Engineered Nanotopographies Induce Transient Openings in the Nuclear Membrane
Materials with engineered nano-scale surface topographies, such as nanopillars, nanoneedles, and nanowires, mimic natural structures like viral spike proteins, enabling them to bypass biological barriers like the plasma membrane. These properties have led to applications in nanoelectronics for intracellular sensing and drug delivery platforms, some of which are already in clinical trials. Here, evidence is present that nanotopographic materials can induce transient openings in the nuclear membranes of various cell types without penetrating the cells, breaching the nucleo-cytoplasmic barrier, and allowing uncontrolled molecular exchange across the nuclear membrane. These openings, induced by nanoscale curvature, are temporary and repaired through the Endosomal Sorting Complexes Required for Transport (ESCRT)-mediated mechanisms. The findings suggest a potential for nano\topographic materials to temporarily breach the nuclear membrane with potential applications in direct nuclear sensing and delivery.
Authors
- Colleen A. McHugh (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6008-2640)
- Keivan Rahmani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6289-540X)
- Johannes Schöneberg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7083-1828)
- Gillian McMahon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-5690-5511)
- Einollah Sarikhani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7841-5244)
- Lingyan Shi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1373-3206)
- Zeinab Jahed (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0139-3219)
- Dhivya Pushpa Meganathan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-1162-5659)
- Ryan Hosseini
- Leah Sadr
- Zhi Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4062-5358)
- Shivani Shukla
- Hamed Naghsh‐Nilchi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6749-2474)
- Adarsh Balaji (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3295-9936)
- Diether Visda
- S.-Y. Chen
- Vrund Patel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1711-0487)
Institutions
- University of California San Diego (US)
- La Jolla Bioengineering Institute (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Published
- 2024-09-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202410035
- Citations
- 11
- Primary Topic
- Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.57
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- Cancer Research Coordinating Committee
- National Institutes of Health
- University of California, San Diego
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
- National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
- Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research