18 Nov 2008 07:00
United States Patent and Trademark Office grants Silence Therapeutics' Core
RNAi Patent
London - 18 November 2008 - Silence Therapeutics plc (AIM: SLN), the leading European biopharmaceutical company focused on RNA interference, today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted the Company`s core RNAi patent application.
The Patent Office issued US Patent Number 7,452,987, "Interfering RNA Molecules," which covers stabilized, small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules with defined positional modifications. The claims cover siRNA molecules that are "blunt-ended," as well as molecules with one or more "overhangs", and specifically cover Silence Therapeutics' proprietary siRNA molecules, known as "AtuRNAi".
Iain Ross, Chief Executive Officer of Silence Therapeutics, said: "This is exciting news for Silence. As we prepare for clinical trials of our lead compound, Atu027, in 2009, our partners and investors can be confident that Silence's AtuRNAi technology and proprietary siRNA molecules is patent-protected in the United States, the largest pharmaceutical market in the world. This is a significant step towards our goal of becoming one of the world leaders in developing RNAi therapeutics."
Silence has already obtained a patent for its AtuRNAi intellectual property in Europe.
Silence considers its AtuRNAi to be the best-in-class siRNA molecules with important advantages over conventional siRNA molecules, including increased stability against nuclease degradation and an increased serum half-life, while retaining therapeutic activity. AtuRNAi molecules form the basis of Silence's therapeutic research and development collaboration with AstraZeneca, as well as the Company's license and collaboration agreements with Quark Pharmaceuticals Inc. In addition, Silence is developing an internal, proprietary pipeline of systemically delivered AtuRNAi molecules that are initially focused on oncology indications.
Silence's intellectual property portfolio includes patents and patent applications covering essential chemical modification to stabilize siRNA molecules in vitro and in vivo, as well as systemic siRNA delivery systems. These include AtuPLEX, Silence's proprietary systemic delivery platform that enables the functional delivery of novel siRNA therapeutic molecules to targeted tissues and cells.
- Ends - Enquiries:
For further information, please contact the following:
Silence Therapeutics plc Powerscourt +44(0)20 7307 1620 +44(0)20 7250 1446 Iain Ross, Chairman & CEO Paul Durman Melvyn Davies, Finance Director Kay Larsen Nominated Advisers Nomura Code Securities Limited +44(0)20 7776 1200 Chris Collins Notes to Editors:
About Silence Therapeutics plc (www.silence-therapeutics.com)
Silence Therapeutics plc (AIM: SLN) is a leading European RNAi focused biotechnology company.
RNA interference (RNAi) is a Nobel Prize winning technology and one of the most exciting areas of drug discovery today. It represents a completely new approach to selectively 'silence' or inactivate disease relevant genes and as such it has the potential to create a new class of therapeutic products. RNAi could therefore offer a therapeutic approach to a broad range of diseases (cancer, infectious diseases, inherited diseases), many of which have been regarded as incurable and are not addressed by current therapeutics, therefore providing a large market opportunity.
Silence Therapeutics has developed a platform of novel short interfering RNA ('siRNA') molecules, AtuRNAi, which provide a number of advantages over conventional siRNA molecules, including increased stability against nuclease degradation. In addition, the Company has developed a proprietary systemic delivery platform, AtuPLEX. This platform enables the functional delivery of siRNA molecules to targeted diseased tissues and cells, while increasing their bioavailability and intracellular uptake.
Following the granting of its patents in Europe, Australia and the USA, Silence Therapeutics is one of only two companies worldwide with a proprietary position on composition of matter for siRNA therapeutics.
Silence's lead internal product, Atu027, is a proprietary AtuRNAi molecule in preclinical development for systemic cancer indications. Atu027 has successfully completed single and repeat dose toxicology and geno-toxicology studies, as well as a 28-day toxicology study using multiple dosing regimens. Silence plans a regulatory filing in 2008 to commence clinical trials for Atu027.
In March 2008 Silence Therapeutics announced a collaboration with AstraZeneca focused on the development of a range of novel delivery approaches for siRNA molecules. Under the terms of the agreement both Silence Therapeutics and AstraZeneca will be allowed to commercialize the truly novel delivery systems that the two partners develop together.
Silence Therapeutics has granted a licence to AstraZeneca to develop novel AtuRNAi therapeutics against five specific targets, including those in respiratory indications. This collaboration was the first industry validation of the potential application of Silence Therapeutics' proprietary AtuRNAi molecules and solidified the Company's leadership position in field of RNAi therapeutics.
The Company's AtuRNAi technology also has been sublicensed to Pfizer via Quark's license to them of the compound RTP-801i-14 for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and a number of other indications. This compound entered a phase II clinical study in July 2008. Silence Therapeutics also has licensed to Quark rights to the AtuRNAi structure for Quark's proprietary compound, AKIi-5, which is in a Phase I human clinical study for treatment of acute kidney injury.
Silence Therapeutics is based in London, UK, and Berlin, Germany, and is listed on AIM.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those referred to in the forward-looking statements. All forward--looking statements are based on information currently available to Silence Therapeutics and Silence Therapeutics assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements.
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