Breakthrough by scientists.SCIENTISTS have lowered cholesterol in monkeys using a pioneering genetic technique that could provide a new way of treating human disease. The ground-breaking study is the first demonstration of the approach, known as micro RNA silencing RNA silencing refers to a family of gene silencing effects by which the expression of one or more genes is downregulated or entirely suppressed by the introduction of an antisense RNA molecule. , in non-human primates. Initial safety trials are now planned involving healthy human volunteers. Micro RNAs (miRNAs) are short strands of RNA RNA: see nucleic acid. RNA in full ribonucleic acid One of the two main types of nucleic acid (the other being DNA), which functions in cellular protein synthesis in all living cells and replaces DNA as the carrier of genetic , a genetic molecule similar to DNA DNA: see nucleic acid. DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid One of two types of nucleic acid (the other is RNA); a complex organic compound found in all living cells and many viruses. It is the chemical substance of genes. , that help regulate the way genes work. They are thought to play an important role in conditions ranging from viral infections and heart disease to neurological disorders and cancer. Scientists in the US and Denmark used injections of a particular molecule to block, or "silence", liver miRNAs which control cholesterol metabolism. |
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