In vivo imaging of siRNA electrotransfer and silencing in different organs

Abstract

RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated gene silencing approaches appear very promising for therapies based on the targeted inhibition of disease-relevant genes. The major hurdle to the therapeutic development of RNAi strategies remains however the efficient delivery of the RNAi-inducing molecules, the short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs), to the target tissue. In this study we have investigated the contribution of electrically-mediated delivery of siRNA and/or shRNA into muscles or tumors stably expressing a green fluorescent protein (EGFP) target reporter gene. The silencing of EGFP gene expression was quantified over time by fluorescence imaging in the living animal. Our study indicate that electric field can be used as an efficient method for RNAi delivery and associated gene silencing into cells of muscle and solid tumors in vivo.