ABSTRACT
To gain insight into the function of the protein of a gene of interest, antisense DNA and RNA approaches have been widely applied in eukaryotes in which antisense oligonucleotides or antisense RNA transcripts that are expressed successfully inhibit the expression of speci„cally targeted sense RNA or mRNA.1-6 In recent years, the antisense approach has been utilized to address fundamental questions in molecular and cellular biology in animals, human diseases, and plants.1,3,6-10 Gene underexpression refers to a decrease in the protein level of a gene, which in turn may alter the function of the gene.
