We introduce a two-pronged strategy comprising focused ultrasound (FUS)-mediated blood-brain barrier (BBB) opening and long-circulating biodegradable nanoparticles (NPs) for systemic delivery of nucleic acids to the brain. Biodegradable poly(β-amino ester) polymer-based NPs were engineered to stably package various types of nucleic acid payloads and enable prolonged systemic circulation while retaining excellent serum stability. FUS was applied to a predetermined coordinate within the brain to transiently open the BBB, thereby allowing the systemically administered long-circulating NPs to traverse the BBB and accumulate in the FUS-treated brain region, where plasmid DNA or mRNA payloads produced reporter proteins in astrocytes and neurons. In contrast, poorly circulating and/or serum-unstable NPs, including the lipid NP analogous to a platform used in clinic, were unable to provide efficient nucleic acid delivery to the brain regardless of the BBB-opening FUS. The marriage of FUS-mediated BBB opening and the long-circulating NPs engineered to copackage mRNA encoding CRISPR-associated protein 9 and single-guide RNA resulted in genome editing in astrocytes and neurons precisely in the FUS-treated brain region. The combined delivery strategy provides a versatile means to achieve efficient and site-specific therapeutic nucleic acid delivery to and genome editing in the brain via a systemic route.
Keywords: biodegradable polymer; blood–brain barrier; brain gene therapy; long-circulating nanoparticle; systemic nucleic acid delivery.