The present invention relates to an ecPNA having the general structure:H2N—X—B—Y—COOHand uses thereof, wherein X is A or C and Y is A or C with the proviso that when X is A, Y is C, and when X is C, Y is A A represents an oligopeptide structure, the sequence of which comprises a sequence which renders the compound able to enter the nucleus of a cell B represents a peptide nucleic acid (PNA) structure at least 12 nucleotides in length, the sequence of which is capable of hybridizing with a DNA within the nucleus of the cell, which DNA is within a promoter region of a gene C represents an oligopeptide structure and each — represents a chemical linkage between the structures at each side thereof, which may be the same as or different from each other such linkage. The ecPNAs provided herein can upregulate or repress gene transcription and are useful for treating diseases requiring changes in transcription and for induction of inducible pluripotent stem (iPS) cells.
