Cage-Like Hybrid Supercharged Protein-Dna Nanoadhesive Combined With Smile Lenticule For Rapid Corneal Transplant

We present a nanoadhesive based on a supercharged protein-tetrahedral DNA (TD) hybrid nanocage to enhance corneal lenticule adhesion and repair.

Eye and ENT hospital of Fudan University

 In this study, we propose a combinational therapeutic approach by surface reconstructing the corneal stromal lenticules with a nano-bridging material, which is based on a geometrically constructed hybrid DNA-protein adhesive. This nano-based adhesive is fabricated by a tetrahedral DNA-oriented, three-dimensional supercharged proteins coated cage-like nanostructure, which can act as transparent connector for transplanted cornea closure. 

Based on the spatial-oriented distribution of positive charge, this nanocage can adsorb onto the lenticule surface efficiently, and the redundant net charge can be used for the adhesion to wound tissue. This surface modification on the nanoscale can generate a lap-shear strength of approximately 230 Pa between lenticules, which is sufficient to maintain adhesion of lenticules with the recipient tissue. The adhesive coating on nanoscale doesn’t cause observable side effects to the recipient, such as inflammation and neovascularization. The in vivo experiments confirmed that this strategy significantly simplifies the entire surgical process and improves the success rate of corneal transplants. 

The hybrid DNA-protein nanocage-based adhesive demonstrates the exceptional potential to be a type of cornea-specific adhesive for suture-free corneal lenticule transplantation, with excellent antibacterial efficacy and biocompatibility.