Advances in therapeuticl-nucleosides andl-nucleic acids with unusual handedness

Abstract

Nucleic-acid-based small molecule and oligonucleotide therapies are attractive topics due to their potential for effective target of disease-related modules and specific control of disease gene expression. As the non-naturally occurring biomolecules, modified DNA/RNA nucleoside and oligonucleotide analogues composed ofL-(deoxy)riboses, have been designed and applied as innovative therapeutics with superior plasma stability, weakened cytotoxicity, and inexistent immunogenicity. Although all the chiral centers in the backbone are mirror converted from the naturalD-nucleic acids,L-nucleic acids are equipped with the same nucleobases (A, G, C and U or T), which are critical to maintain the programmability and form adaptable tertiary structures for target binding. The types ofL-nucleic acid drugs are increasingly varied, from chemically modified nucleoside analogues that interact with pathogenic polymerases to nanoparticles containing hundreds of repeatingL-nucleotides that circulate durably in vivo. This article mainly reviews three different aspects ofL-nucleic acid therapies, including pharmacologicalL-nucleosides, Spiegelmers as specific target-binding aptamers, andL-nanostructures as effective drug-delivery devices.