Researchers Deliver Skin Treatments With Nucleic Acid Nanoparticles and Moisturizers

Posted: July 5, 2012

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The researchers applied the therapeutic ointment to the skin of mice and to human epidermis. The nanostructures were designed to target epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a biomarker associated with a number of cancers. In both cases, the drug broke through the epidermal layer and penetrated the skin very deeply, with cells taking up 100% of the nanostructures. They selectively knocked down the EGFR gene, decreasing the production of the problem proteins.

After a month of continued application of the ointment, there was no evidence of side effects, inappropriate triggering of the immune system or accumulation of the particles in organs. The treatment is skin specific and does not interfere with other cells.

The researchers believe the technology offers a new way to treat skin disease. In addition, decades of genomic research have given the team a number of targets, for which they can adapt the sequence in the nucleic acid to treat.

In addition to Mirkin and Paller, other authors of the paper are Dan Zheng, David A. Giljohann, David L. Chen, Matthew D. Massich, Xiao-Qi Wang and Hristo Iordanov, all from Northwestern.