Investigating liposomes as a non-viral vector for DNA transfer

摘要

For decades now scientists have struggled to find efficient methods of transferring foreign DNA into cells. While such transfection has been one of the driving forces behind the development of the modern biotechnology industry, the challenge remainsto improve both delivery and expression of foreign DNA in host cells. Today, most DNA is delivered via virus-based systems. Efficiency of both delivery and expression is high - over 90 per cent using such systems - but the technology is not without its limitations. There are problems with toxicity and immunogenicity, viral vectors are costly to produce, have limited DNA carrying capacity and are restricted to cells that have the appropriate viral receptors.