Making Waves 2

Making Waves 2

Carl Schoellhammer, Denitsa Milanova, Cody Cleveland, George Church, Robert Langer, Giovanni Traverso

Harvard University Department of Genetics

This image is a cross-section of a human skin explant that has been transfected with a model gene encoding for green-fluorescent protein. We are interested in ultrasound-mediated gene transfection to skin. Transfection is generally quite difficult owing to the need for the genetic material to be delivered into cells and then shuttled into the nucleus. Most experimental methods that can achieve transfection are too toxic to be utilized in humans. Ultrasound presents an interesting, potentially non-invasive alternative for potential clinical use. These images demonstrate the successful transfection of skin using only plasmid.

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