Simultaneous intracellular delivery of targeting antibodies and functional nanoparticles with engineered protein G...

Cellular internalization of functional nanoparticles that have optical and magnetic properties is very important in the cellular imaging and manipulation of specifically targeted biomolecules. In this study, a robust method to deliver functional nanoparticles and targeting antibodies into cells was suggested. The engineered protein G system, which contains an affinity tag and a cell penetration peptide in the N- and C-terminals, respectively, can capture surface-modified nanoparticles and antibodies without chemical reaction, and then non-invasively deliver them into the cells. Finally, gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticle/engineered protein G hybrid systems were successfully employed as multifunctional cargo systems for the targeting, imaging, and manipulation of mitochondria.