Inhibition of Multidrug Resistance by SV40 Pseudovirion Delivery of an Antigene Peptide Nucleic Acid (PNA) in Cultured Cells

Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is known to bind with extraordinarily high affinity and sequence-specificity to complementary nucleic acid sequences and can be used to suppress gene expression. However, effective delivery into cells is a major obstacle to the development of PNA for gene therapy applications. Here, we present a novel method for the in vitro delivery of antigene PNA to cells. By using a nucleocapsid protein derived from Simian virus 40, we have been able to package PNA into pseudovirions, facilitating the delivery of the packaged PNA into cells. We demonstrate that this system can be used effectively to suppress gene expression associated with multidrug resistance in cancer cells, as shown by RT-PCR, flow cytometry, Western blotting, and cell viability under chemotherapy. The combination of PNA with the SV40-based delivery system is a method for suppressing a gene of interest that could be broadly applied to numerous targets

Change and continuity in Japanese compensation practices: the case of occupational pensions since the early 2000s

This article analyses changes in the provision of Japanese occupational pensions since the early 2000s. It shows how Japanese companies have followed strategies of cost and risk reduction by creating multi-layered benefit systems that offer a combination of defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) plans whose benefits are becoming increasingly performance-oriented. Analysing the reasons behind the resilience of DB schemes in Japan, the article concludes that enterprise union behaviour has had less influence than regulatory issues and continued corporate commitment to long-standing employment practices for regular workers. These findings highlight the embeddedness of Japanese employment practices in their institutional context

Translocation of molecules into cells by pH-dependent insertion of a transmembrane helix

We have previously observed the spontaneous, pH-dependent insertion of a water-soluble peptide to form a helix across lipid bilayers [Hunt, J. F., Rath, P., Rothschild, K. J. & Engelman, D. M. (1997) Biochemistry 36, 15177–15192]. We now use a related peptide, pH (low) insertion peptide, to translocate cargo molecules attached to its C terminus across the plasma membranes of living cells. Translocation is selective for low pH, and various types of cargo molecules attached by disulfides can be released by reduction in the cytoplasm, including peptide nucleic acids, a cyclic peptide (phalloidin), and organic compounds. Because a high extracellular acidity is characteristic of a variety of pathological conditions (such as tumors, infarcts, stroke-afflicted tissue, atherosclerotic lesions, sites of inflammation or infection, or damaged tissue resulting from trauma) or might be created artificially, pH (low) insertion peptide may prove a useful tool for selective delivery of agents for drug therapy, diagnostic imaging, genetic control, or cell regulation

Design of embedded chimeric peptide nucleic acids that efficiently enter and accurately reactivate gene expression in vivo

Pharmacological treatments designed to reactivate fetal γ-globin can lead to an effective and successful clinical outcome in patients with hemoglobinopathies. However, new approaches remain highly desired because such treatments are not equally effective for all patients, and toxicity issues remain. We have taken a systematic approach to develop an embedded chimeric peptide nucleic acid (PNA) that effectively enters the cell and the nucleus, binds to its target site at the human fetal γ-globin promoter, and reactivates this transcript in adult transgenic mouse bone marrow and human primary peripheral blood cells. In vitro and in vivo DNA-binding assays in conjunction with live-cell imaging have been used to establish and optimize chimeric PNA design parameters that lead to successful gene activation. Our final molecule contains a specific γ-promoter-binding PNA sequence embedded within two amino acid motifs: one leads to efficient cell/nuclear entry, and the other generates transcriptional reactivation of the target. These embedded PNAs overcome previous limitations and are generally applicable to the design of in vivo transcriptional activation reagents that can be directed to any promoter region of interest and are of direct relevance to clinical applications that would benefit from such a need