title: Delivery of therapeutic RNA molecules to cancer cells by bacteria.
abstract: Delivery of RNA-based therapeutics, for example RNA interference (RNAi) effectors, to target cells is one of the major obstacles for the development of RNA-based therapies. Since it has been known for a long time that bacteria can mediate tumor shrinkage, it was obvious to use nonpathogenic bacteria to produce and deliver therapeutic RNA molecules into target cells to induce RNAi. During the last years, two bacteria-based concepts were developed for this strategy, transkingdom RNAi (tkRNAi) and bacteria-mediated RNAi (bmRNAi). The first concept, tkRNAi, delivers RNAi effectors into target cells by invasive bacteria, which themselves produce therapeutic shRNAs. The bmRNAi technology utilizes invasive bacteria conveying RNAi effector-encoding DNA constructs that will act as a matrix for transcription of these sequences in the target cell by the host cell's transcription machinery.
authors: Charité Campus Mitte, Institute of Pathology, Charitéplatz I, 10117 Berlin, Germany. hermann.lage@charite.de
authors: Hermann
authors: H
authors: Lage
authors: Johannes H
authors: JH
authors: Fruehauf
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics*; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008957:Models, Genetic; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000628:therapy*; D012313:RNA / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D034622:RNA Interference
chemical_list: D012313:RNA