A review of chitosan in gene therapy: Developments and challenges

Liang Dong; Yanan Li; Hailin Cong; Bing Yu; Youqing Shen

doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121562

A review of chitosan in gene therapy: Developments and challenges

Carbohydr Polym. 2024 Jan 15:324:121562. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121562. Epub 2023 Nov 4.

Authors

Liang Dong¹, Yanan Li¹, Hailin Cong², Bing Yu³, Youqing Shen⁴

Affiliations

¹ College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China.
² College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China. Electronic address: conghailin@sdut.edu.cn.
³ College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China. Electronic address: yubing198@qdu.edu.cn.
⁴ College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Institute of Biomedical Materials and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China; Key Laboratory of Biomass Chemical Engineering of Ministry of Education, Center for Bionanoengineering, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.

PMID: 37985064
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2023.121562

Abstract

Gene therapy, as a revolutionary treatment, has been gaining more and more attention. The key to gene therapy is the selection of suitable vectors for protection of exogenous nucleic acid molecules and enabling their specific release in target cells. While viral vectors have been widely used in researches, non-viral vectors are receiving more attention due to its advantages. Chitosan (CS) has been widely used as non-viral organic gene carrier because of its good biocompatibility and its ability to load large amounts of nucleic acids. This paper summarizes and evaluates the potential of chitosan and its derivatives as gene delivery vector materials, along with factors influencing transfection efficiency, performance evaluation, ways to optimize infectious efficiency, and the current main research development directions. Additionally, it provides an outlook on its future prospects.

Keywords: Chitosan; Gene delivery; Non-viral vector; Polysaccharide.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Chitosan*
Gene Transfer Techniques
Genetic Therapy
Genetic Vectors
Nucleic Acids*
Transfection

Substances

Chitosan
Nucleic Acids