siRNA Insights

What is siRNA?

siRNA (small interfering RNA) is a class of double-stranded RNA molecules, typically 20-25 base pairs in length, that plays a crucial role in RNA interference (RNAi). siRNA molecules are designed to specifically target and silence genes by binding to complementary mRNA sequences. This binding triggers the degradation of the mRNA or prevents its translation into protein, effectively reducing or eliminating the expression of the targeted gene. siRNA is widely used in research to study gene function, develop therapeutics for genetic diseases, and create new diagnostic tools.

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What other technologies are related to siRNA?

siRNA Competitor Technologies

shRNA

shRNA is another RNA interference technology that, like siRNA, is used to silence gene expression. It can be delivered as DNA, offering a more stable, long-term silencing effect compared to siRNA, but also carries the risk of genomic integration and potential off-target effects.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 45% (231) of relevant job posts

miRNA

miRNAs are naturally occurring small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression by binding to mRNA. While siRNA is synthetic, both result in gene silencing, making them competitive approaches for downregulating gene expression. miRNAs often have multiple targets, while siRNAs are usually designed to target a single gene.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 30% (51) of relevant job posts

CRISPR

CRISPR is a gene editing technology that allows for permanent knockout of genes or specific edits to gene sequence, offering a different, potentially more permanent approach to gene silencing compared to the transient effect of siRNA.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 4% (263) of relevant job posts

ASO

Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are single-stranded DNA or RNA molecules that bind to specific mRNA sequences, leading to mRNA degradation or blocking translation. This makes ASOs a direct competitor to siRNA for gene silencing.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 6% (98) of relevant job posts

CRISPR/Cas9

CRISPR/Cas9 is a gene editing technology that allows for permanent knockout of genes or specific edits to gene sequence, offering a different, potentially more permanent approach to gene silencing compared to the transient effect of siRNA.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 3% (124) of relevant job posts

siRNA Complementary Technologies

Western blot

Western blotting is used to detect and quantify protein levels, which is important for validating the knockdown efficiency of siRNA-mediated gene silencing.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 1% (159) of relevant job posts

ELISA

ELISA is used to detect and quantify protein levels, which is important for validating the knockdown efficiency of siRNA-mediated gene silencing.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 1% (266) of relevant job posts

western blotting

Western blotting is used to detect and quantify protein levels, which is important for validating the knockdown efficiency of siRNA-mediated gene silencing.

mentioned alongside siRNA in 1% (137) of relevant job posts