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Updated: Aug 9, 2026

Analysis of DNA Double-strand Break (DSB) Repair in Mammalian Cells
Published on: September 8, 2010
RNA interference by 2',5'-linked nucleic acid duplexes in mammalian cells
Thazha P Prakash1, Bryan Kraynack, Brenda F Baker
1Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, CA 92008, USA. tprakash@isisph.com
Abstract:
Synthetic small interfering RNA (siRNA) mediated silencing of a specific gene is emerging as a powerful tool for gene regulation. However, their utility is limited for therapeutic applications primarily due to poor stability. The 2',5'-linked oligonucleotides are known to be more stable to nucleolytic degradation than 3',5'-linked oligonucleotides. The 2',5'-linkage is tolerated in the sense strand of the siRNA duplex. However, the 2',5'-linkage is not tolerated in the antisense strand of the siRNA duplex.
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