New opportunities for designing effective small interfering RNAs

Small Interfering RNAs: Heralding a New Era in Gene Therapy

Last decades have witnessed a tremendous expansion in knowledge and availability of the genome sequence, which was of great importance for advancements in the field of gene therapy. This led to improved strategies based on use of nucleic acids with sequences complementary to specific target genes in treatment of many diseases. Especially, advancements have been achieved in discovery and use of ...

Rotavirus gene silencing by small interfering RNAs.

RNA interference is an evolutionarily conserved double-stranded RNA-triggered mechanism for suppressing gene expression. Rotaviruses, the leading cause of severe diarrhea in young children, are formed by three concentric layers of protein, from which the spike protein VP4 projects. Here, we show that a small interfering RNA corresponding to the VP4 gene efficiently inhibits the synthesis of thi...

RNA interference and small interfering RNAs.

The term aRNA interferenceo (RNAi) was coined after the groundbreaking discovery that injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) into the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans leads to specific silencing of genes highly homologous in sequence to the delivered dsRNA. The RNAi phenotype is either identical to the genetic null mutant or resembles an allelic series of mutants. The dsRNA can also be deliver...

Design of active small interfering RNAs.

Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) have become the experimental tool of choice to suppress gene expression in a wide variety of organisms. Site selection and optimization does not appear to be as difficult for siRNAs as would be expected from historical experience with antisense oligonucleotides. Nevertheless, not all sites within a target gene perform equally. Significant progress has been made i...

Structure - Functions Relations in Small Interfering RNAs