Patent ID: 7067643

Claim:
A composition, comprising a) a target nucleic acid, said target nucleic acid comprising a first region and a second region, said second region downstream of said first region; b) a first oligonucleotide comprising a 3′ portion and a 5′ portion; c) a second oligonucleotide; and d) a third oligonucleotide comprising a hairpin structure comprising a duplex region and a single-stranded region; wherein at least said 3′ portion of said first oligonucleotide is complementary to said first region of said target nucleic acid, wherein at least a portion of said second oligonucleotide is complementary to said second region of said target nucleic acid, and wherein said 5′ portion of said first oligonucleotide is complementary to at least a portion of said third oligonucleotide.