Molecules 2010, 15(7), 4610-4638; doi:10.3390/molecules15074610
Review

In Vitro and Ex Vivo Selection Procedures for Identifying Potentially Therapeutic DNA and RNA Molecules

Soledad Martonemail, José A. Reyes-Dariasemail, Francisco J. Sánchez-Luqueemail, Cristina Romero-Lópezemail and Alfredo Berzal-Herranz* email
Instituto de Parasitología y Biomedicina “López-Neyra”, CSIC, P.T. Ciencias de la Salud, Av. del Conocimiento s/n, Armilla, 18100 Granada, Spain
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 26 May 2010; in revised form: 17 June 2010 / Accepted: 24 June 2010 / Published: 28 June 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Catalytic Nucleic Acids)
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Abstract: It was only relatively recently discovered that nucleic acids participate in a variety of biological functions, besides the storage and transmission of genetic information. Quite apart from the nucleotide sequence, it is now clear that the structure of a nucleic acid plays an essential role in its functionality, enabling catalysis and specific binding reactions. In vitro selection and evolution strategies have been extremely useful in the analysis of functional RNA and DNA molecules, helping to expand our knowledge of their functional repertoire and to identify and optimize DNA and RNA molecules with potential therapeutic and diagnostic applications. The great progress made in this field has prompted the development of ex vivo methods for selecting functional nucleic acids in the cellular environment. This review summarizes the most important and most recent applications of in vitro and ex vivo selection strategies aimed at exploring the therapeutic potential of nucleic acids.
Keywords: in vitro selection; SELEX; aptamer; ribozyme; therapeutic nucleic acids

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MDPI and ACS Style

Marton, S.; Reyes-Darias, J.A.; Sánchez-Luque, F.J.; Romero-López, C.; Berzal-Herranz, A. In Vitro and Ex Vivo Selection Procedures for Identifying Potentially Therapeutic DNA and RNA Molecules. Molecules 2010, 15, 4610-4638.

AMA Style

Marton S, Reyes-Darias JA, Sánchez-Luque FJ, Romero-López C, Berzal-Herranz A. In Vitro and Ex Vivo Selection Procedures for Identifying Potentially Therapeutic DNA and RNA Molecules. Molecules. 2010; 15(7):4610-4638.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Marton, Soledad; Reyes-Darias, José A.; Sánchez-Luque, Francisco J.; Romero-López, Cristina; Berzal-Herranz, Alfredo. 2010. "In Vitro and Ex Vivo Selection Procedures for Identifying Potentially Therapeutic DNA and RNA Molecules." Molecules 15, no. 7: 4610-4638.

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