Antisense, RNAi, and gene silencing strategies for therapy: mission possible or impossible?
Antisense oligonucleotides can regulate gene expression in living cells. As such, they regulate cell function and division, and can modulate cellular responses to internal and external stresses and stimuli. Although encouraging results from preclinical and clinical studies have been obtained and significant progress has been made in developing these agents as drugs, they are not yet recognized as effective therapeutics. Several major hurdles remain to be overcome, including problems with efficacy, off-target effects, delivery and side effects. The lessons learned from antisense drug development can help in the development of other oligonucleotide-based therapeutics such as CpG oligonucleotides, RNAi and miRNA.
Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology and Division of Clinical Pharmacology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, United States.
Elizabeth R
ER
Rayburn
Ruiwen
R
Zhang
D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D015195:Drug Design; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000187:drug effects; D020868:Gene Silencing; D015316:Genetic Therapy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D034622:RNA Interference
D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense