Delivery of GalNAc-Conjugated Splice-Switching ASOs to Non-hepatic Cells through Ectopic Expression of Asialoglycoprotein Receptor

Scharner, J., Qi, S., Rigo, F., Bennett, C. F., Krainer, A. R. (March 2019) Delivery of GalNAc-Conjugated Splice-Switching ASOs to Non-hepatic Cells through Ectopic Expression of Asialoglycoprotein Receptor. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids, 16. pp. 313-325. ISSN 2162-2531 (Print)

[thumbnail of 2019.Scharner.GalNAc.ASOs.pdf]
Preview
PDF
2019.Scharner.GalNAc.ASOs.pdf - Published Version

Download (3MB) | Preview
URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30965276
DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2019.02.024

Abstract

Splice-switching antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are promising therapeutic tools to target various genetic diseases, including cancer. However, in vivo delivery of ASOs to orthotopic tumors in cancer mouse models or to certain target tissues remains challenging. A viable solution already in use is receptor-mediated uptake of ASOs via tissue-specific receptors. For example, the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGP-R) is exclusively expressed in hepatocytes. Triantennary N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) (GN3)-conjugated ASOs bind to the receptor and are efficiently internalized by endocytosis, enhancing ASO potency in the liver. Here we explore the use of GalNAc-mediated targeting to deliver therapeutic splice-switching ASOs to cancer cells that ectopically express ASGP-R, both in vitro and in tumor mouse models. We found that ectopic expression of the major isoform ASGP-R1 H1a is sufficient to promote uptake and increase GN3-ASO potency to various degrees in four of five tested cancer cells. We show that cell-type-specific glycosylation of the receptor does not affect its activity. In vivo, GN3-conjugated ASOs specifically target subcutaneous xenograft tumors that ectopically express ASGP-R1, and modulate splicing significantly more strongly than unconjugated ASOs. Our work shows that GN3-targeting is a useful tool for proof-of-principle studies in orthotopic cancer models, until endogenous receptors are identified and exploited for efficiently targeting cancer cells.

Item Type: Paper
Subjects: bioinformatics
diseases & disorders > cancer
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification
diseases & disorders
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > oligonucleotide
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL Cancer Center Program > Gene Regulation and Inheritance Program
CSHL labs > Krainer lab
CSHL Cancer Center Shared Resources > Animal Shared Resource
Depositing User: Matthew Dunn
Date: 13 March 2019
Date Deposited: 23 Apr 2019 15:29
Last Modified: 02 Feb 2024 20:34
PMCID: PMC6453860
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/37782

Actions (login required)

Administrator's edit/view item Administrator's edit/view item
CSHL HomeAbout CSHLResearchEducationNews & FeaturesCampus & Public EventsCareersGiving