Lipid nanoparticle-mediated CRISPR/Cas9 delivery enables efficient trabecular meshwork gene editing in mice

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) enable efficient mRNA delivery, yet their potential for ocular gene editing remains largely unexplored. Here, we systematically evaluated three LNP formulations containing distinct ionizable lipids, DLin-MC3-DMA, ALC0315, and SM102, for gene delivery to ocular tissues. Among them, SM102-based LNP encapsulating GFP mRNA (SM102-GFP) exhibited the highest transfection efficiency across three cultured ocular cells in vitro. Following intravitreal injection in mice, SM102-GFP achieved selective and robust expression in the trabecular meshwork (TM) without detectable retinal transfection. GFP expression in TM peaked at one week post-injection, declined by three weeks, and could be effectively re-induced by a second dosing of the same vector. Compared with adeno-associated viral (AAV) and adenoviral (Ad) vectors, SM102-GFP showed superior TM specificity and reduced retinal inflammation. Co-delivery of SpCas9 mRNA and sgRNA via SM102-based LNPs enabled efficient CRISPR-mediated knockout of Matrix Gla Protein (Mgp), a key inhibitor of TM calcification. Mgp knockout induced sustained intraocular pressure elevation and anterior chamber deepening with open angles, recapitulating features of primary open-angle glaucoma. Chronic ocular hypertension further led to Müller gliosis and ganglion cell complex thinning, indicative of progressive retinal stress. These findings establish SM102-based LNPs as a safe and efficient platform for TM-targeted gene editing and glaucoma modeling.