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Updated: May 17, 2026

Dual CRISPR-Interference Strategy for Targeting Synthetic Lethal Interactions Between Non-Coding RNAs in Cancer Cells
Published on: May 30, 2025
Transcriptional silencing by single-stranded RNAs targeting a noncoding RNA that overlaps a gene promoter
Abstract:
RNAi using single-strand RNA would provide new options for therapeutic development and for investigating critical questions of mechanism. Using chemically modified single-strands, we test the hypothesis that single-stranded RNAs can engage the RNAi pathway and silence gene transcription. We find that a chemically modified single-stranded silencing RNA (ss-siRNA) designed to be complementary to a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) requires argonaute protein, functions through the RNAi pathway, and inhibits gene transcription. These data expand the use of single-stranded RNA to cell nuclei.
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