Enhancement of Magnetic Nanoparticle-Mediated Gene Transfer to Astrocytes by ‘Magnetofection‘: Effects of Static and Oscillating Fields

Abstract

To assess the feasibility of using magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) to transfect astrocytes derived for transplantation and determine if transfection efficacy can be enhanced by static and oscillating magnetic fields. Astrocytes were transfected using MNPs functionalized with a plasmid encoding a reporter protein. Transfection efficacies were compared following application of static fields and a novel, oscillating array system at a range of frequencies. The transplantation potential of transfected cells was tested in organotypic cerebellar slice cultures. Rat astrocytes can be efficiently transfected using MNPs with applied static/oscillating fields; the latter effect is frequency dependent. Transfected astrocytes could survive and differentiate following introduction into 3D neural tissue arrays. MNP vectors can safely and effectively transfect rodent astrocytes and could form the basis of a 'multifunctional nanoplatform' for neural cell transplantation.