Investigation of DNA binding abilities of solid lipid nanoparticles based on p-tert-butylthiacalix[4]arene platform

An amphiphilic thiacalix[4] arene derivative functionalized with guanidinium groups forms stable solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) with high zeta-potential in water. Applying gel electrophoresis and fluorescent spectroscopy methods shows that the SLNs have high binding affinity to double-stranded DNA, but despite this fact, we have not observed any significant transfection activity toward three different mammalian cell lines. A UV-spectroscopic study reveals that interaction between the SLNs and the polynucleotide leads to partial denaturation of the DNA located on the surface of the nanoparticles that can hinder transfection.