Intracellular Nanomaterial Delivery via Spiral Hydroporation

Area of Science:

• Nanobiotechnology
• Cell Biology
• Biomaterials Engineering

Background:

• Nanomaterials offer vast potential in cell biology but require efficient intracellular delivery.
• Current methods like nanocarriers or membrane disruption are limited by toxicity, low throughput, and labor intensity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a next-generation intracellular delivery system for nanomaterials.
• To overcome limitations of existing delivery methods, enhancing efficiency and specificity.

Main Methods:

• Development of an intracellular nanomaterial delivery platform utilizing spiral vortex and vortex breakdown phenomena.
• Exploitation of transient cell membrane deformation and restoration for nanomaterial entry.
• Application of the 'spiral hydroporator' for carrier-free delivery.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated successful delivery of diverse nanomaterials (gold nanoparticles, mesoporous silica nanoparticles, dextran, mRNA) into various cell types.
• Achieved high delivery efficiency (up to 96.5%) with remarkable throughput (up to 1 × 10^6 cells/min).
• Maintained high cell viability (up to 94%) with rapid delivery times (approx. 1 min).

Conclusions:

• The spiral hydroporator provides an effective, robust, and rapid single-step intracellular delivery solution.
• This platform represents a significant advancement over traditional methods, enabling broader applications of nanobiotechnology in cell biology.