TARGETED CLEAVAGE OF RNA USING RIBONUCLEASE P TARGETING AND CLEAVAGE SEQUENCES

摘要

It has been discovered that any RNA can be targeted for cleavage by RNase P from prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells using a suitably designed oligonucleotide ("external guide sequence", or EGS) to form a hybrid with the target RNA, thereby creating a substrate for cleavage by RNase P in vitro. The EGS hydrogen bonds to the targeted RNA to form a partial tRNA like structure including the aminoacyl acceptor stem, the T stem and loop, and part of the D stem. An EGS can be modified both by changes in sequence and by chemical modifications to the nucleotides. The EGS can be a separate molecule or can be combined with an RNase P catalytic RNA sequence to form a single oligonucleotide molecule ("RNase P internal guide sequence" or RIGS). Methods are also disclosed to randomly select and to express a suitable EGS or RIGS in vivo to make a selected RNA a target for cleavage by a host cell RNase P or introduced RIGS, thus preventing expression of the function of the target RNA. The methods and compositions should be useful to prevent the expression of disease- or disorder-causing genes in vivo.