Nobelprijs Fysiologie of Geneeskunde 2006 voor de ontdekking van RNA-interferentie

- The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to Andrew Fire and Craig Mello for their discovery of RNA interference, i.e. the suppression of gene activity by double-stranded RNA. Small interfering RNA molecules (siRNAs), notably the antisense strand, recognise and inhibit the corresponding mRNA, thereby silencing the appropriate gene. RNA interference can help to determine the function of genes and may assist in the development of new drugs. It may also lead to a better understanding of mechanisms of drug resistance. In addition, siRNAs themselves may prove to have therapeutic value as many diseases are the result of alterations in gene activity.

Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 2006;150:2849-53