Quinine copolymer reporters promote efficient intracellular DNA delivery and illuminate a protein-induced unpackaging mechanism.

Polymeric vehicles that efficiently package and controllably release nucleic acids enable the development of safer and more efficacious strategies in genetic and polynucleotide therapies. Developing delivery platforms that endogenously monitor the molecular interactions, which facilitate binding and release of nucleic acids in cells, would aid in the rational design of more effective vectors for clinical applications. Here, we report the facile synthesis of a copolymer containing quinine and 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate that effectively compacts plasmid DNA (pDNA) through electrostatic binding and intercalation.

Leading edge: emerging drug, cell, and gene therapies for junctional epidermolysis bullosa.

Introduction: Junctional epidermolysis bullosa (JEB) is a rare inherited genetic disorder with limited treatments beyond palliative care. A major hallmark of JEB is skin blistering caused by functional loss or complete absence of major structural proteins of the skin. Impaired wound healing in patients with JEB gives rise to chronic cutaneous ulcers that require daily care.

Making Olympic lizards: the effects of specialised exercise training on performance.

Exercise training is well known to affect a suite of physiological and performance traits in mammals, but effects of training in other vertebrate tetrapod groups have been inconsistent. We examined performance and physiological differences among green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis) that were trained for sprinting or endurance, using an increasingly rigorous training regimen over 8 weeks. Lizards trained for endurance had significantly higher post-training endurance capacity compared with the other treatment groups, but groups did not show post-training differences in sprint speed.