AVS 51st International Symposium
    Biomaterial Interfaces Monday Sessions
       Session BI-MoP

Paper BI-MoP31
Characterization of Nuclear Impalement by Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanofibers for Gene Delivery

Monday, November 15, 2004, 5:00 pm, Room Exhibit Hall B

Session: Poster Session
Presenter: T.E. McKnight, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: A.V. Melechko, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
T.E. McKnight, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
G.D. Griffin, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
D.K. Hensley, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
M.J. Doktycz, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
D.H. Lowndes, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
M.L. Simpson, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, University of Tennessee
Correspondent: Click to Email
Penetration of DNA-modified vertically aligned carbon nanofibers (VACNF) into live cells provides efficient delivery and expression of exogenous genes, similar to â?~microinjectionâ?T-styled methods, but on a massively parallel basis. The efficiency of this method however depends on many factors including plasmid coverage on each nanofiber, maintaining transcriptional activity of these plasmids following immobilization, and retention or release of plasmid from the VACNF scaffold during and after insertion into cell. For DNA that remains tethered, it is believed that gene expression occurs if plasmid is delivered not only into intracellular domain but moreover into nuclear domain. In this work we report on a study of insertion and residence of VACNFs into the nuclei of mammalian cells (Chinese hamster ovary) using Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy.