Dual-specificity interaction of HIV-1 TAR RNA with Tat peptide-oligonucleotide conjugates

An oligonucleotide-peptide conjugate, having dual binding capability for a designated RNA, was designed. The peptide portion of the conjugate interacts with a folded domain in the RNA, whereas the oligonucleotide portion hybridizes with a nearby single-stranded region in the RNA. The dual specificity was proven in a model HIV-1 TAR RNA system using an RNase H cleavage assay to assess antisense binding to this RNA. The peptide portion of the conjugate was shown to confer increased specificity on the oligonucleotide.