Abstract—In this study, methylcellulose-poly(ethylenimine)2k (MC-PEI2k) was synthesized for gene delivery system. First, MC was oxidized by periodate oxidation and PEI2k molecules were attached to oxidized MC via reductive amination reaction between aldehyde moieties of oxidized MC and amines of PEI2k. Chemical structures and molecular weights of MC-PEI2k were confirmed by 1H NMR and GPC, respectively. MC-PEI2k could condense pDNA into positively charged and nano-sized polyplex particles. MC-PEI2k showed concentration-dependent but lower cytotoxicity than PEI25k. Transfection efficiency of MC-PEI2k was found to be lower than PEI25k in HeLa cells in serum-free condition but higher in serum condition, due to its good serum-compatibility. These results suggested the potential of MC-PEI2k for gene delivery system.

Index Terms—Gene delivery, methylcellulose, poly(ethylenimine), serum-compatibility.

The authors are with Department of Biosystems & Biomaterials Science and Engineering, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea (email: seal1004@snu.ac.kr).

Cite: Hye Ji Lee, Ju Hyeon Jeon, Tae-il Kim, "Synthesis and Characterization of Methylcellulose-Poly(ethylenimine)2k for Gene Delivery System," International Journal of Bioscience, Biochemistry and Bioinformatics vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 134-140, 2019.