The advent of genome editing has
transformed the therapeutic landscape
for several debilitating diseases, and the clinical outlook for gene
therapeutics has never been more promising. The therapeutic potential
of nucleic acids has been limited by a reliance on engineered viral
vectors for delivery. Chemically defined polymers can remediate technological,
regulatory, and clinical challenges associated with viral modes of
gene delivery. Because of their scalability, versatility, and exquisite
tunability, polymers are ideal biomaterial platforms for delivering
nucleic acid payloads efficiently while minimizing immune response
and cellular toxicity. While polymeric gene delivery has progressed
significantly in the past four decades, clinical translation of polymeric
vehicles faces several formidable challenges. The aim of our Account
is to illustrate diverse concepts in designing polymeric vectors towards
meeting therapeutic goals of in vivo and ex vivo gene therapy. Here,
we highlight several classes of polymers employed in gene delivery
and summarize the recent work on understanding the contributions of
chemical and architectural design parameters. We touch upon characterization
methods used to visualize and understand events transpiring at the
interfaces between polymer, nucleic acids, and the physiological environment.
We conclude that interdisciplinary approaches and methodologies motivated
by fundamental questions are key to designing high-performing polymeric
vehicles for gene therapy.