Anti-MUC1 Aptamer/Negatively Charged Amino Acid Dendrimer Conjugates for Targeted Delivery to Human Lung Adenocarcinoma A549 Cells

Biol Pharm Bull. 2016;39(10):1734-1738. doi: 10.1248/bpb.b16-00508.

Abstract

We previously developed a negatively charged amino acid dendrimer to address the safety concerns associated with the constituent unit of these systems, which resulted in the formation of a sixth-generation glutamic acid-modified dendritic poly(L-lysine) system (KG6E). The aim of this study was to develop a nanocarrier for targeted drug delivery into cancer cells. In this study, we have synthesized a conjugate material consisting of anti-mucin 1 (MUC1) aptamer (anti-MUC1 apt) and KG6E (anti-MUC1 apt/KG6E) for targeted drug delivery to human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells, which express high levels of the MUC1. The anti-MUC1 apt/KG6E was efficiently internalized by the A549 cells and subsequently transported to the endosomal and lysosomal compartments. In contrast, the cellular association of the sequence scrambled aptamer/KG6E conjugate (scrambled apt/KG6E) was much lower than that of the anti-MUC1 apt/KG6E in A549 cells. These results suggest that our newly developed anti-MUC1 apt/KG6E can be internalized in A549 cells via a MUC1 recognition pathway.

MeSH terms

  • A549 Cells
  • Adenocarcinoma / metabolism
  • Adenocarcinoma of Lung
  • Aptamers, Nucleotide / administration & dosage*
  • Aptamers, Nucleotide / chemistry
  • Dendrimers / administration & dosage*
  • Dendrimers / chemistry
  • Drug Delivery Systems*
  • Glutamic Acid / chemistry
  • Humans
  • Lung Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Mucin-1 / metabolism*
  • Polylysine / chemistry

Substances

  • Aptamers, Nucleotide
  • Dendrimers
  • MUC1 protein, human
  • Mucin-1
  • Polylysine
  • Glutamic Acid