The present invention provides oligomeric compounds and uses thereof. In certain embodiments, such oligomeric compounds are useful as antisense compounds. Certain such antisense compounds are useful as RNase H antisense compounds or as RNAi compounds.

The. invention relates to a method for inducing or promoting skipping of exon 45 of DMD pre-mRNA in a Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy patient, preferably in an isolated (muscle) cell, the method comprising providing said cell with an antisense molecule that binds to a continuous stretch of at least 21 nucleotides within said exon. The invention further relates to such antisense molecule used in said method.

Described are novel targeting ligands that may be linked to compounds, such therapeutic compounds that are useful in directing the compounds to the in vivo target. The targeting ligands disclosed herein can serve to target expression-inhibiting oligomeric compounds, such as RNAi agents, to liver cells to modulate gene expression. The targeting ligands disclosed herein, when conjugated to a therapeutic compound, may be used in a variety of applications, including use in therapeutic, diagnostic, target validation, and genomic discovery applications. Compositions including the targeting ligands disclosed herein when linked to expression-inhibiting oligomeric compounds are capable of mediating expression of target nucleic acid sequences in liver cells, such as hepatocytes, which may be useful in the treatment of diseases or conditions that respond to inhibition of gene expression or activity in a cell, tissue, or organism.

A double-stranded nucleic acid complex is a double-stranded nucleic acid complex including a first nucleic acid strand and a second nucleic acid strand bonded to each other, the second nucleic acid strand including a complementary region having a base sequence complementary to the first nucleic acid strand; the first nucleic acid strand including natural nucleosides and non-natural nucleosides; some of the nucleosides in at least one nucleic acid strand selected from the group consisting of the first nucleic acid strand and the second nucleic acid strand being bonded together by bonds including asymmetric phosphorus atoms; and absolute configurations of the asymmetric phosphorus atoms being regulated.

The present invention relates to antisense oligonucleotides that modulate the expression of and/or function of Tumor Protein 63 (p63), in particular, by targeting natural antisense polynucleotides of Tumor Protein 63 (p63). The invention also relates to the identification of these antisense oligonucleotides and their use in treating diseases and disorders associated with the expression of p63.

Provided herein are antisense oligonucleotides that can effectively prevent or decrease c-myc protein expression as well as decrease overall rates of cell proliferation in in vitro and mammalian in vivo models of cell proliferative disorders as well as methods for using the same.

Methods for inducing skipping of exons, including exon 51 of the dystrophin gene. Oligonucleotides are used for inducing exon skipping and for treating Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Disclosed structures include: (1) h51AON1 (SEQ ID NO: 27; UCAA GGAA GAUG GCAU UUCU), which is 20 bases long, (2) h51AON2 (SEQ ID NO: 28; CCUC UGUG AUUU UAUA ACUU GAU), which is 23 bases long, and (3) the combination of h51AON2 and h45AON5 linked by 10 uracils (i.e., SEQ ID NO: 28 (CCUC UGUG AUUU UAUA ACUU GAU) linked to SEQ ID NO: 16 (GCCC AAUG CCAU CCUG G) by UUUU UUUU UU), which combination is 50 bases long.

Disclosed herein are compounds, compositions and methods for modulating the expression of huntingtin in a cell, tissue or animal. Further provided are methods of slowing or preventing Huntington's Disease (HD) progression using an antisense compound targeted to huntingtin. Additionally provided are methods of delaying or preventing the onset of Huntington's Disease (HD) in an individual susceptible to Huntington's Disease (HD). Also provided are uses of disclosed compounds and compositions in the manufacture of a medicament for treatment of diseases and disorders.

An object of the present invention is to provide a compound, a method and a pharmaceutical composition for normalizing double homeobox 4 (DUX4) of an individual in which the DUX4 gene has abnormally expressed. Provided is a modified oligonucleotide consisting of 12-30 residues. The modified oligonucleotide includes a nucleobase sequence that includes at least 8 contiguous nucleobase sequences and is complementary to an equal length portion at positions 126-147, 232-248, 1306-1325 or 1472-1495 from a 5′ end of a nucleobase of a mature mRNA of DUX4 of SEQ ID NO: 1. The nucleobase sequence of the modified oligonucleotide has at least 90% complementarity to the equal length portion in the nucleobase sequence of the mature mRNA of DUX4 of SEQ ID NO: 1.

The invention provides a method for generating an oligonucleotide with which an exon may be skipped in a pre-mRNA and thus excluded from a produced mRNA thereof. Further provided are methods for altering the secondary structure or an mRNA to interfere with splicing processes and uses of the oligonucleotides and methods in the treatment of disease. Further provided are pharmaceutical compositions and methods and means for inducing skipping of several exons in a pre-mRNA.