siRNA Mechanism Details
The siRNA specific mechanism occurs once the liposome has reached its target and successfully released the contained siRNA into the nucleus of the targeted cell. The major target of siRNA activity in the cell is the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC). The short (20-25 nucleotide) siRNA molecules first bind to the RISC complex before attaching to the complementary strand of messenger RNA (mRNA). The siRNA activated RISC complex is then able to degrade the molecules of mRNA that are required for the translation stage of DNA replication, effectively inhibiting the ability of the cell to proliferate. Due to recent advances in DNA and RNA sequencing, researchers are now able to create siRNA molecules that can be tailored to interfere with the expression of virtually any gene.