Alnylam Granted Broad European Patent Covering Compositions, Methods and Uses for RNAi Therapeutics
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that the European Patent Office has granted Alnylam a new patent (EP Patent No. 1214945) with broad claims covering short interfering RNAs (siRNAs), the molecules that mediate RNA interference (RNAi). The new patent significantly extends the claims of the original Kreutzer-Limmer patent, a pioneering patent in the RNAi field, which Alnylam acquired in the July 2003 merger with Ribopharma AG. The claims of the newly granted patent cover therapeutic compositions, methods, and uses of siRNAs and derivatives with a length between 15 and 49 nucleotides.
The newly granted patent includes 84 claims on siRNAs with a length between 15 and 49 nucleotides, a length that is a critical feature for siRNAs to be used in mammalian systems for harnessing the endogenous RNAi mechanism. These new claims support and extend the claims of the original Kreutzer-Limmer patent (EP Patent No. 1144623) covering siRNAs having a sequence complementary to a target gene of up to 25 nucleotides in length. In addition to the Kreutzer-Limmer patent, Alnylam's intellectual property leadership is comprised of multiple fundamental issued patents and pending patent applications in the RNAi field, including those of Crooke (US Patent No.'s 5,898,031 and 6,107,094), Fire and Mello (US Patent No. 6,506,559), Glover et al. (AU Patent No. 774285), Tuschl et al. ("Tuschl 1" and "Tuschl 2"), and others.
Other news from the department research and development
Get the life science industry in your inbox
From now on, don't miss a thing: Our newsletter for biotechnology, pharma and life sciences brings you up to date every Tuesday and Thursday. The latest industry news, product highlights and innovations - compact and easy to understand in your inbox. Researched by us so you don't have to.
