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arXiv · 1009.3607

Simple Model of the Transduction of Cell-Penetrating Peptides

Kevin Cahill
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Abstract

Cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) such as HIV's trans-activating transcriptional activator (TAT) and polyarginine rapidly pass through the plasma membranes of mammalian cells by an unknown mechanism called transduction. They may be medically useful when fused to well-chosen chains of fewer than about 35 amino acids. I offer a simple model of transduction in which phosphatidylserines and CPPs effectively form two plates of a capacitor with a voltage sufficient to cause the formation of transient pores (electroporation). The model is consistent with experimental data on the transduction of oligoarginine into mouse C2-C12 myoblasts and makes three testable predictions.

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Kevin Cahill. 2010-09-19. Simple Model of the Transduction of Cell-Penetrating Peptides. https://doi.org/10.1049/iet-syb.2008.0160

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