Self-Assembly of Extracellular Vesicle-like Metal-Organic Framework Nanoparticles for Protection and Intracellular Delivery of Biofunctional Proteins

J Am Chem Soc. 2018 Jun 13;140(23):7282-7291. doi: 10.1021/jacs.8b03584. Epub 2018 May 29.

Abstract

The intracellular delivery of biofunctional enzymes or therapeutic proteins through systemic administration is of great importance in therapeutic intervention of various diseases. However, current strategies face substantial challenges owing to various biological barriers, including susceptibility to protein degradation and denaturation, poor cellular uptake, and low transduction efficiency into the cytosol. Here, we developed a biomimetic nanoparticle platform for systemic and intracellular delivery of proteins. Through a biocompatible strategy, guest proteins are caged in the matrix of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with high efficiency (up to ∼94%) and high loading content up to ∼50 times those achieved by surface conjunction, and the nanoparticles were further decorated with the extracellular vesicle (EV) membrane with an efficiency as high as ∼97%. In vitro and in vivo study manifests that the EV-like nanoparticles can not only protect proteins against protease digestion and evade the immune system clearance but also selectively target homotypic tumor sites and promote tumor cell uptake and autonomous release of the guest protein after internalization. Assisted by biomimetic nanoparticles, intracellular delivery of the bioactive therapeutic protein gelonin significantly inhibits the tumor growth in vivo and increased 14-fold the therapeutic efficacy. Together, our work not only proposes a new concept to construct a biomimetic nanoplatform but also provides a new solution for systemic and intracellular delivery of protein.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / chemistry
  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use
  • Biomimetic Materials / chemistry
  • Biomimetic Materials / metabolism
  • Biomimetic Materials / therapeutic use
  • Biomimetic Materials / toxicity
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Membrane / chemistry
  • Cell Membrane / metabolism
  • Drug Carriers / chemistry*
  • Drug Carriers / metabolism
  • Drug Carriers / therapeutic use
  • Drug Carriers / toxicity
  • Endocytosis / physiology
  • Extracellular Vesicles / chemistry*
  • Extracellular Vesicles / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks / chemistry*
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks / metabolism
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks / therapeutic use
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks / toxicity
  • Mice
  • Nanoparticles / chemistry*
  • Nanoparticles / metabolism
  • Nanoparticles / therapeutic use
  • Nanoparticles / toxicity
  • Neoplasms / drug therapy
  • Particle Size
  • Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 1 / chemistry*
  • Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 1 / therapeutic use
  • Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Drug Carriers
  • Metal-Organic Frameworks
  • Ribosome Inactivating Proteins, Type 1
  • GEL protein, Gelonium multiflorum