ABSTRACT
This study was aimed to shed light on the biological and pharmaceutical characterization of the complexes of FUS1/hIL-12 double gene with cationic liposome, and to assess such complexes' transfection efficiency, stability and cytotoxicity; for they have the potential for use as drugs in gene therapy of lung cancer. Gel retardation assay, diameter measurement, and surface charge by photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) were employed to select the appropriate ratio of "cationic liposome to DNA" of the double-gene and liposome complexes. The plasmid EGFP and plasmid PVITO2-hIL12-FUS1 mediated by cationic liposome were transfected into A549 lung cancer cells respectively, and the expression levels of EGFP and FUS1 and hIL-12 were determined by inverted fluorescence microscope and immunohistochemical and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) respectively. Agarose gel electrophoresis was performed to detect the stability of the double-gene and liposome complexes, after they were incubated with serum and Dnase I respectively. After the erythrocytes being incubated with the complexes of FUS1/hIL-12 with cationic liposome, the morphology of erythrocyte was observed by microscopy. The result of this study provides a basis for the use of the complexes of FUS1/hIL-12 with cationic liposome in gene therapy of lung cancer.