TD5 is a brain-targeting lipid nanoparticle (BLNP) engineered for efficient mRNA delivery to the central nervous system (CNS) via intrathecal injection. It incorporates a tryptamine-derived ionizable lipid headgroup, myristic acid hydrocarbon tails, and a biodegradable carbonate ester linker, enabling pH-dependent mRNA encapsulation (81.7% efficiency) and brain cell-specific targeting. With a hydrodynamic diameter of 107.5 nm, near-neutral pKa (7.30), and mild positive charge, TD 5 demonstrates superior CNS tropism through serotonin receptor (5-HT1A)-mediated endocytosis. In vitro, TD-5 achieved 80.8% GFP expression in SH-SY5Y neuronal cells, outperforming MC3 LNPs by 50-fold. Following intrathecal administration in mice, TD-5 mediated GFP expression in 29.6% of neurons and 38.1% of astrocytes brain-wide, with 10-fold higher CNS specificity than peripheral organs. Genome editing studies showed TD5-delivered Cas9/sgRNA induced tdTomato activation in ≈30% of neurons and 40% of astrocytes across key brain regions. Safety profiling revealed minimal systemic immune responses (lower IL-6, IL-12p40 vs MC3 LNPs), normal hepatic/renal biomarkers, and no histopathological toxicity. The optimized structure balances myristic chain hydrophobicity for membrane interaction, ionizable amines for mRNA complexation, and tryptamine-mediated targeting for enhanced CNS uptake, establishing TD5 as a promising platform for CNS gene therapies.
