Delivering on RNA's Medical Promise

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Success is far from assured. Gene therapists have been trying to deliver naked DNA into cells for well over 25 years, with very limited success, says Mark Kay, director of the Program in Human Gene Therapy at Stanford University School of Medicine, who is investigating RNAi for the treatment of hepatitis. And DNA is a more stable molecule than RNA. ?It?s hard to know? which delivery methods will win out, Kay says. But, he adds, ?If I had to bet right now, I think I would bet on gene therapy? techniques such as Davidson?s, using viruses to deliver the therapeutic molecules.
Chances are, different methods will end up being used to treat different diseases. And regardless of the final winners, the new results offer concrete hope that biologists may finally be inching closer to delivering on the promise of RNAi.