Possible Approaches to Drug Delivery via Glutathione Transferase Proteins and Chitosan

Abstract Novel means of drug delivery are in great demand in particular for the administration of macromolecules. Glutathione transferase proteins can undergo cellular uptake and thereby deliver pharmaceutical cargo to intracellular sites. The proteins are soluble and can be produced in large quantities by facile bacterial expression. Molecular engineering may endow the proteins with signal sequences directing the delivery to specific intracellular targets and escape domains that facilitate cargo release from endosomes. Sequences providing high affinity for nucleic acids may find use in vaccines based on DNA or RNA. The combination of chitosan and glutathione transferase synergistically enhances the cellular uptake of the protein. Engineered glutathione transferase proteins offer great potential in the area of drug delivery research.