Discoidal nano universal platform for efficient delivery of PNAs

1. A self-assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle, comprising

a zwitterionic short chain 6:0 dihexanoyl phosphatidylcholine (DHPC);

a zwitterionic long chain 16:0 zwitterionic dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC);

a charged long chain 16:0 zwitterionic dipalmitoyl phosphatidylglycerol (DPPG);

a polyethylene glycol (PEG2000)-conjugated distearoyl phosphoethanolamine (DSPE-PEG2000),

wherein the DPPC:DHPC:DPPG:DSPE-PEG2000 molar ratio is 69.58:25.1:3.76:2.0; and

an encapsulated PNA molecule.

2. The self-assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle of claim 1 , having a diameter of 20-50 nm.

3. The self-assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the PNA comprises PNA-155 or PNA-210.

4. A one pot method of self assembling a discoidal PNA delivery vehicle comprising encapsulated PNA, comprising

mixing

a cosolvent;

a zwitterionic short chain 5:0 to 7:0 diacyl lipid comprising a phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylethanolamine hydrophilic headgroup;

a zwitterionic long chain 14:0 to 18:0 diacyl lipid comprising a phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylethanolamine hydrophilic headgroup;

a charged long chain 12:0 to 18:0 diacyl lipid comprising a phosphatidylglycerol, phosphoinositol, phosphatidic acid, or phosphatidylserine hydrophilic headgroup;

a PEGylated lipid of the formula distearoyl phosphoethanolamine (DSPE)-PEG n -TG, wherein n is the molecular weight of the PEG and is 1000 to 5000, and TG is a terminal group which is hydroxyl, succinyl, cyanur, folate, maleimide, pyridoxal-5′-diphosphate (PDP), amine, biotin, trimethylsilyl (TMS), carboxylic acid, azide, dibenzocyclooctyne (DBCO), or benzylguanine; and

the PNA molecule,

wherein the molar ratio of the combination of the zwitterionic long chain diacyl lipid and the charged long chain diacyl lipid to the short chain diacyl lipid is 0.5 to 5,

wherein the molar ratio of the charged long chain diacyl lipid to the zwitterionic long chain diacyl lipid is greater than 0.01,

wherein the molar % of the PEGylated lipid to all lipids is 1% to 5%, and

wherein the molar ratio of PNA to total lipid is 1:500 to 1:2500; and

providing sufficient time for the discoidal PNA delivery vehicle to self assemble and encapsulate the PNA; and

optionally removing the cosolvent.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein

the zwitterionic short chain diacyl lipid is a dihexanoyl phosphatidylcholine (DHPC) lipid,

the zwitterionic long chain diacyl lipid is a dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) lipid,

the charged long chain diacyl lipid is a dipalmitoyl phosphatidylglycerol (DPPG) lipid, and

the pegylated lipid is a PEG2000-conjugated distearoyl phosphoethanolamine (DSPE-PEG2000).

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein the self-assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle has a diameter along the circular axis of 20-100 nm.

7. The method of claim 4 , wherein the self-assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle has a stability of 3 months at 4° C.

8. The method of claim 4 , wherein the PNA comprises a bis-PNA, a tail clamp (tc) PNA, a PNA including a G-clamp monomer, a γ-PNA, a miniPEG containing PNA comprising one or more units having a polyethyleneglycol sidechain at the γ-carbon of the PNAs backbone, or a triplex forming PNA composition comprising a Hoogsteen binding peptide nucleic acid PNA segment and a Watson-Crick binding PNA segment.

9. The method of claim 4 , wherein the encapsulation efficiency of the PNA is 90%.

10. The method of claim 4 , wherein the whole processing time including dissolution, evaporation and self-assembly is from 7 hours to 15 hours.

11. The method of claim 4 , wherein the cosolvent is DMF or DMSO.

12. A method of enhancing cellular uptake of PNA, comprising contacting a cell with the self assembled a discoidal PNA delivery vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the self assembled discoidal PNA delivery vehicle provides improved cellular uptake compared to a liposome.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the PNA modifies expression of a gene in the cell.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the PNA modifies expression of a gene target for cancer.