Considerable efforts have been devoted to develop safe and efficient gene therapies for life-threatening or inherited diseases. The choice of gene delivery vehicle plays key roles in enhancing the therapeutic effect of nucleic acid cargo. To date, gene therapy approaches involving both viral vectors and nonviral vectors have been evaluated in clinical trials. With improvements in material science and nanotechnologies, positively charged nanoparticles have emerged as potential gene delivery vehicles. In this review, we highlight clinical trials that examined cationic nanocarrier-mediated gene therapy as well as discuss both the toxicity and efficacy of nanocarrier-based therapeutics.
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