Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37981208›Full record

ArticleThe Journal of biological chemistry2023

Antisense oligonucleotides targeting the miR-29b binding site in the GRN mRNA increase progranulin translation.

Geetika Aggarwal, Subhashis Banerjee, Spencer A Jones, Yousri Benchaar, Jasmine Bélanger, Myriam Sévigny, Denise M Smith, Michael L Niehoff, Monica Pavlack, Ian Mitchelle S de Vera and 10 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Journal of biological chemistry, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. RNA therapeutics: current status and future directions.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2026
    Review
  2. The Versatile Applications of Antisense Oligonucleotides in Modern Medicine.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Review
  3. Review
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Review
  7. Article
  8. Chemical Modifications in Nucleic Acid Therapeutics.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2025
    Review
  9. Review
  10. Review
  11. Article
  12. Preclinical Interventions in Mouse Models of Frontotemporal Dementia Due to Progranulin Mutations.Neurotherapeutics : the journal of the American Society for Experimental NeuroTherapeutics · 2023
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

20 authors.

Geetika AggarwalDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Subhashis BanerjeeDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Spencer A JonesDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Yousri BenchaarDepartment of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, CERVO Brain Research Centre, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Jasmine BélangerDepartment of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, CERVO Brain Research Centre, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Myriam SévignyDepartment of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, CERVO Brain Research Centre, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Denise M SmithDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Michael L NiehoffDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Monica PavlackDepartment of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Ian Mitchelle S de VeraDepartment of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Terri L PetkauDepartment of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine & Therapeutics, B.C. Children's Hospital, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Blair R LeavittDepartment of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine & Therapeutics, B.C. Children's Hospital, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Center for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Karen LingIonis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, California, USA.
Paymaan Jafar-NejadIonis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, California, USA.
Frank RigoIonis Pharmaceuticals, Carlsbad, California, USA.
John E MorleyDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Susan A FarrDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Veterans Affairs Medical Center, St Louis, Missouri, USA.
Paul A DutchakDepartment of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, CERVO Brain Research Centre, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Chantelle F SephtonDepartment of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, CERVO Brain Research Centre, Laval University, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Andrew D NguyenDivision of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Saint Louis University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, USA; Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Saint Louis University, St Louis, Missouri, USA. Electronic address: andy.d.nguyen@health.slu.edu.

Funding

WU INSTITUTE OF CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCESUL1TR002345 · NCATS · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI William G. Powderly · 2017 to 2026
$97.8M
Antisense Oligonucleotides for Targeting Nonsense-mediated mRNA Decay in Frontotemporal DementiaR01AG064069 · NIA · SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY · PI NGUYEN, ANDREW D. · 2019 to 2023
$1.9M
Mapping Progranulin's Bioactivity: Implications for Disease and Potential TherapiesR00AG047339 · NIA · SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY · PI NGUYEN, ANDREW D. · 2018 to 2020
$728k
Mapping Progranulin's Bioactivity: Implications for Disease and Potential TherapiK99AG047339 · NIA · HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH · PI NGUYEN, ANDREW D. · 2014 to 2015
$257k
Antisense Oligonucleotides for Progranulin-deficient Frontotemporal DementiaR56AG064069 · NIA · SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY · PI NGUYEN, ANDREW D. · 2024 to 2024
$75k
NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR002345NIA NIH HHS K99 AG047339NIA NIH HHS R00 AG047339NIA NIH HHS R01 AG064069NIA NIH HHS R56 AG064069
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Heterozygous GRN (progranulin) mutations cause frontotemporal dementia (FTD) due to haploinsufficiency, and increasing progranulin levels is a major therapeutic goal. Several microRNAs, including miR-29b, negatively regulate progranulin protein levels. Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) are emerging as a promising therapeutic modality for neurological diseases, but strategies for increasing target protein levels are limited. Here, we tested the efficacy of ASOs as enhancers of progranulin expression by sterically blocking the miR-29b binding site in the 3' UTR of the human GRN mRNA. We found 16 ASOs that increase progranulin protein in a dose-dependent manner in neuroglioma cells. A subset of these ASOs also increased progranulin protein in iPSC-derived neurons and in a humanized GRN mouse model. In FRET-based assays, the ASOs effectively competed for miR-29b from binding to the GRN 3' UTR RNA. The ASOs increased levels of newly synthesized progranulin protein by increasing its translation, as revealed by polysome profiling. Together, our results demonstrate that ASOs can be used to effectively increase target protein levels by partially blocking miR binding sites. This ASO strategy may be therapeutically feasible for progranulin-deficient FTD as well as other conditions of haploinsufficiency.

Indexed as

Frontotemporal DementiaMicroRNAsOligonucleotides, AntisenseProgranulins3' Untranslated RegionsAnimalsBinding SitesHumansIntercellular Signaling Peptides and ProteinsMiceMutationRNA, Messenger3' Untranslated RegionsGRN protein, humanIntercellular Signaling Peptides and ProteinsMicroRNAsMIRN29a microRNA, humanOligonucleotides, AntisenseProgranulinsRNA, Messengerantisense oligonucleotidesfrontotemporal dementiahaploinsufficiencymicroRNAprogranulin

Identifiers

PMID37981208
PMCPMC10755782

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.