Propagation characteristics of laser-induced stress waves (LISWs) in tissue and their correlation with properties of gene transfection were investigated for targeted deep-tissue gene therapy. LISWs were generated by irradiating a laser-absorbing material with 532-nm Q-switched Nd:YAG laser pulses; a transparent plastic sheet was attached on the absorbing material for plasma confinement. Temporal pressure profiles of LISWs that were propagated through different thickness tissues were measured with a needle-type hydrophone and propagation of LISWs in water was visualized by shadowgraph technique. The measurements showed that at a laser fluence of 1.2 J/cm(2) with a laser spot diameter of 3 mm, flat wavefront was maintained for up to 5 mm in depth and peak pressure P decreased with increasing tissue thickness d; P was proportional to d (0.54). Rat dorsal skin was injected with plasmid DNA coding for reporter gene, on which different numbers of excised skin(s) was/were placed, and LISWs were applied from the top of the skins. Efficient gene expression was observed in the skin under the 3 mm thick stacked skins, suggesting that deep-located tissue such as muscle can be transfected by transcutaneous application of LISWs. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.