In siRNA interference experiments, the phenomenon that the target gene mRNA level decreases but the protein expression does not decrease synchronously may be caused by the following mechanisms:

• Spatiotemporal separation characteristics of eukaryotic gene expression

Due to the spatiotemporal decoupling of transcription and translation, the effect of mRNA degradation may be delayed. If the detection time point is too early, the synthesized protein has not yet completed turnover, and its level may still remain stable. It is recommended to extend the detection time window to match the protein turnover cycle.

• Incomplete coupling of mRNA degradation and translation process

Some mRNAs in the cell may be in an inactivated translation reserve state, and their degradation may not immediately affect protein synthesis. When the amount of transcript degradation does not exceed the effective reserve of the translation pool, the protein level may not change significantly.

• Diversity of gene transcripts

If the target gene has multiple functional transcripts, and siRNA only targets one of them, the other uninterrupted transcripts can still maintain protein expression, resulting in no decrease in the overall protein level.

• Potentially complex regulatory networks

It may also involve unknown mechanisms such as post-translational modification, protein stability regulation or compensatory expression, which need to be further verified by combining protein half-life analysis and multi-time point detection.

The answer to this question comes from MedChemExpress (MCE) Technical Support.

How to contact us?

Tel: 609-228-6898

Fax: 609-228-5909

E-mail: [email protected]

Technical Support: [email protected]

Address: 1 Deer Park Dr, Suite F, Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852, USA