Nanotechnology

Biomolecule

Biology

Gene

Genetic enhancement

Gene delivery

Gene silencing

RNA interference

microRNA

Small interfering RNA

Chemistry

Materials science

Nucleic acid

Computational biology

Biochemistry

Nature Reviews Methods Primers

There is growing need for a safe, efficient, specific and non-pathogenic means for delivery of gene therapy materials. Nanomaterials for nucleic acid delivery offer an unprecedented opportunity to overcome these drawbacks; owing to their tunability with diverse physico-chemical properties, they can readily be functionalized with any type of biomolecules/moieties for selective targeting. Nucleic acid therapeutics such as antisense DNA, mRNA, small interfering RNA (siRNA) or microRNA (miRNA) have been widely explored to modulate DNA or RNA expression Strikingly, gene therapies combined with nanoscale delivery systems have broadened the therapeutic and biomedical applications of these molecules, such as bioanalysis, gene silencing, protein replacement and vaccines. Here, we overview how to design smart nucleic acid delivery methods, which provide functionality and efficacy in the layout of molecular diagnostics and therapeutic systems. It is crucial to outline some of the general design considerations of nucleic acid delivery nanoparticles, their extraordinary properties and the structure–function relationships of these nanomaterials with biological systems and diseased cells and tissues. In this Primer, Conde and colleagues explain how to design smart nucleic acid delivery methods, which provide functionality and efficacy in the layout of molecular diagnostics and therapeutic systems.

Nanodelivery of nucleic acids