Table 1.
Transfection Methods.
| Method | Mechanism | Advantage | Disadvantage | High-Throughput Screening? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chemical (e.g., calcium phosphate) | Endocytosis or phagocytosis | Cheap; high efficiency | Not applicable to all cell types; reagent consistency; does not work in RPMI medium | Yes |
| Cationic lipids (e.g., lipofectamine) | Lipids merge with membrane | Cheap; high efficiency | Not applicable to all cell types | Yes |
| Cationic polymers (e.g., PEI, DEAE-dextran, dendrimers) | Endocytosis or macro-pinocytosis | Cheap | Not applicable to all cell types | Yes |
| Magnetofection | Magnetic force | Rapid; high efficiency | Adherent cells only | No |
| Electroporation | Membrane pores | High efficiency | Cost; cell toxicity | Yes |
| Biolistic particle delivery | Targeted delivery; cell type independent | Low efficiency; cost | No | |
| Micro-injection | Laborious; cost; technically demanding | No | ||
| Laser-fection, optofection | Laser light to permeabilize cell membrane | Works for many cell types and substances | Cost; adherent cells only; technically demanding | No |
| Soaking | Easy | Drosophila only | Yes | |
| Feeding | Sid-1 transporter | Easy | Worms | Yes |