atugen and Aventis to collaborate in identifying siRNA compounds with the potential for therapeutic development
Berlin. atugen AG announced that it has signed a collaboration agreement with Aventis to identify siRNA compounds with the potential for therapeutic development. It is planned to combine atugen's proprietary siRNA (short-interfering RNA) technology and expertise in gene silencing with Aventis' pharmacology expertise to inhibit pharmacologically relevant targets. atugen will use its stabilized siRNA compounds and delivery vehicles, which work through a promising, novel mode of action.
No financial details of the collaboration agreement are being disclosed.
siRNA is a new technology that directly interferes with mRNA function and has now become a standard tool for target discovery in vitro and holds promise as a new class of therapeutics. atugen has developed proprietary siRNA technology (atuRNAi) and delivery systems which have been successfully used in several animal models of disease.
"We are very pleased to be working with Aventis." said Dr. Klaus Giese, atugen´s Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President of Research. "Our recent development work has been focused on in vivo studies of our siRNA technology which includes not only our novel atuRNAi structures, but also a liposome-based solution to functionally deliver these molecules into cells in vivo. This research agreement is a recognition of atugen's recent advances in siRNA therapeutics."
atugen AG, www.atugen.com the RNAi Therapeutics Company, is a biopharmaceutical company with core competence in functional gene silencing. The company is based in Berlin, Germany and currently has about 40 employees. atugen pursues a dual business strategy comprising in-house drug development programs and a contract research business. atugen's therapeutic siRNA programs currently focus on in vivo applications in oncology, liver and skin diseases, exploiting its oligonucleotide delivery technologies and chemically-stabilized, proprietary siRNA structures (atuRNAi). The contract research business offers target validation and drug discovery to biopharma through research alliances and fee-for-service.
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