| abstract |
Nucleic acid condensing agents with reduced immunogenicity are generated either by conjugation of polycations or by selection of basic amino acid regions from proteins. Conjugation involves a chemical linkage between a polyalkylene glycol, such as polyethylene glycol, or a polysaccharide, such as dextran, and a polycation. Additionally, gene delivery vehicles, such as viral vectors, may be conjugated with polyalkylene glycol or polysaccharide, to reduce their immunogenicity. Basic amino acid regions of proteins are identified by isoelectric point, and amino acid composition. These condensing agents are complexed with nucleic acids and used to deliver genes to cells. Immunogenicity is assessed by whether neutralizing antibody is induced and by whether a serum component inactivates the complexes. |