November 1, 2022
Keio University
A research group led by Professor Nobuhide Doi of the Faculty of Science and Technology at Keio University has successfully delivered short interfering RNA (siRNA) to the cytoplasm easily and rapidly to degrade (knock down) target genes, using an Argonaute 2 (Ago2) protein linked to a proprietary cell-penetrating peptide. While siRNA is attracting attention as a nucleic acid drug that degrades the mRNA of genes causing various diseases, conventional methods for delivering siRNA to the cytoplasm have faced challenges, such as low knockdown efficiency due to the rate-limiting formation of the siRNA-Ago2 complex within the cytoplasm. The use of the newly developed cell-permeable Ago2/siRNA complex is expected to pave the way for the development of a new delivery system for siRNA drugs that is superior to conventional methods.
The results of this research were published in the online edition of the British scientific journal Journal of Nanobiotechnology on October 27, 2022.
Please see below for the full press release.