Sigma-Aldrich Introduces MISSION(R) esiRNA for Low Cost, High Specificity Pooled RNAi...( ST. LOUIS April 28 /- Sigma-Aldrich...)

ST. LOUIS, April 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sigma-Aldrich (Nasdaq: SIAL) today announced the global release of MISSION(R) esiRNA, a pool of gene-specific siRNA that provides a novel and powerful approach to RNAi screening in mammalian cells. Unlike traditional synthetic RNAi, esiRNA (http://www.sigma.com/esirna) incorporates a pool of hundreds of siRNAs against a single gene target. This new tool is designed to eliminate the trial and error approach of identifying a single siRNA for gene knockdown and ensures minimal off-target effects.

"MISSION esiRNA provides a powerful way to elucidate gene function in cell culture assays," said Dr. Supriya Shivakumar, global marketing manager for Functional Genomics at Sigma-Aldrich. "The pooled format, unlike anything else on the market, should enable researchers to knock down genes rapidly and cost-effectively. This is an exciting addition to our current MISSION lineup and provides an effective technology that will facilitate RNAi research for a broad base of scientists."

The technique offers a number of benefits over the traditional approach to single-siRNA gene knockdown. By targeting each gene target with a "super-pool" of siRNA, the trial and error approach of identifying a useful single siRNA is eliminated. In addition, the approach should ensure minimal risk of off-target effects and enables the use of one assay per gene. Development of the esiRNA approach was supported by the German BMBF program "GO-Bio" and developed by the Max Planck Institute for Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) in Dresden, Germany.

Frank Buchholz, a research group leader at the MPI-CBG, has pioneered the use of the esiRNA technology in RNAi screens. "We are delighted to
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