Tekmira Pharmaceuticals has inked an exclusive, global license and partnership deal with Halo-Bio RNAi Therapeutics for its innovative and proprietary RNAi technology known as multivalent RNA (MV-RNA) to develop MV-RNA molecules and therapeutic products by coupling Tekmira's lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technology and MV-RNA molecules.
In Tekmira's LNP technology, formerly known as stable nucleic acid-lipid particles or SNALP, RNA molecules are efficiently encapsulated in homogeneous lipid nanoparticles that are efficient in supplying RNAi therapeutics to disease spots in several preclinical models.
Tekmira uses an intense, expandable and highly reproducible method for the production of LNP formulations. FDA’s various divisions reviewed the company’s various LNP-based products for utilization in clinical trials. LNP formulations have various lipid components, which can be modified to suit the particular application.
The MV-RNA technology of Halo-Bio RNAi Therapeutics has individual macromolecules capable of delivering RNAi at various specific target spots. MV-RNA can aim at three sites on an individual gene or a maximum three separate genes concurrently. Tekmira has showed multi-gene knockdown utilizing MV-RNA facilitated by proprietary LNP formulations.
According to the President and Chief Executive Officer at Tekmira, Dr. Mark J. Murray, the agreement allows Tekmira to have the pioneering RNAi delivery technology and the right to use various RNA payload technologies to design RNAi therapeutic drugs. The company considers that it can speed up the MV-RNA technology development by using its experience and knowledge in LNP delivery and its extensive knowledge in therapeutic RNA payload design, he said.
Source: http://www.tekmirapharm.com