Long-lasting RNAi activity in mammalian neurons

RNAi functions in cultured mammalian neurons.

In a wide range of organisms, double-stranded RNA triggers posttranscriptional gene silencing or RNA interference (RNAi). Small interfering RNAs, the 21-nt double-stranded RNA intermediates of this natural pathway, have became a powerful tool to knock down specific gene expression in mammalian cell lines and potentially will be useful for the analysis of loss-of-function phenotypes. In mammalia...

Long-lasting forms of synaptic potentiation in the mammalian hippocampus.

I n t r o d u c t i o n Memory storage in the mammalian brain is commonly divided into at least two distinct temporal phases: short-term memory, lasting minutes to hours, and long-term memory, which can persist for days, weeks, or even years (for review, see Polster et al. 1991). Whereas short-term memory requires only covalent modifications of pre existing proteins, long-term memory requires t...

RNAi applications in mammalian cells.

Long-lasting plasticity of hippocampal adult-born neurons.

Adult neurogenesis occurs in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, which is a key structure in learning and memory. It is believed that adult-born neurons exert their unique role in information processing due to their high plasticity during immature stage that renders them malleable in response to environmental demands. Here, we demonstrate that, in rats, there is no critical time window for ex...

Mammalian RNAi: a practical guide.

Silencing of gene expression by RNA interference (RNAi) has become a powerful tool for the functional annotation of the Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster genomes. Recent advances in the design and delivery of targeting molecules now permit efficient and highly specific gene silencing in mammalian systems as well. RNAi offers a simple, fast, and cost-effective alternative to exi...