穿膜肽HIV Tat蛋白的研究进展

Advances in cell-penetrating peptides HTV Tat

经数十年的研究发现HIV—ITat蛋白的转导域具有穿膜活性,能将外源性的生物学分子如多肽、寡核苷酸、DNA、蛋白、质粒甚至颗粒性物质携带入多种哺乳动物活细胞质膜及核膜,并且对细胞不会产生毒副作用。尽管其穿膜途径的具体机制,目前尚不十分清楚,但却不影响其在生命科学研究领域,包括基础研究和临床研究中的应用。HIV-ITat蛋白转导域的发现及应用,为生物学研究领域开辟了一条新的探索途径。

Over the past decades, it has been discovered that HIV-I trans-activating transcriptional activator (Tat) shows the ability to cross the plasma membrane of mammalian cells and thus give rise to the intracellular delivery of therapeutic cargos, such as peptides, oligonu-cleotides, DNA, proteins, plasmids, and even nanometer-sized particles, which otherwise cannot cross the plasma membrane. The process of penetration has no toxicity or side effects to cells. Although the exact mechanism of the internalization is not clarified, and often controversial or elusive, Tat derived peptides have been utilized in life science research fields widely, including basic and clinical research. The discovery and application of cell-penetrating peptide HIV-I Tat pave the way for the research of biology.