ABSTRACT
The idea of using antisense oligonucleotides to prevent translation of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) is strikingly simple. The use of antisense to attenuate gene expression began in the mid-1980s among immunologists and microbiologists. Antisense oligonucleotides are normally made so that they will span the initiation codon of the targeted mRNA. A number of other factors need to be considered when preparing antisense oligonucleotides. The specificity of antisense oligonucleotides can depends on the sequence chosen. Many genes belong to families and antisense oligonucleotides can be designed to include many members of the family, or to select for only one. In antisense experiments a common control is to use an oligonucleotide with the same base composition but with one or two bases switched around in the sequence. There are several ways to test for the effectiveness of the antisense oligonucleotides in an experimental situation.
