Studying biophysical barriers to DNA delivery by advanced light microscopy

• Published in: Advanced drug delivery reviews Vol. 57; no. 1; pp. 191 - 210
• Main Authors: De Smedt, S.C., Remaut, K., Lucas, B., Braeckmans, K., Sanders, N.N., Demeester, J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 02-01-2005
• Subjects: Antisense oligonucleotides; DNA - administration & dosage; DNA degradation; Drug Delivery Systems - methods; Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy; Fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy; Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching; Fluorescence resonance energy transfer; Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer - methods; Gene delivery; Light microscopy; Microphotolysis; Microscopy; Photobleaching; Technology, Pharmaceutical - methods; Technology, Pharmaceutical - trends; Gene delivery; Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching; Fluorescence fluctuation spectroscopy; Antisense oligonucleotides; Light microscopy; Fluorescence resonance energy transfer; DNA degradation; Microphotolysis; Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy
• ISSN: 0169-409X; 1872-8294
• DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2004.06.003

Advanced light microscopy (ALM) has been intensively employed by biophysicists to reveal cellular mechanisms. As described in this review, ALM clearly has potential to enhance our understanding of the mechanisms that affect macromolecular therapeutics or nanoscopic drug vectors in biological environments. However, while in recent years confocal microscopy and related techniques became rather routinely used in drug delivery it remains challenging to extract reliable information on the biophysical behaviour of drug delivery systems from ALM measurements. This review discusses studies in which confocal imaging, fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP), fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) and fluorescence energy transfer were employed to reveal biophysical properties of DNA and DNA containing nanoparticles in extra- and intracellular media.