Engineered serratia marcescens for targeted drug delivery
A novel drug delivery system using engineered Serratia marcescens to safely transport siRNA or proteins across the blood-brain barrier. This system leverages the bacterium's ability to express Cry toxin, enhancing penetrability and offering potential therapeutic applications for brain tumors.
Overview
Engineered Serratia marcescens has been developed as an innovative drug delivery system for transporting therapeutic agents such as siRNA or proteins. This system exploits the bacterium's ability to express Cry toxin, which enhances its penetrability through the gastric mucosa and blood-brain barrier, without causing harm to mammals. The approach promises a targeted delivery mechanism that can reach brain tumor cells effectively.
Technical specifications
- Utilizes Serratia marcescens engineered to express Cry toxin, enhancing penetrability and ensuring safety in mammals.
- Capable of delivering siRNA or proteins directly to brain tissues by crossing the blood-brain barrier.
- Leveraged for its non-toxicity to mammals and previous safe applications in the food industry and anticancer drug production.
- Future studies aim to verify its effectiveness in inducing apoptosis in brain tumor cells through RNAi technology.
Technology readiness level
The current development stage is at Technology Readiness Level 3, involving active research and proof-of-concept validation in laboratory settings. Further validation is planned to evaluate therapeutic effects on brain tumor cells in vitro and in vivo.
About Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University
Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University is a large, comprehensive public research university in Fuzhou, China, with more than 39,000 students and a strong regional service orientation. Its campus network combines a 55,000-mu teaching forest, field bases, and national innovation platforms, giving corporate and public-sector partners access to applied testing and demonstration environments. Nineteen industry research institutes and 89 field-based science and technology stations extend collaboration into regional production settings. Research is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and China’s agriculture and forestry authorities; technology-transfer services support patents, licensing, and commercialization.
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