Anti-sense oligodeoxynucleotides--promises and pitfalls.

The high specificity of binding of oligodeoxynucleotides to their target mRNA has resulted in suggestions that these compounds may be useful as therapeutic agents against human cancer. While many successful anti-sense experiments have been reported in the literature, significant obstacles to widespread therapeutic use remain. These include nuclease sensitivity, non-sequence specificity, and uncertainties regarding optimum choice of mRNA target. Other significant problems include lack of information concerning cellular pharmacology and pharmacokinetics, and relatively little data concerning optimum dosing schedules. This review attempts to provide current information about these issues, which have such a strong impact on this exciting and rapidly growing field.