Using field accelerated plasmid droplets (electrospray) for transfection into pulmonary tissue: An approach towards bronchoscopic-based gene therapy

Background: Gene therapy is a promising approach for lung diseases however a major challenge is the delivery of the substances into specific cells. For therapeutic application the delivery mechanism has to be transferred into suitable delivery and device concept useable within the working channel of a bronchoscope. Here we present our concept and first results of electrospray device on cell culture and ex-vivo lung tissue of rat, using enhanced green fluorescence protein reporter gene (eGFP) for transfection. Methods: The concept of a new device for a non-viral gene transfer to the distal lung tissue relies on a…