A review of the tortuous path of nonviral gene delivery and recent progress

Gene therapy encompasses the transfer of exogenous genetic materials into the patient's target cells to treat or prevent diseases. Nevertheless, the transfer of genetic material into desired cells is challenging and often requires specialized tools or delivery systems. For the past 40 years, scientists are mainly pursuing various viruses as gene delivery vectors, and the overall progress has been slow and far from the expectation. As an alternative, nonviral vectors have gained substantial attention due to their several advantages, including superior safety profile, enhanced payload capacity, and stealth abilities. Since nonviral vectors encounter multiple extra- and intra-cellular barriers limiting the transfer of genetic payload into the target cell nucleus, we have discussed these barriers in detail for this review. A direct approach, utilizing physical methods like electroporation, sonoporation, gene gun, eliminate the requirement for a specific carrier for gene delivery. In contrast, chemical methods of gene transfer exploit natural or synthetic compounds as carriers to increase cellular targeting and gene therapy effectiveness. We have also emphasized the recent advancements aimed at enhancing the current nonviral approaches. Therefore, in this review, we have focused on discussing the current evolving state of nonviral gene delivery systems and their future perspectives.