Oligonucleotide drug delivery with lipid nanoparticles (LNPs)
LNPs hold a great promise for efficient drug and vaccine delivery applications especially with oligonucleotide cargoes. In this project novel LNP formulations will be prepared, loaded with model oligonucleotide cargoes and delivered to cells. The cellular response will be evaluated using cytotoxicity assays (e.g. Alamar blue, LDH) and functional outcome (e.g. Luciferase enzyme activity assay with corresponding model cell lines). Moreover, the uptake and trafficking mechanisms of the LNPs and the cargo, with a focus in the endosomal escape, will be evaluated in detail utilizing STORM super-resolution imaging. This project involves the following techniques (among others): mammalian cell culture, LNP preparation, cytotoxicity assays, Luciferase assay, sample preparation for STORM (e.g. fixation, permeabilization, immunostainings), STORM image acquisition, STORM data processing, STORM image analysis. Please contact Miina Ojansivu (miina.ojansivu@ki.se) if you are interested. |