BCN Biosciences (United States)

Ordered DNA methyltransferases covalently bound to Y-junction DNA were spontaneously taken up mammalian cells in culture, where a nuclear localization signal carried by the bound methyltransferases caused the fluorescently labeled nucleoprotein complex to decorate the nucleus of several mammalian cell lines. We report proof of concept experiments demonstrating that the Y-junction nucleoprotein assembly can be modified to carry gene expression cassettes that permit spontaneous transfection and expression of a desired protein in mammalian cells.