Patent ID: 7935811

Claim:
A reverse transfection apparatus for introducing siRNA into a cell to effect gene silencing, the apparatus comprising: a well plate having a well for transfecting cells, the well plate being provided in a sealed, sterile package such that the well plate is storable for an extended period of time at a temperature of up to at least 37° C. while maintaining functionality of an siRNA deposited therein, wherein the well is substantially devoid of a cationic polynucleotide carrier selected from the group consisting of lipids, polymers, lipo-polymers, lipid-peptide mixtures, and combinations thereof; and a substantially dry gene silencing composition in the well, the gene silencing composition having at least a first siRNA which silences at least a first target gene, the gene silencing composition being substantially devoid of a cationic polynucleotide carrier selected from the group consisting of lipids, polymers, lipo-polymers, lipid-peptide mixtures, and combinations thereof such that the at least first siRNA in the substantially dry gene silencing composition is capable of being solubilized or suspended in an aqueous medium in an amount sufficient for transfecting cells in the well, the at least first siRNA comprising: a sense strand having 2′-O-methyl modifications on the first and second 5′ nucleotides; and an antisense strand having a 2′-O-methyl modification on the second 5′ nucleotide and a 5′ end phosphate; wherein the sense region and the antisense region are capable of forming a duplex of 18-26 base pairs of nucleotides that has at least 80% complementarity over the range of the duplex, and wherein nucleotides of the sense strand and antisense strand other than the first 5′ sense nucleotide, the second 5′ sense nucleotide, and the second 5′ antisense nucleotide are a 2′OH.