Patent ID: 8778902

Claim:
A method of cleaving a target mRNA in a cell or an organism in vivo, comprising contacting said cell or organism in vivo with an isolated, non-enzymatically processed double-stranded RNA molecule under conditions in which cleavage of said target mRNA can occur, wherein said double-stranded RNA molecule: a) has a sense strand and an antisense strand; b) consists of two strands which are each 19-25 nucleotides in length; c) consists of a single double stranded region and one or two single stranded regions of 1 to 5 nucleotides each at the 3′ ends of the strands of said double-stranded molecule; and d) a strand of said double-stranded RNA molecule has an identity of at least 85% to said target mRNA in said single double stranded region, wherein said double-stranded RNA molecule is administered to said cell or organism by local injection.