This work was supported by National Institute of Health Grants R01HL089462 to SP.

1. Cationic Liposomes Preparation
<ol>
 <li>Autoclave a clean round-bottom flask to be used for lipososmes preparation.</li>
 <li>Prepare stock solutions:
 <ol class="lalpha">
 <li>- Dissolve 200 mg of dimethyl dioctadecyl ammonium bromide (DOAB) in 10 ml chloroform using a small glass bottle.</li>
 <li>- Dissolve 200 mg of cholesterol in 10 ml chloroform using a small glass bottle.</li>
 <li>- Prepare and autoclave to sterilize 5% glucose in 100 ml of RNA/DNA-ase free distilled water.</li>
 </ol>
 </li>
 <li>Rinse ...

<ol>
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W., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Organ-specific+endothelial+cell+uptake+of+cationic+liposome-DNA+complexes+in+mice.">Organ-specific endothelial cell uptake of cationic liposome-DNA complexes in mice.</a> Am. J. Physiol. (273), H387-H404 (1997).</li><li>Soutschek, J., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Therapeutic+silencing+of+an+endogenous+gene+by+systemic+administration+of+modified+siRNAs.">Therapeutic silencing of an endogenous gene by systemic administration of modified siRNAs.</a> Nature. 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A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Comparative+pharmacokinetics,+tissue+distribution,+and+therapeutic+effectiveness+of+cisplatin+encapsulated+in+long-circulating,+pegylated+liposomes+(SPI-077)+in+tumor-bearing+mice.">Comparative pharmacokinetics, tissue distribution, and therapeutic effectiveness of cisplatin encapsulated in long-circulating, pegylated liposomes (SPI-077) in tumor-bearing mice.</a> Cancer Chemother Pharmacol. (43), 1-7 (1999).</li><li>Martino, S., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Efficient+siRNA+delivery+by+the+cationic+liposome+DOTAP+in+human+hematopoietic+stem+cells+differentiating+into+dendritic+cells.">Efficient siRNA delivery by the cationic liposome DOTAP in human hematopoietic stem cells differentiating into dendritic cells.</a> J. Biomed. 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Based on previous studies published by others9 and us1, 18 we developed this methodology for long term knock down of ITSN-1s in vivo by repeated intravenous administration (every 72 hr, for 24 consecutive days) of specific siRNA/liposome complexes. This experimental approach is efficient, can be used safely and repeatedly and it can be easily extended to study the involvement of a gene encoding any protein of interest in lung endothelium and pulmonary homeostasis. Under the experimen...

Naked siRNA cannot penetrate the cell membrane, being negatively charged, and it is easily degraded by enzymes in blood, tissues, and cells. Even with recently structural modifications to improve stability, siRNA accumulation at the target site after administration is extremely low and requires an efficient intracellular vehicle5. Cationic liposomes emerged as safe nucleic acids carriers with the potential to transfer large pieces of DNA/RNA into cells by encapsulating and protecting the nucleic acids from enzymatic degradation6. Also, cationic liposomes spontaneously interact with DNA/RNA, thus promoting gene transfer to the cells2. More recently liposomes have been applied to deliver vaccines and low-molecular-weight drugs7. Liposomal delivery of microRNA-7-expressing plasmid overcomes epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor-resistance in lung cancer cells8. When targeting the vascular endothelium, the intravenous delivery is essential because the complexes are unlikely to cross the endothelial barrier and extravasate in to the interstitium9. By comparison to other organs, ECs from the microvasculature of the lung have the greatest uptake and avidly internalize cationic liposome and DNA/RNA complexes, followed by the lymph nodes and Peyer's patches9. Intravenous delivery in rodent models of siRNA via retro-orbital or tail vein injections has been proven harmless even in high concentrations, such as 50 mg/kg10. In the published literature the composition of cationic liposomes differs, based on the lipids formulation and their equimolar ratio11, 12. There is a wide array of potential applications using cationic liposomes for gene delivery in vivo, whether targeting down-regulation/over-expression of the proteins, delivery of vaccines or anti-tumor therapies13-15. Important to remember is that the efficiency of DNA/RNA-cellular membrane interaction is regulated by the shape coupling between generated complexes and membrane lipids. This suggests that tailoring the lipids composition to the targeted cellular membrane profiles may be beneficial and result in high rates of transfection in a particular cell type6.

<table border="1">
 <tbody>
 <tr>
 <td>Name of Reagent/Material</td>
 <td>Company</td>
 <td>Catalog Number</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Dimethyl Dioctadecyl Ammonium Bromide (DOAB)</td>
 <td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
 <td>D2779</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>LiposoFast stabilizer (mini-extruder)</td>
 <td>Avestin Inc.</td>
 <td>LF-STB</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Polycarbonate membrane, 19 mm diameter, 50 nm pore</td>
 <td>Avestin Inc.</td>
 <td>LFM-50</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Cholesterol</td>
 <td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
 <td>C-8667</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Chloroform</td>
 <td>Mallinckrodt Chemicals</td>
 <td>4432-04</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Hank's balanced salts</td>
 <td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
 <td>H1387</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Round-bottom flask</td>
 <td>Fisher Scientific</td>
 <td>FHB-275-030X</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Mouse siRNAITSN - on target </td>
 <td>Dharmacon/ThermoScientific</td>
 <td>J-046912-11</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Peristaltic pump</td>
 <td>Ismatec</td>
 <td>REGLO-CDF digital with RHOO pump head</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Ventilator</td>
 <td>Hugo Sachs Electronik</td>
 <td>NA</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Barbital</td>
 <td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
 <td>B-0500</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Uranyl acetate</td>
 <td>EM Sciences</td>
 <td>22400</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Epon812</td>
 <td>EM Sciences</td>
 <td>Discontinued by the manufacturer</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Propylene oxide</td>
 <td>EM Sciences</td>
 <td>20400</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Embedding molds</td>
 <td>EM Sciences</td>
 <td>69923-05</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>Tannic acid</td>
 <td>EM Sciences</td>
 <td>21710</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>8 nm gold-albumin tracer</td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Prepared in the laboratory as in16</td>
 <td></td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Comments</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Equipped with 2 Avestin 1 ml gas-tight syringes (cat. # LF-1)</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Pyrex, 100 ml</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Modified siRNA, in vivo</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Part of IDEX corp.</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>D-79232 March, Germany</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td></td>
 <td>Replaced with Embed812, cat. # 14120</td>
 </tr>
 </tbody>
</table>

long-term silencing of intersectin-1s in mouse lungs by repeated delivery of a specific sirna via cationic liposomes. evaluation of knockdown effects by electron microscopy

Previous studies showed that knockdown of ITSN-1s (KDITSN), an endocytic protein involved in regulating lung vascular permeability and endothelial cells (ECs) survival, induced apoptotic cell death, a major obstacle in developing a cell culture system with prolonged ITSN-1s inhibition1. Using cationic liposomes as carriers, we explored the silencing of ITSN-1s gene in mouse lungs by systemic administration of siRNA targeting ITSN-1 gene (siRNAITSN). Cationic liposomes offer several advantages for siRNA delivery: safe with repeated dosing, nonimmunogenic, nontoxic, and easy to produce2. Liposomes performance and biological activity depend on their size, charge, lipid composition, stability, dose and route of administration3Here, efficient and specific KDITSN in mouse lungs has been obtained using a cholesterol and dimethyl dioctadecyl ammonium bromide combination. Intravenous delivery of siRNAITSN/cationic liposome complexes transiently knocked down ITSN-1s protein and mRNA in mouse lungs at day 3, which recovered after additional 3 days. Taking advantage of the cationic liposomes as a repeatable safe carrier, the study extended for 24 days. Thus, retro-orbital treatment with freshly generated complexes was administered every 3rd day, inducing sustained KDITSN throughout the study4. Mouse tissues collected at several time points post-siRNAITSN were subjected to electron microscopy (EM) analyses to evaluate the effects of chronic KDITSN, in lung endothelium. High-resolution EM imaging allowed us to evaluate the morphological changes caused by KDITSN in the lung vascular bed (i.e. disruption of the endothelial barrier, decreased number of caveolae and upregulation of alternative transport pathways), characteristics non-detectable by light microscopy. Overall these findings established an important role of ITSN-1s in the ECs function and lung homeostasis, while illustrating the effectiveness of siRNA-liposomes delivery in vivo.

ITSN-1s protein and mRNA levels were monitored at several time points after siRNAITSN delivery by Western blot and conventional and quantitative PCR as in4. ITSN-1s protein and mRNA levels in siRNAITSN-treated mouse lungs were about 75% lower by reference to controls during continuous knockdown of ITSN-1s for 21 days. Without ITSN-1s, dynamin-2, a major interacting partner of ITSN-1s and essential player in detachment of caveolae from the plasma membrane is not efficiently recruited to th...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Long-term Silencing of Intersectin-1s in Mouse Lungs by Repeated Delivery of a Specific siRNA via Cationic Liposomes. Evaluation of Knockdown Effects by Elect

Long-term Silencing of Intersectin-1s in Mouse Lungs by Repeated Delivery of a Specific siRNA via Cationic Liposomes. Evaluation of Knockdown Effects by Electron Microscopy

Repeated retro-orbital injections of cationic liposomes/siRNA/ITSN-1s complexes in mice, every 72 hours for 24 days, efficiently deliver the siRNA duplex to the mouse lung microvasculature reducing ITSN-1s mRNA and protein expression by 75%. This technique is highly reproducible in an animal model, has no adverse effects and avoids fatalities.

Previous  studies showed that knockdown of ITSN-1s (KDITSN), an endocytic  protein involved in regulating lung vascular permeability and endothelial cells ...

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10.5K Views.  Rush University. Repeated retro-orbital injections of cationic liposomes/siRNA/ITSN-1s complexes in mice, every 72 hours for 24 days, efficiently deliver the siRNA duplex to the mouse lung microvasculature reducing ITSN-1s mRNA and protein expression by 75%. This technique is highly reproducible in an animal model, has no adverse effects and avoids fatalities.

Video: Long-term Silencing of Intersectin-1s in Mouse Lungs by Repeated Delivery of a Specific siRNA via Cationic Liposomes. Evaluation of Knockdown Effects by Electron Microscopy