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Updated: Jul 26, 2026

Generation of Cationic Nanoliposomes for the Efficient Delivery of In Vitro Transcribed Messenger RNA
Published on: February 1, 2019
Chiral DNA packaging in DNA-cationic liposome assemblies
N J Zuidam1, Y Barenholz, A Minsky
1Department of Biochemistry, The Hebrew University, Hadassah Medical School, P.O. Box 12272, Jerusalem, Israel. nicolaas@cc.huji.il
Abstract:
Recent studies have indicated that the structural features of DNA-lipid assemblies, dictated by the lipid composition and cationic lipid-to-DNA ratio, critically affect the efficiency of these complexes in acting as vehicles for cellular delivery of genetic material. Using circular dichroism we find that upon binding DNA, positively-charged liposomes induce a secondary conformational transition of the DNA molecules from the native B form to the C motif. Liposomes composed of positively-charged and neutral 'helper' lipids, found to be particularly effective as transfecting agents, induce - in addition to secondary conformational changes - DNA condensation into a left-handed cholesteric-like phase. A structural model is presented according to which two distinct, yet inter-related modes of DNA packaging coexist within such assemblies. The results underline the notion that subtle changes in the components of a supramolecular assembly may substantially modulate the interplay of interactions which dictate its structure and functional properties.
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