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Yoshida T, Hagihara T, Uchida Y, Horiuchi Y, Sasaki K, Yamamoto T, Yamashita T, Goda Y, Saito Y, Yamaguchi T, Obika S, Yamamoto S, Inoue T. Introduction of sugar-modified nucleotides into CpG-containing antisense oligonucleotides inhibits TLR9 activation. Sci Rep 2024; 14:11540. [PMID: 38773176 PMCID: PMC11109122 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-61666-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are synthetic single-stranded oligonucleotides that bind to RNAs through Watson-Crick base pairings. They are actively being developed as therapeutics for various human diseases. ASOs containing unmethylated deoxycytidylyl-deoxyguanosine dinucleotide (CpG) motifs are known to trigger innate immune responses via interaction with toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9). However, the TLR9-stimulatory properties of ASOs, specifically those with lengths equal to or less than 20 nucleotides, phosphorothioate linkages, and the presence and arrangement of sugar-modified nucleotides-crucial elements for ASO therapeutics under development-have not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we first established SY-ODN18, an 18-nucleotide phosphorothioate oligodeoxynucleotide with sufficient TLR9-stimulatory activity. We demonstrated that an unmethylated CpG motif near its 5'-end was indispensable for TLR9 activation. Moreover, by utilizing various sugar-modified nucleotides, we systematically generated model ASOs, including gapmer, mixmer, and fully modified designs, in accordance with the structures of ASO therapeutics. Our results illustrated that introducing sugar-modified nucleotides in such designs significantly reduces TLR9-stimulatory activity, even without methylation of CpG motifs. These findings would be useful for drug designs on several types of ASOs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tokuyuki Yoshida
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Tomoko Hagihara
- Fuso Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd., 2-3-30 Morinomiya, Joto-ku, Osaka, Osaka, 536-8523, Japan
| | - Yasunori Uchida
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Yoshiyuki Horiuchi
- Fuso Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd., 2-3-30 Morinomiya, Joto-ku, Osaka, Osaka, 536-8523, Japan
| | - Kiyomi Sasaki
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Takenori Yamamoto
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Takuma Yamashita
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Yukihiro Goda
- National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Yoshiro Saito
- National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan
| | - Takao Yamaguchi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Satoshi Obika
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Seiji Yamamoto
- Fuso Pharmaceutical Industries, Ltd., 2-3-30 Morinomiya, Joto-ku, Osaka, Osaka, 536-8523, Japan.
| | - Takao Inoue
- Division of Molecular Target and Gene Therapy Products, National Institute of Health Sciences, 3-25-26 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 210-9501, Japan.
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan.
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Chen X, Birey F, Li MY, Revah O, Levy R, Thete MV, Reis N, Kaganovsky K, Onesto M, Sakai N, Hudacova Z, Hao J, Meng X, Nishino S, Huguenard J, Pașca SP. Antisense oligonucleotide therapeutic approach for Timothy syndrome. Nature 2024; 628:818-825. [PMID: 38658687 PMCID: PMC11043036 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07310-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Timothy syndrome (TS) is a severe, multisystem disorder characterized by autism, epilepsy, long-QT syndrome and other neuropsychiatric conditions1. TS type 1 (TS1) is caused by a gain-of-function variant in the alternatively spliced and developmentally enriched CACNA1C exon 8A, as opposed to its counterpart exon 8. We previously uncovered several phenotypes in neurons derived from patients with TS1, including delayed channel inactivation, prolonged depolarization-induced calcium rise, impaired interneuron migration, activity-dependent dendrite retraction and an unanticipated persistent expression of exon 8A2-6. We reasoned that switching CACNA1C exon utilization from 8A to 8 would represent a potential therapeutic strategy. Here we developed antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) to effectively decrease the inclusion of exon 8A in human cells both in vitro and, following transplantation, in vivo. We discovered that the ASO-mediated switch from exon 8A to 8 robustly rescued defects in patient-derived cortical organoids and migration in forebrain assembloids. Leveraging a transplantation platform previously developed7, we found that a single intrathecal ASO administration rescued calcium changes and in vivo dendrite retraction of patient neurons, suggesting that suppression of CACNA1C exon 8A expression is a potential treatment for TS1. Broadly, these experiments illustrate how a multilevel, in vivo and in vitro stem cell model-based approach can identify strategies to reverse disease-relevant neural pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyu Chen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Fikri Birey
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Min-Yin Li
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Omer Revah
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Rebecca Levy
- Department of Neurology, Division of Child Neurology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Mayuri Vijay Thete
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Noah Reis
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Konstantin Kaganovsky
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Massimo Onesto
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Noriaki Sakai
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Zuzana Hudacova
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jin Hao
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Xiangling Meng
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Seiji Nishino
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - John Huguenard
- Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Sergiu P Pașca
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Stanford Brain Organogenesis, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute & Bio-X, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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Coan M, Haefliger S, Ounzain S, Johnson R. Targeting and engineering long non-coding RNAs for cancer therapy. Nat Rev Genet 2024:10.1038/s41576-024-00693-2. [PMID: 38424237 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-024-00693-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
RNA therapeutics (RNATx) aim to treat diseases, including cancer, by targeting or employing RNA molecules for therapeutic purposes. Amongst the most promising targets are long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which regulate oncogenic molecular networks in a cell type-restricted manner. lncRNAs are distinct from protein-coding genes in important ways that increase their therapeutic potential yet also present hurdles to conventional clinical development. Advances in genome editing, oligonucleotide chemistry, multi-omics and RNA engineering are paving the way for efficient and cost-effective lncRNA-focused drug discovery pipelines. In this Review, we present the emerging field of lncRNA therapeutics for oncology, with emphasis on the unique strengths and challenges of lncRNAs within the broader RNATx framework. We outline the necessary steps for lncRNA therapeutics to deliver effective, durable, tolerable and personalized treatments for cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michela Coan
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Conway Institute of Biomedical and Biomolecular Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Simon Haefliger
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | | | - Rory Johnson
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
- Conway Institute of Biomedical and Biomolecular Research, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
- Department of Medical Oncology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
- Department for BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
- FutureNeuro, SFI Research Centre for Chronic and Rare Neurological Diseases, Dublin, Ireland.
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Shi Y, Zhen X, Zhang Y, Li Y, Koo S, Saiding Q, Kong N, Liu G, Chen W, Tao W. Chemically Modified Platforms for Better RNA Therapeutics. Chem Rev 2024; 124:929-1033. [PMID: 38284616 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2024]
Abstract
RNA-based therapies have catalyzed a revolutionary transformation in the biomedical landscape, offering unprecedented potential in disease prevention and treatment. However, despite their remarkable achievements, these therapies encounter substantial challenges including low stability, susceptibility to degradation by nucleases, and a prominent negative charge, thereby hindering further development. Chemically modified platforms have emerged as a strategic innovation, focusing on precise alterations either on the RNA moieties or their associated delivery vectors. This comprehensive review delves into these platforms, underscoring their significance in augmenting the performance and translational prospects of RNA-based therapeutics. It encompasses an in-depth analysis of various chemically modified delivery platforms that have been instrumental in propelling RNA therapeutics toward clinical utility. Moreover, the review scrutinizes the rationale behind diverse chemical modification techniques aiming at optimizing the therapeutic efficacy of RNA molecules, thereby facilitating robust disease management. Recent empirical studies corroborating the efficacy enhancement of RNA therapeutics through chemical modifications are highlighted. Conclusively, we offer profound insights into the transformative impact of chemical modifications on RNA drugs and delineates prospective trajectories for their future development and clinical integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yesi Shi
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
- State Key Laboratory of Vaccines for Infectious Diseases, Xiang An Biomedicine Laboratory, National Innovation Platform for Industry-Education Integration in Vaccine Research, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics, Center for Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine, School of Public Health, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China
| | - Xueyan Zhen
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Yiming Zhang
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Yongjiang Li
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Seyoung Koo
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Qimanguli Saiding
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Na Kong
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
- Liangzhu Laboratory, Zhejiang University Medical Center, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Gang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Vaccines for Infectious Diseases, Xiang An Biomedicine Laboratory, National Innovation Platform for Industry-Education Integration in Vaccine Research, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Vaccinology and Molecular Diagnostics, Center for Molecular Imaging and Translational Medicine, School of Public Health, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan
| | - Wei Tao
- Center for Nanomedicine and Department of Anesthesiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
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Viengkhou B, Hong C, Mazur C, Damle S, Gallo NB, Fang TC, Henry K, Campbell IL, Kamme F, Hofer MJ. Interferon-α receptor antisense oligonucleotides reduce neuroinflammation and neuropathology in a mouse model of cerebral interferonopathy. J Clin Invest 2024; 134:e169562. [PMID: 38357922 PMCID: PMC10869178 DOI: 10.1172/jci169562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic and elevated levels of the antiviral cytokine IFN-α in the brain are neurotoxic. This is best observed in patients with genetic cerebral interferonopathies such as Aicardi-Goutières syndrome. Cerebral interferonopathies typically manifest in early childhood and lead to debilitating disease and premature death. There is no cure for these diseases with existing treatments largely aimed at managing symptoms. Thus, an effective therapeutic strategy is urgently needed. Here, we investigated the effect of antisense oligonucleotides targeting the murine IFN-α receptor (Ifnar1 ASOs) in a transgenic mouse model of cerebral interferonopathy. Intracerebroventricular injection of Ifnar1 ASOs into transgenic mice with brain-targeted chronic IFN-α production resulted in a blunted cerebral interferon signature, reduced neuroinflammation, restoration of blood-brain barrier integrity, absence of tissue destruction, and lessened neuronal damage. Remarkably, Ifnar1 ASO treatment was also effective when given after the onset of neuropathological changes, as it reversed such disease-related features. We conclude that ASOs targeting the IFN-α receptor halt and reverse progression of IFN-α-mediated neuroinflammation and neurotoxicity, opening what we believe to be a new and promising approach for the treatment of patients with cerebral interferonopathies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barney Viengkhou
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Curt Mazur
- Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, California, USA
| | - Sagar Damle
- Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, California, USA
| | | | | | - Kate Henry
- Biogen Inc, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Iain L. Campbell
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - Markus J. Hofer
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Pollak AJ, Zhao L, Crooke ST. Characterization of cooperative PS-oligo activation of human TLR9. MOLECULAR THERAPY. NUCLEIC ACIDS 2023; 33:832-844. [PMID: 37675184 PMCID: PMC10477407 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtn.2023.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023]
Abstract
Single-stranded phosphorothioate oligonucleotides (PS-oligos) can activate TLR9, leading to an innate immune response. This can occur with PS-oligos containing unmethylated CpG sites, the canonical motif, or PS-oligos that do not contain those motifs (non-CpG). Structural evidence shows that TLR9 contains two PS-oligo binding sites, and recent data suggest that synergistic cooperative activation of TLR9 can be achieved by adding two separate PS-oligos to cells, each engaging with a separate site on TLR9 to enhance TLR9 activation as a pair. Here, we demonstrate and characterize this cooperativity phenomenon using PS-oligos in human cell lines, and we introduce several novel PS-oligo pairs (CpG and non-CpG pairs) that show cooperative activation. Indeed, we find that cooperative PS-oligos likely bind at different sites on TLR9. Interestingly, we find that PS-oligos that generate little TLR9 activation on their own can prime TLR9 to be activated by other PS-oligos. Finally, we determine that previous models of TLR9 activation cannot be used to fully explain data from systems using human TLR9 and PS-oligos. Overall, we reveal new details of TLR9 activation, but we also find that more work needs to be done to determine where certain PS-oligos are binding to TLR9.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Luyi Zhao
- Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, CA 92010, USA
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Pradeep SP, Malik S, Slack FJ, Bahal R. Unlocking the potential of chemically modified peptide nucleic acids for RNA-based therapeutics. RNA (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2023; 29:434-445. [PMID: 36653113 PMCID: PMC10019372 DOI: 10.1261/rna.079498.122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
RNA therapeutics have emerged as next-generation therapy for the treatment of many diseases. Unlike small molecules, RNA targeted drugs are not limited by the availability of binding pockets on the protein, but rather utilize Watson-Crick (WC) base-pairing rules to recognize the target RNA and modulate gene expression. Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) present a powerful therapeutic approach to treat disorders triggered by genetic alterations. ASOs recognize the cognate site on the target RNA to alter gene expression. Nine single-stranded ASOs have been approved for clinical use and several candidates are in late-stage clinical trials for both rare and common diseases. Several chemical modifications, including phosphorothioates, locked nucleic acid, phosphorodiamidate, morpholino, and peptide nucleic acids (PNAs), have been investigated for efficient RNA targeting. PNAs are synthetic DNA mimics where the deoxyribose phosphate backbone is replaced by N-(2-aminoethyl)-glycine units. The neutral pseudopeptide backbone of PNAs contributes to enhanced binding affinity and high biological stability. PNAs hybridize with the complementary site in the target RNA and act by a steric hindrance--based mechanism. In the last three decades, various PNA designs, chemical modifications, and delivery strategies have been explored to demonstrate their potential as an effective and safe RNA-targeting platform. This review covers the advances in PNA-mediated targeting of coding and noncoding RNAs for a myriad of therapeutic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sai Pallavi Pradeep
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269, USA
| | - Shipra Malik
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269, USA
| | - Frank J Slack
- HMS Initiative for RNA Medicine, Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Raman Bahal
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269, USA
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Pollak AJ, Zhao L, Crooke ST. Systematic Analysis of Chemical Modifications of Phosphorothioate Antisense Oligonucleotides that Modulate Their Innate Immune Response. Nucleic Acid Ther 2023; 33:95-107. [PMID: 36749166 DOI: 10.1089/nat.2022.0067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
While rare, some gapmer phosphorothioate (PS) antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) can induce a noncanonical TLR9-dependent innate immune response. In this study, we performed systematic analyses of the roles of PS ASO backbone chemistry, 2' modifications, and sequence in PS ASO induced TLR9 signaling. We found that each of these factors can contribute to altering PS ASO induced TLR9 signaling, and in some cases the effects are quite dramatic. We also found that the positioning (5' vs. 3') of a particular backbone or 2' modification within a PS ASO can affect its TLR9 signaling. Interestingly, medicinal chemical strategies that decrease TLR9 signaling for one sequence can have opposing effects on another sequence. Our results demonstrate that TLR9 signaling is highly PS ASO sequence dependent, the mechanism of which remains unknown. Despite this, we determined that placement of two mesyl phosphoramidate linkages within the PS ASO gap is the most promising strategy to mitigate PS ASO dependent TLR9 activation to enhance the therapeutic index and, therefore, further streamline PS ASO drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam J Pollak
- Department of Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
| | - Luyi Zhao
- Department of Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
| | - Stanley T Crooke
- Department of Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
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Zhao JC, Saleh A, Crooke ST. SIDT2 Inhibits Phosphorothioate Antisense Oligonucleotide Activity by Regulating Cellular Localization of Lysosomes. Nucleic Acid Ther 2022; 33:108-116. [PMID: 36576400 DOI: 10.1089/nat.2022.0055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Phosphorothioate (PS)-modified antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) drugs enter cells through endocytic pathways where a majority are entrapped within membrane-bound endosomes and lysosomes, representing a limiting step for antisense activity. While late endosomes have been identified as a major site for productive PS-ASO release, how lysosomes regulate PS-ASO activity beyond macromolecule degradation remains not fully understood. In this study, we reported that SID1 transmembrane family, member 2 (SIDT2), a lysosome transmembrane protein, can robustly regulate PS-ASO activity. We showed that SIDT2 is required for the proper colocalization between PS-ASO and lysosomes, suggesting an important role of SIDT2 in the entrapment of PS-ASOs in lysosomes. Mechanistically, we revealed that SIDT2 regulates lysosome cellular location. Lysosome location is largely determined by its movement along microtubules. Interestingly, we also observed an enrichment of proteins involved in microtubule function among SIDT2-binding proteins, suggesting that SIDT2 regulates lysosome location via its interaction with microtubule-related proteins. Overall, our data suggest that lysosome protein SIDT2 inhibits PS-ASO activity potentially through its interaction with microtubule-related proteins to place lysosomes at perinuclear regions, thus, facilitating PS-ASO's localization to lysosomes for degradation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Crystal Zhao
- Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
| | - Aurian Saleh
- Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
| | - Stanley T Crooke
- Core Antisense Research, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Carlsbad, California, USA
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