trans-2-Aminocyclohexanol-based amphiphiles as highly efficient helper lipids for gene delivery by lipoplexes
摘要:
Lipidic amphiphiles equipped with the trans-2-aminocyclohexanol (TACH) moiety are promising pH-sensitive conformational switches ("flipids") that can trigger a lipid bilayer perturbation in response to increased acidity. Because pH-sensitivity was shown to improve the efficiency of several gene delivery systems, we expected that such flipids could significantly enhance the gene transfection by lipoplexes. Thus a series of novel lipids with various TACH-based head groups and hydrocarbon tails were designed, prepared and incorporated into lipoplexes that contain the cationic lipid 1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonio-propane (DOTAP) and plasmid DNA encoding a luciferase gene. B16F1 and HeLa cells were transfected with such lipoplexes in both serum-free and serum-containing media. The lipoplexes consisting of TACH-lipids exhibited up to two orders of magnitude better transfection efficiency and yet similar toxicity compared to the ones with the conventional helper lipids 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DOPE) or cholesterol. Thus, the TACH-lipids can be used as novel helper lipids for efficient gene transfection with low cytotoxicity. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Logiken urbaner Polarisierung. Der Blick „von unten“
摘要:
The metropoles in all western societies display new patterns of urban derelation and misery. This new regime of marginality is different to the forms of poverty we know. While in the Fordist era only working class neighbourhoods were struck by the rather cyclical phenomenon of economic crisis, the emerging type of urban destitution is going to be a long-termed and persistent problem. The article analyzes the economic, political and social reasons of this new urban marginality in the USA as well as in Western Europe, showing that there is no evidence for theories of Americanization, let alone the prematurely announced end of the nation state.