The efficiency of
the intracellular transport of medication and
target specificity is frequently hampered by biological obstacles.
The potential for therapeutic use of peptide fragments from naturally
occurring proteins is promising, as peptides exhibit high selectivity
due to several possibilities of interaction with their target. Certain
peptide sequences, often referred to as cell-penetrating peptides
(CPPs), are those that can penetrate cell membranes. Our goal is to
find these sequences in the discarded postcataractery surgery emulsion
known as the cataractous eye protein isolate (CEPI). One peptide fragment
from this discarded protein has been identified to be a potential
CPP based on the similarities with other well-known CPPs. Cell membrane
penetrability and cytotoxicity of the peptide have been investigated.
Fibroblast cells were incubated with the fluorescently labeled peptide
and were observed under fluorescence as well as under confocal microscopy.
It was found that the peptide possesses a cell-penetrating ability.