Newly customized cationic ẞ-cyclodextrins as potential nanovectors for gene delivery

Gene therapy represents a promising strategy for the treatment of severe diseases through delivery of genetic material into target cells. Its clinical translation, however, remains limited by the need for safe and efficient vectors. β-Cyclodextrins (β-CDs), owing to their biocompatibility and structural tunability, represent an attractive platform. In this study, three novel cationic β-CD derivatives (CD1, CD2, and CD3), functionalized with amino groups and different lipophilic chains, were evaluated. Preformulation studies were conducted to optimize the composition and preparation of β-CD-based nanovectors (NVs), which were subsequently complexed with a GFP-encoding plasmid (pGFP). Sodium hyaluronate (HA) and polysialic acid (PSA), were incorporated at 10% w/w, to enhance loading capacity and biocompatibility. Physico-chemical characterization included size, polydispersity index (PdI), and zeta potential. Further insights concerning the architecture of NVs were obtained by TEM, Cryo-EM, and synchrotron SAXS, which indicated a hierarchical arrangement in the structure of the complexes, while electrophoresis verified efficient nucleic acid binding. Stability was assessed at 4 °C for one week and in culture medium for 24 h. MTT test was performed in HeLa cells and transfection efficiency was analysed by flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. NVs were then complexed with GFP-targeting-siRNA (N/P = 10), and silencing efficiency was assessed in HeLa-GFP cells. All formulations displayed suitable size (<200 nm) and PdI (<0.3). CD1 showed the highest biopharmaceutical performance, achieving GFP expression and silencing efficiency comparable to commercial Lipofectamine. Overall, CD1 emerged as the most promising candidate, supporting its potential as an effective and biocompatible NVs for gene delivery.