Technologies

Technology Overview

The Company provides a range of innovative magnetic nanoparticle-based products.

nanoTherics transfection technologies use magnetic nanoparticles and oscillating magnetic fields to accurately and rapidly transfect biomaterials into cells. It applies proprietary magnet configurations and oscillating array systems providing a novel technique for improved transfection performance not used or available elsewhere.

The key attributes giving major advantages over other transfection methods include:

	Significant performance improvements over other transfection technologies, including static magnetic based methods
	Highly improved transfection efficiency and effectiveness - (more than 1000 x) over the best currently available cationic lipid agents at short transfection times.
	No adverse effects on the viability of transfected cells when used at the recommended vector doses.
	High transfection rates and transgene expression levels with low vector doses.
	Extremely short process time. Twenty to 30 minutes of incubation of cells with our vectors are sufficient to generate high transfection efficiency, compared to several hours with lipid-based reagents.
	Ability to easily scale-up the transfection process for high-throughput applications.
	Potential for use in in-vivo applications.
	Significantly lower reagent costs compared to electroporation.

nanoTherics’s gene transfection studies have shown a significant performance enhancement over the best non-viral techniques currently on the market, demonstrating high levels of transfection whist maintaining the viability of transfected cells - all at shorter transfection times and a lower cost. These key attributes afford a significant advantage over currently available transfection methods.

The Company also provides the only commercially available hyperthermia device available for heating magnetic nanoparticles with variable frequency selection capability for optimisation of particle testing parameters.

Description of Nanomagnetic Transfection

	Biomolecules, such as nucleic acids or other molecules, are bound to magnetic nanoparticles, made of biodegradable iron oxides coated with cationic molecules, in a simple one-step process.
	A magnetic force is applied beneath the cells to be transfected. This draws the magnetic nanoparticle and associated biomolecule onto cells on the bottom of the multi-well plate or cell culture flask used. The full nucleic acid dose is drawn towards, and delivered into, target cells, generally via endocytosis. This leads to rapid and efficient transfection without disturbing membrane architecture and without causing chromosomal damage or leaving holes in cell membranes. This is in contrast to other physical transfection methods that damage, create holes or electroshock the cell membranes.
	The magnetic nanoparticles are biodegradable and non-toxic at the recommended doses.
	In this manner, the complete vector dose is concentrated on the cells within minutes and 100% of the cells are generally in contact with significant vector dose.
	The nucleic acids or other vectors are then released into the cytoplasm by different mechanisms depending on the formulation used.
	In the case of the nanoTherics technology the magnetic field that is created is oscillating in nature which promotes more efficient uptake, resulting in transfection efficiencies even higher than static-based magnet assisted transfection techniques.

	High transfection efficiencies of nucleic acids (including plasmid DNA, siRNA and oligonucleotides) with a wide range of cell lines and cell types, including hard-to-transfect cells such as primary cells.
	Low cytotoxicity and no adverse effects on the viability of transfected cells at the recommended vector doses.
	Up to several thousand fold increased transgene expression levels after short-term transfection in comparison to lipid-based reagentss.
	Easy, fast, reproducible protocols with different assay formats.
	Functional with serum and serum-free.
	Cost-effective, saving time and materials.

Transfection Application Data

	Potential for use in transfection of hard-to-transfect cells and tissues. The ability to penetrate physical barriers to transfection, such as mucous-coated lung epithelial cells, makes this technology a potentail for therapeutic applications in genetic disorders such as cystic fibrosis.
	Very rapid transfection, with higher levels of transfection being achieved in many cell types in 20-30 minutes than that of the current lipid based industry standard after 6 hours.
	The additional benefit improved cell viability, unlike other physical non-viral techniques such as electroporation. This makes it ideal for potential use in therapeutic applications and for high value, in vitro experimentation such as stem cell research, where cell viability is economically desirable.

What our customers say

Licensing Opportunities

	Use in in vivo applications
	Drug screening applications
	Gene therapy / clinical applications.

magnefect-nano™ Reagents

News, Events & Publications

	Yiu, HHP, SC McBain, ZAD Lethbridge, MR Lees, J Dobson (2009) Preparation and characterization of polyethyleneimine(PEI) coated Fe3O4-MCM-48 nanocomposite particles as a novel agent for magnet assisted transfection (MATra). J. Biomed. Materials Res. A In Press.
	Dobson, J, SC McBain, N Farrow, CD Batich (2008) Oscillating magnet arrays for enhanced magnetic nanoparticle-based gene transfection. Eur. Cells & Mater. 16 (Supp. 3): 48.