Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Preparation of Neutrally-charged, pH-responsive Polymeric Nanoparticles for Cytosolic siRNA Delivery
Published on: May 2, 2019
Fabrication of Polyvalent Therapeutic RNA Nanoparticles for Specific Delivery of siRNA, Ribozyme and Drugs to
Yi Shu1, Dan Shu, Zhijuan Diao
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine/College of Engineering, University of Cincinnati, 3125 Eden Ave., Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Abstract:
Bacteriophage phi29 DNA packaging motor is geared by a six-pRNA ring. pRNA is able to form a multimeric complex and patterned superstructures via the interaction of two reengineered interlocking loops. This unique feature makes it an ideal polyvalent vehicle for nanomachine fabrication, pathogen detection, and the delivery of therapeutics. This report describes novel approaches for the fabrication of polyvalent therapeutic pRNA nanoparticles, especially tetramers for specific siRNA delivery to cancer cells and for the silencing of targeted genes. RNA 3-D design, circular permutation, folding energy alteration, and nucleotide modification were applied to generate stable RNA nanoparticles with low toxicity. Animal trials demonstrated the high efficiency of the polyvalent RNA nanoparticles in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Using such protein-free nanoparticles as therapeutic reagents would allow for long-term administration to avoid the induction of antibody due to repeated treatment for chronic diseases.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
siRNA - Small Interfering RNAs
In the cytoplasm, siRNA is processed from a double-stranded RNA, which comes from either endogenous DNA transcription or exogenous sources like a virus. This double-stranded RNA is then cleaved by the ATP-dependent...
Site-Targeted Drug Delivery Systems: Polymeric Carriers
Experimental RNAi
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against specific...
Modified-Release Drug Delivery Systems: Site-Targeted
RNA Interference
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...

