Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 Sep 4;32(9):2819-2834.
doi: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.04.035. Epub 2024 May 3.

mRNA-based therapeutic strategies for cancer treatment

Thilelli Taibi  1 , Sehyun Cheon  2 , Fabiana Perna  3 , Ly P Vu  4
Affiliations
Review

mRNA-based therapeutic strategies for cancer treatment

Thilelli Taibi et al. Mol Ther. .

Abstract

In the rapidly evolving landscape of medical research, the emergence of RNA-based therapeutics is paradigm shifting. It is mainly driven by the molecular adaptability and capacity to provide precision in targeting. The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic crisis underscored the effectiveness of the mRNA therapeutic development platform and brought it to the forefront of RNA-based interventions. These RNA-based therapeutic approaches can reshape gene expression, manipulate cellular functions, and correct the aberrant molecular processes underlying various diseases. The new technologies hold the potential to engineer and deliver tailored therapeutic agents to tackle genetic disorders, cancers, and infectious diseases in a highly personalized and precisely tuned manner. The review discusses the most recent advancements in the field of mRNA therapeutics for cancer treatment, with a focus on the features of the most utilized RNA-based therapeutic interventions, current pre-clinical and clinical developments, and the remaining challenges in delivery strategies, effectiveness, and safety considerations.

Keywords: RNA delivery; biomarkers; cancer vaccines; immunotherapy; mRNA; therapy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of interests F.B. is the co-inventor of multiple patents on adoptive cellular therapy held by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Indiana University. She is a member of the scientific advisory board for Orbitaltx and received research grant support from NGM Biopharmaceuticals and Lonza.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

  • Staying on target in gene and cell therapy.
    Bricker-Anthony R, Koeberl DD, Lipshutz GS, Perna F. Bricker-Anthony R, et al. Mol Ther. 2024 Sep 4;32(9):2801-2802. doi: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.08.010. Epub 2024 Aug 23. Mol Ther. 2024. PMID: 39178850 No abstract available.

References

    1. Setten R.L., Rossi J.J., Han S.P. The current state and future directions of RNAi-based therapeutics. Nat. Rev. Drug Discov. 2019;18:421–446. doi: 10.1038/s41573-019-0017-4. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Traber G.M., Yu A.-M. RNAi-Based Therapeutics and Novel RNA Bioengineering Technologies. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. 2023;384:133–154. doi: 10.1124/jpet.122.001234. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Johnson S.T., Johnson K.C., Corey D.R. In: RNA Therapeutics. Giangrande P.H., de Franciscis V., Rossi J.J., editors. Academic Press; 2022. Chapter 2 - Argonaute and TNRC6, partners in RNAi; pp. 17–36. - DOI
    1. Padda I.S., Mahtani A.U., Parmar M. StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023. Small Interfering RNA (siRNA)-Based Therapy. - PubMed
    1. Zhang M.M., Bahal R., Rasmussen T.P., Manautou J.E., Zhong X.B. The growth of siRNA-based therapeutics: updated clinical studies. Biochem. Pharmacol. 2021;189 doi: 10.1016/j.bcp.2021.114432. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources