23 July 2008 – Silence Therapeutics plc (AIM: SLN), a leading European RNAi focused biotechnology company, announces new intellectual property cover for its lead product, Atu027. The European Patent Office announced on July 17, 2008 that it intends to grant a European patent covering Silence’s lead internal product candidate. This patent will give Silence broad exclusivity not only for Atu027, but for any siRNA targeting protein kinase N betaThe notice is based on European patent application EP 03 790 894.4. The claims deemed allowable by the European Patent Office are directed to various aspects of the use of protein kinase N beta, the gene target of Atu027. Among others, the claims are related to any siRNA molecule, including Atu027, directed against protein kinase N beta for use in the treatment of numerous cancers involving the PI 3-kinase pathway. Other claims are related to the use of protein kinase N beta for screening purposes and its use as a downstream target of the PI3-kinase pathway.
Atu027 is a proprietary AtuRNAi molecule currently in development for solid cancer indications, including gastrointestinal and lung cancers. The candidate is designed to silence the function of a novel kinase protein involved in tumour growth and metastases and utilises Silence Therapeutics’s proprietary drug delivery system AtuPLEX to deliver active drug into the appropriate cells following systemic administration... Silence Therapeutics' Press Release -
