ARTICLE | Discovery & Translation
Science Spotlight: Bacterial payload delivery from nose to brain
BioCentury’s roundup of translational innovations also includes targeting MSH3 to slow repeat expansion in Huntington’s; plus AAVs for kidney and T cells
February 22, 2025 1:03 AM UTC
National University of Singapore researchers revealed a method to deliver therapeutic payloads directly to the CNS, bypassing the blood-brain barrier via intranasal delivery of a bacterial strain with natural tropism for the olfactory epithelium, an otherwise challenging site of administration with direct connection to the brain.
The team, led by Matthew Wook Chang, identified a commensal bacterium in the nasal cavity, Lactobacillus plantarum, and showed it had a high binding affinity for N-acetyl heparan sulfates found exclusively on nasal olfactory epithelium. ...