Use of inert gas jets to measure the forces required for mechanical gene transfection.

Background: Transferring genes and drugs into cells is central to how we now study, identify and treat diseases. Several non-viral gene therapy methods that rely on the mechanical disruption of the plasma membrane have been proposed, but the success of these methods has been limited due to a lack of understanding of the mechanical parameters that lead to cell membrane permeability.

Methods: We use a simple jet of inert gas to induce local transfection of plasmid DNA both in vitro (HeLa cells) and in vivo (chicken chorioallantoic membrane).