RNA Interference News and Research

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Mirimus develops enhanced tools for reversible gene suppression

Over the last decades, RNA interference (RNAi) has become an indispensable tool for functional genetic studies by harnessing the power of a cell intrinsic mechanism enabling reversible gene silencing.

17 Dec 2013

New book provides cutting-edge methods for generating and characterizing mouse cancer models

The laboratory mouse is an important model for addressing questions in cancer biology. In recent years, the questions have become more refined, and mouse models are increasingly being used to develop and test cancer therapeutics.

12 Dec 2013

NIH data-sharing may advance genetic and translational research, therapeutic target discovery

For the first time, large-scale information on the biochemical makeup of small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules is available publicly. These molecules are used in research to help scientists better understand how genes function in disease.

12 Dec 2013

Scientists use RNAi technology to reveal genes responsible for treating Parkinson's disease

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have used RNA interference (RNAi) technology to reveal dozens of genes which may represent new therapeutic targets for treating Parkinson's disease. The findings also may be relevant to several diseases caused by damage to mitochondria, the biological power plants found in cells throughout the body.

24 Nov 2013

Heidelberg scientists identify protein motifs that influence gene silencing

Bioscientists at Heidelberg University have studied the function of certain proteins, known as Argonaute (Ago) proteins, in the process of gene regulation. They sought to understand why only the Ago2 protein is able to target and directly turn off genes in humans, while the closely related Ago3 protein is not.

16 Nov 2013

Researchers identify factor that promotes metastasis of colon tumors

Tumors become highly malignant when they acquire the ability to colonize other tissues and form metastases. Researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have identified a factor that promotes metastasis of colon tumors - and presents a possible target for therapy.

5 Nov 2013

LMU researchers identify a factor that promotes metastasis of colon tumors

Tumors become highly malignant when they acquire the ability to colonize other tissues and form metastases. Researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet in Munich have identified a factor that promotes metastasis of colon tumors - and presents a possible target for therapy.

4 Nov 2013

"One-two punch" disables tumors' defenses

An aggressive form of breast cancer known as "triple negative" is very difficult to treat: Chemotherapy can shrink such tumors for a while, but in many patients they grow back and gain resistance to the original drugs.

25 Oct 2013

Small interfering RNAs in mammals act as specific antiviral weapons

Many viral infections are nipped in the bud by the innate immune response. This involves specific proteins within the infected cell that recognize the virus and trigger a signalling cascade - the so-called interferon response. This activates a protective mechanism in neighbouring cells and often results in the death of the primarily infected cell.

11 Oct 2013

Cholesterol-lowering drugs could be alternative treatment for people who take statins

A new class of cholesterol-lowering drugs that target a recently discovered regulator of harmful cholesterol could be an alternative or complementary treatment for the 30 million people who take statins, after the first trial in humans confirms the technique’s feasibility and safety.

4 Oct 2013

One-time treatment slows onset and progression of ALS, study finds

Studies of a therapy designed to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis suggest that the treatment dramatically slows onset and progression of the deadly disease, one of the most common neuromuscular disorders in the world.

10 Sep 2013

Research team receives NCI grant to develop precision therapies that kill cancer cells

A research team headed by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center scientists Christopher Kemp, Ph.D., and Carla Grandori, M.D., Ph.D., has received a $4 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to develop precision therapies that selectively kill cancer cells while sparing normal, healthy tissue.

24 Jul 2013

New approach delivers RNA drugs to silence malfunctioning genes

Silencing genes that have malfunctioned is an important approach for treating diseases such as cancer and heart disease. One effective approach is to deliver drugs made from small molecules of ribonucleic acid, or RNA, which are used to inhibit gene expression. The drugs, in essence, mimic a natural process called RNA interference.

10 Jul 2013

Study suggests new ways to maximize delivery of RNA strands

Nanoparticles that deliver short strands of RNA offer a way to treat cancer and other diseases by shutting off malfunctioning genes. Although this approach has shown some promise, scientists are still not sure exactly what happens to the nanoparticles once they get inside their target cells.

25 Jun 2013

Human Argonautes directly cuts messenger RNA

Human Argonautes (hAgo), are key proteins involved in a process known as RNA interference. RNAi, as it is often called, is a mechanism that cells use to regulate gene expression.

7 Jun 2013

Weather may influence transmission of West Nile, chikungunya, and other viral disease

Urban epidemics resulting from viral diseases, such as West Nile fever and chikungunya fever, are transmitted by infected mosquitoes.

4 Jun 2013

Arcturus Therapeutics closes $1.3 M in seed funding round

Arcturus Therapeutics, Inc., an industry leader in RNAi technologies for the treatment of disease, today announced it has raised $1.3 million in a seed funding round led by multiple high net-worth private investors from the United States and Canada.

3 Jun 2013

Researchers use new analysis method to determine genes that result in cell death

Lethal and rescuer genes are defined as genes that when inactivated result in cell death or enhanced cell growth, respectively. The ability to identify these genes in large-scale automated screening campaigns could lead to the discovery of valuable new drug targets.

17 May 2013

Thijn Brummelkamp wins 2013 EMBO Gold Medal for genetic analysis of human disease

EMBO today announced Thijn Brummelkamp of the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam as the winner of the 2013 EMBO Gold Medal. The award acknowledges his outstanding work to accelerate the genetic analysis of human disease.

9 May 2013

Exosomes can transfer membrane proteins, study reveals

Important new research from UMass Medical School demonstrates how exosomes shuttle proteins from neurons to muscle cells where they take part in critical signaling mechanisms, an exciting discovery that means these tiny vehicles could one day be loaded with therapeutic agents, such as RNA interference, and directly target disease-carrying cells.

28 Mar 2013