FN1 and diabetic retinopathy: Therefore in this study, we investigated the in vivo efficacy of FN-siRNA as a long-term modulatory strategy by assessing its safety and tolerability; its localization in targeted retinal vascular cells; its ability to reduce specific gene (FN) expression on a long-term basis in retinal vascular cells; and its ability to prevent the development of acellular capillaries and pericyte loss in diabetic rats, two prominent vascular lesions characteristic of diabetic retinopathy.