Therapeutic applications of ribozymes and riboswitches

Therapeutic approaches employing RNA as a tool or as a drug target have recently emerged and have been employed for various applications—ranging from cancer treatment to virus infection. Despite the paucity of its molecular groups compared to proteins, RNA has nevertheless proved to be an excellent...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Current opinion in pharmacology 2010-10, Vol.10 (5), p.551-556
Main Authors: Mulhbacher, Jérôme, St-Pierre, Patrick, Lafontaine, Daniel A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Gene Knockdown Techniques
Genetic Therapy
HIV Infections - genetics
HIV Infections - therapy
Humans
Internal Medicine
Medical Education
Neoplasms - genetics
Neoplasms - therapy
Prion Diseases - genetics
Prion Diseases - therapy
Riboswitch - physiology
RNA, Catalytic - genetics
RNA, Catalytic - therapeutic use
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Summary:Therapeutic approaches employing RNA as a tool or as a drug target have recently emerged and have been employed for various applications—ranging from cancer treatment to virus infection. Despite the paucity of its molecular groups compared to proteins, RNA has nevertheless proved to be an excellent choice for researchers who have aspired to develop therapeutic tools. Ribozymes and riboswitches are RNA-based therapeutic tools that are most often employed to knockdown gene expression and to inhibit bacterial infections, respectively. The aim of this review is to summarize recent advances observed in ribozyme- and riboswitch-based therapeutic applications that, in some cases, have reached clinical trials.
ISSN:1471-4892
1471-4973
DOI:10.1016/j.coph.2010.07.002