Locked nucleic acid (LNA) is a class of nucleic acid analogs possessing unprecedented binding affinity toward complementary DNA and RNA while obeying the Watson-Crick base-pairing rules.
For efficient gene silencing in vitro and in vivo, fully modified or chimeric LNA oligonucleotides have been applied. LNA oligonucleotides are commercially available, can be transfected using standard techniques, are non-toxic, lead to increased target accessibility, can be designed to activate RNase H, and function in steric block approaches.
LNA-Antisense, including gapmer LNA containing a central DNA or phosphorotioate-DNA segment flanked by LNA gaps, rivals siRNA as the technology of choice for target validation and therapeutic applications.
Publications
Jepsen; Jan S., Wengel; Jesper. LNA-Antisense rivals siRNA for gene silencing. Curr. Opinion in Drug Discovery & Development, 2004, 7, 188-194.