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@ARTICLE{Carucci:626433,
author = {Carucci, Cristina and Philipp, Julian and Müller, Judith
A. and Sudarsan, Akhil and Kostyurina, Ekaterina and
Blanchet, Clement E. and Schwierz, Nadine and Parsons, Drew
F. and Salis, Andrea and Rädler, Joachim O.},
title = {{B}uffer {S}pecificity of {I}onizable {L}ipid
{N}anoparticle {T}ransfection {E}fficiency and {B}ulk
{P}hase {T}ransition},
journal = {ACS nano},
volume = {19},
number = {11},
issn = {1936-0851},
address = {Washington, DC},
publisher = {Soc.},
reportid = {PUBDB-2025-01412},
pages = {10829 - 10840},
year = {2025},
note = {Waiting for fulltext},
abstract = {Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are efficient and safe carriers
for mRNA vaccines based on advanced ionizable lipids. It is
understood that the pH-dependent structural transition of
the mesoscopic LNP core phase plays a key role in mRNA
transfer. However, buffer-specific variations in
transfection efficiency remain obscure. Here we analyze the
effect of the buffer type on the transfection efficiency of
LNPs. We find that LNPs formulated with the cationic
ionizable lipids DLin-MC3-DMA (MC3), SM-102, and ALC-315 in
citrate compared to phosphate and acetate buffers exhibit
earlier onset and stronger mRNA-GFP expression in vitro.
Using synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) we
determine the buffer specificity of the pH-dependent
structure of ionizable lipid/cholesterol/water mesophases
that serve as model systems for the LNP core phase. The
results show that the phase transition from inverse micellar
to inverse hexagonal with decreasing pH is shifted to a
lower transition pH for acetate and phosphate compared with
citrate buffer. Based on continuum theory and ion-specific
adsorption obtained from all-atom MD simulations, we propose
a mechanism for buffer specificity. Citrate stabilizes the
inverse hexagonal phase thus shifting the formation of HII
to a higher pH. By contrast, phosphate and acetate stabilize
LII. It stands to reason that the inverse micellar to
inverse hexagonal transition, which is facilitated in
citrate buffer, enables a sensitized pH response of the LNP
core phase. This, in turn, enhances endosomal release
efficiency and accounts for the earlier onset of gene
expression observed in LNPs prepared with citrate buffer.},
cin = {EMBL-User / EMBL},
ddc = {540},
cid = {I:(DE-H253)EMBL-User-20120814 / I:(DE-H253)EMBL-20120731},
pnm = {6G3 - PETRA III (DESY) (POF4-6G3)},
pid = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-6G3},
experiment = {EXP:(DE-H253)P-P12-20150101 / EXP:(DE-H253)P-P62-20221101},
typ = {PUB:(DE-HGF)16},
pubmed = {pmid:40074542},
UT = {WOS:001444258800001},
doi = {10.1021/acsnano.4c14098},
url = {https://bib-pubdb1.desy.de/record/626433},
}