Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 18, 2025

Evaluation of Exon Inclusion Induced by Splice Switching Antisense Oligonucleotides in SMA Patient Fibroblasts
Published on: May 11, 2018
Tailored antisense oligonucleotides designed to correct aberrant splicing reveal actionable groups of mutations for
Htoo A Wai1, Eliska Svobodova1,2,3, Natalia Romero Herrera1
1Human Development and Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
Abstract:
Effective translation of rare disease diagnosis knowledge into therapeutic applications is achievable within a reasonable timeframe; where mutations are amenable to current antisense oligonucleotide technology. In our study, we identified five distinct types of abnormal splice-causing mutations in patients with rare genetic disorders and developed a tailored antisense oligonucleotide for each mutation type using phosphorodiamidate morpholino oligomers with or without octa-guanidine dendrimers and 2'-O-methoxyethyl phosphorothioate. We observed variations in treatment effects and efficiencies, influenced by both the chosen chemistry and the specific nature of the aberrant splicing patterns targeted for correction. Our study demonstrated the successful correction of all five different types of aberrant splicing. Our findings reveal that effective correction of aberrant splicing can depend on altering the chemical composition of oligonucleotides and suggest a fast, efficient, and feasible approach for developing personalized therapeutic interventions for genetic disorders within short time frames.
Related Concept Videos
Alternative RNA Splicing
There are five types of alternative RNA splicing that vary in the ways the pre-mRNA segments are removed or retained in the mature mRNA. The first...
RNA Splicing
CRISPR
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...
Experimental RNAi

