RNA interference technologies for understanding and treating neurodegenerative diseases

Bingwei Lu1

  • 1Department of Pathology, and GRECC Program/VAPAHCS, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94304, USA. bingwei@stanford.edu

Summary

RNA interference (RNAi) silences gene expression and is a powerful tool for studying gene function and developing therapies. This review focuses on RNAi

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RNA interference (RNAi) is a process in which a small non-coding RNA molecule blocks the post-transcriptional expression of a gene by binding to its messenger RNA (mRNA) and preventing the protein from being translated.
This process occurs naturally in cells, often through the activity of genomically-encoded microRNAs. Researchers can take advantage of this mechanism by introducing synthetic RNAs to deactivate specific genes for research or therapeutic purposes. For example, RNAi could be used...
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