), 67–77.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Nielsen, P. E. and Egholm, M. (ed.) (1999) Peptide Nucleic Acids: Protocols and Applications. Horizon Scientific, Wymondham, UK.

    Google Scholar 

  30. Sazani, P., Gemignani, F., Kang, S. H., et al. (2002) Systemically delivered antisense oligomers upregulate gene expression in mouse tissues. Nat. Biotechnol. 20(12), 1228–1233.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Aldrian-Herrada, G., Desarmenien, M. G., Orcel, H., et al. (1998) A peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is more rapidly internalized in cultured neurons when coupled to a retro-inverso delivery peptide. The antisense activity depresses the target mRNA and protein in magnocellular oxytocin neurons. Nucleic Acids Res. 26(21), 4910–4916.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Villa, R., Folini, M., Lualdi, S., Veronese, S., Daidone, M. G., and Zaffaroni, N. (2000) Inhibition of telomerase activity by a cell-penetrating peptide nucleic acid construct in human melanoma cells. FEBS Lett. 473(2), 221–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2005 Humana Press Inc., Totowa, NJ

About this protocol

Cite this protocol

Kalle, K., Langel, l. (2005). Cellular Delivery of Peptide Nucleic Acid by Cell-Penetrating Peptides. In: Howl, J. (eds) Peptide Synthesis and Applications. Methods in Molecular Biology™, vol 298. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1385/1-59259-877-3:131

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1385/1-59259-877-3:131

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-58829-317-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-59259-877-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

Publish with us

Policies and ethics