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Let's Do the Twist: Spiral Proteins Are Efficient Gene Delivery Agents


December 15, 2011

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Clinical gene therapy may be one step closer, thanks to a new twist on an old class of molecules. University of Illinois researchers have demonstrated that short, spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells, with well-controlled toxicity. The team's helical polypeptides far exceeded random-coil polypeptide and even outstripped commercial agents in efficiency, even on some of the hardest cells to transfect: stem cells and fibroblast cells.Full Story

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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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