Viltolarsen (NS-065/NCNP-01) is a phosphorodiamidate morpholino antisense oligonucleotide that specifically targets the splicing of exon 53 in the dystrophin gene. It is utilized in research related to Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is one of the most common lethal muscle-wasting disorders affecting young boys caused by mutations in the DMD gene. Exon skipping has emerged as a promising therapy for DMD. Antisense oligonucleotides (AONs) are designed to induce the skipping of exon(s), in order to restore the reading frame, and therefore, allow for dystrophin expression[1].