International journal of urology : official journal of the Japanese Urological Association
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The objective of this study was to review our experience in the development of antisense (AS) oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN) therapy for prostate cancer targeting antiapoptotic gene, clusterin. ⋯ The data described above identified clusterin as an antiapoptotic gene up-regulated in an adaptive cell survival manner following various cell death triggers that helps confer a phenotype resistant to therapeutic stimuli. Inhibition of clusterin expression using AS ODN technology enhances apoptosis induced by several conventional treatments, resulting in the delay of AI progression and improved survival. Clinical trials using AS ODN confirm potent suppression of clusterin expression and phase II studies will begin in early 2005.