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Gene therapy suggests a promising approach to treat genetic diseases by applying genes as pharmaceuticals. Cancer is a complex disease, which strongly depends on a particular genetic make-up and hence can be treated with gene therapy. From about 2,000 clinical trials carried out so far, more than 60% were cancer targeted. Development of precise and effective gene therapy approaches is intimately connected with achievements in the molecular biology techniques. The field of gene therapy was recently revolutionized by the introduction of “programmable” nucleases, including ZFNs, TALENs, and CRISPR, which target specific genomic loci with high efficacy and precision. Furthermore, when combined with DNA transposons for the delivery purposes into cells, these programmable nucleases represent a promising alternative to the conventional viral-mediated gene delivery. In addition to “programmable” nucleases, a new class of TALE- and CRISPR-based “artificial transcription effectors” has been developed to mediate precise regulation of specific genes. In sum, these new molecular tools may be used in a wide plethora of gene therapy strategies. This review highlights the current status of novel genome editing tools and discusses their suitability and perspectives in respect to cancer gene therapy studies.

The present paper deals with the electrochemical behavior of magnetite microcrystals in an acid medium. A voltammetric method employing a carbon-paste electroactive electrode (CPEE) with an organic binder was used. It was found that the cathodic voltammograms, which were recorded at different scan rates, formed a set bounded in the space of i– E parameters by a “generalizing” voltammetric curve corresponding to the “effective” potential scan rate ? eff. In other words, all curves are situated under one enveloping curve, just as the smaller dolls sit in the largest doll of a “Russian doll”. “Reverse” currents (a cathodic current in the anodic direction of the potential scan) were observed on the cyclic voltammogram. Forward and reverse currents obey the same laws and have one and the same “generalizing” curve, which could be taken as the magnetite characteristic.