Synthetic Polyamines to Regulate mRNA Translation through the Preservative Binding of Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 4E to the Cap Structure

Polyion complexes (PICs) of mRNA with synthetic polyamines are receiving increasing attention as mRNA delivery vehicles, and the search for polyamine structure maximizing the translational efficiency of complexed mRNA becomes a critical research topic. Herein, we discovered that fine-tuning of the protonation status of synthetic polyamines can regulate mRNA translation through the preservative binding of eukaryotic initiation factor 4E to m7GpppN (cap structure) on the 5′ end of mRNA. A series of polyamines with varied numbers of aminoethylene repeats in their side chains were prepared by an aminolysis reaction of poly(β-benzyl-l-aspartate) and paired with mRNA to form PICs. PICs formed from polyamines with higher numbers of aminoethylene repeats preserved the original translational efficiency to naked mRNA, whereas the efficiency significantly dropped by decreasing the number of aminoethylene repeats in the polyamines. Immunoprecipitation assays using anti-eIF4E antibodies revealed that the binding affin...