TARGETED PLASMID-POLYLYSINE COMPLEX AS PU TATIVE TOOLS TO SELECTIVELYTRANSFER GENES EXVIVO AND INVIVO

Gene therapy will be an ideal method when it is possible to transfer D NA in cells with a great efficacy and an absolute safety in vivo. Alon g with viral carriers which are efficient but may not be strictly safe , non viral carriers could be advantageously used. Polylysine, a polyc ation giving stable DNA complexes, is proposed as the basis of such a carrier system. Indeed, polylysine substituted with either a protein e asily taken up by cells due to specific cell surface receptors, or car bohydrate moieties which selectively interact with lectins expressed a t the surface of specific cells, allows a cell specific delivery of ge nes. In addition, when such a targeted carrier is used together with c omponents that protect the plasmid-targeted polylysine complex from th e hydrolytic activities of lysosomes and/or help the complex to cross the cell membranes to reach the cytosol, the specificity and the effic acy of the transfection are conspicuously higher.