Elasticity Helps RNA Nanoparticles Target Tumors Efficiently

A new study found that RNA nanoparticles have mechanical properties that allow them to target tumors efficiently. The results were published in the journal ACS Nano.

The team—from The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center—identified that RNA nanoparticles have elastic and rubbery properties that enable the molecules to stretch and return to their normal shape. Researchers say that these properties could help the particles target tumors by enabling them to slip through the poorly formed walls of tumor blood vessels and enter a tumor mass.

"We show that RNA nanoparticles have a flexibility that allows for the assembly of molecular structures that have stretchable angles," says study leader and corresponding author Peixuan Guo. For this study, Guo and his colleagues tested the elasticity of nucleic acid polymers by stretching and relaxing individual RNA nanoparticle, while subjecting RNA nanoparticles to elasticity studies using dual-beam optical tweezers. Then, they used animal models to study the biodistribution, excretion, and retention of RNA nanoparticles. This included measuring the excretion of the particles in urine, along with the study on the effect of their shape and size.

"These findings demonstrate the rubbery properties of RNA nanoparticles and why these molecules hold great promise for industrial and biomedical applications, especially as carriers for targeted delivery of anticancer drugs," Guo adds. "Overall we believe these findings further support the development of RNA nanoparticles for targeted delivery of anticancer drugs or therapeutic RNA."