title: Small interfering RNA: a new tool for gene therapy.
abstract: The use of anti-gene agents to disrupt the expression of disease-related genes could potentially be of utility in the treatment of a large number of illnesses, including most neoplasms. Traditional anti-gene agents include antisense oligonucleotides and ribozymes. Recent observations have provided evidence for another promising anti-gene technology-RNA interference (RNAi), in which the introduced double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), after a complicated series of processing steps, disrupts the expression of the targeted cellular gene. Further studies have indicated that small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) of generally 21 ~ 23 nucleotides, which resemble the processing products of long dsRNA, can induce RNAi directly in mammalian cells. Because of their high specificity and efficiency, siRNAs might be a new class of anti-gene medicines for gene therapy applications.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Digestive Diseases, Xijing Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, 710032, P.R. China. fengbi@fmmu.edu.cn
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bi
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Daiming
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fan
mesh_terms: D015316:Genetic Therapy; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000628:therapy; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering
chemical_list: D034741:RNA, Small Interfering