Technology Review: Micromanaging RNA

Technology Review: Micromanaging RNA

A biopharmaceutical company in Denmark has designed a drug that blocks a specific microRNA strand involved in replicating hepatitis C, as well as in regulating cholesterol. The company, Santaris Pharma, is the first in the world to successfully test the technique in monkeys.

Researchers have recently found that microRNA plays a key part in regulating genetic transcription. MicroRNA are tiny segments of RNA, and while they do not produce proteins like RNA and DNA, they have the ability to bind with messenger RNA, the deliverer of the genetic "instructions" that are required for protein synthesis. Scientists have found that when microRNA block certain messenger RNA, they also prevent genetic orders from being carried out. If these orders are meant to protect the body from disease, preventing their delivery via microRNA may result in a host of disorders, including cancer, cardiovascular and neuro-related disorders, and viruses such as hepatitis C.