Synthetic DNA Delivery Systems

DNA delivery into cells is a rapidly developing area in gene therapy and biotechnology. Moreover, it is a powerful research tool to determine gene structure, regulation, and function.

Viral methods of DNA delivery are well-characterized and efficient, but little is known about the toxicity and immunogenecity of viral vectors. As a result, non-viral, transfection methods of DNA delivery are of increasing interest.

Synthetic DNA Delivery Systems is a comprehensive and current resource on DNA transfection. The use of histidine-rich peptides and polypeptides as DNA delivery systems and self-assembled delivery systems based on cationic lipids and polymers are discussed. Targeted delivery to organelles, tumor cells and dendritic cells comprise an important topic.

W. Mark Saltzman is the Goizueta Foundation Professor of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at Yale University. His research interests include materials for controlled drug delivery, drug delivery to the brain, and tissue engineering. He has taught at Johns Hopkins University and Cornell University and, after joining the Yale faculty in 2002, was named the first Chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering. Professor Saltzman has published more than 150 research papers, 3 authored books, and 2 edited books, and he is an inventor on 10 patents. His many honors and awards include a Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation Teacher-Scholar Award (1990); the Allan C. Davis Medal as Maryland's Outstanding Young Engineer (1995); the Controlled Release Society Young Investigator Award (1996); Fellow of the American Institute of Biological and Medical Engineers (1997); the Professional Progress in Engineering Award from Iowa State University (2000); Britton Chance Distinguished Lecturer in Engineering and Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (2000); and Distinguished Lecturer of the Biomedical Engineering Society (2004).