Use of Adhesion Molecules for Gene Delivery

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Abstract
Integrins are heterodimeric membrane glycoproteins important for interaction of cells with the extracellular matrix and with each other. However, integrins are also exploited as receptors by a number of bacterial, viral, and eukaryotic pathogens for cell binding and entry. This well-conserved pathway into the cell has now been exploited in the development of synthetic gene delivery systems for gene therapy. Peptides, such as the conserved arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) motif, provide convenient integrin-binding ligands for targeting polycationic complexes formed electrostatically with plasmid DNA. This review describes the development, advantages, and potential applications of such systems in gene therapy.