Polymeric nucleic acid carriers: current issues and novel design approaches

Abstract

To deliver nucleic acids including plasmid DNA (pDNA) and short interfering RNA (siRNA), polymeric gene carriers equipped with various functionalities have been extensively investigated. The functionalities of these polymeric vectors have been designed to overcome various extracellular and intracellular hurdles that nucleic acids and their carriers encounter during their journey from injection site to intracellular target site. This review briefly introduces known extracellular and intracellular issues of nucleic acid delivery and their solution strategies. We examine significant yet overlooked factors affecting nucleic acid delivery (e.g., microenvironmental pH, polymer/siRNA complexation, and pharmaceutical formulation) and highlight our reported approaches to solve these problems.