Molecular dynamics study on the mechanism of polynucleotide encapsulation by chitosan.

ABSTRACT: The safe and effective delivery of therapeutic genes into target cell interiors is of great importance in gene therapy. Chitosan has been extensively studied as a gene delivery carrier due to its good biocompatibility and biodegradability. Understanding the atomic interaction mechanism between chitosan and DNA is important in the design and application of chitosan-based drug and gene delivery systems. In this work, the interactions between single-stranded polynucleotides and different types of chitosan were systematically investigated by using molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Our results demonstrate that the functional groups of chitosan, the types of base and length of polynucleotides regulate the interaction behavior between chitosan and polynucleotides. The encapsulation capacity of

SUBMITTER: Shen JW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5506017 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature