Development of an Amino Acid-Functionalized Fluorescent Nanocarrier to Deliver a Toxin to Kill Insect Pests.

Zheng, Yang; You, Shusen; Ji, Chendong; Yin, Meizhen; Yang, Wantai; Shen, Jie · Adv Mater · 2016

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Large-scale cultivation of Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bt) crops has led to the rapid development of drug resistance. Herein, a fluorescent star poly(amino acid) is synthesized with l-isoleucine functionalization for the efficient delivery of either positively or negatively charged exogenous proteins into live cells. Poly(amino acid)s (P1)/Cry1Ab complexes greatly increase the cytotoxicity of the Bt toxin, Cry1Ab, and efficiently kill Bt-resistant pests.

Medical subject headings