Pharma Marketletter , 02/21/2005
Altana and Atugen renew target validation accord.(pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
COPYRIGHT 2005 Marketletter Publications Ltd.
Atugen AG says that it has renewed its non-exclusive target validation and license agreement with fellow German company Altana Pharma, for another year. The deal gives Altana the right to have molecular targets validated by Atugen's discovery team, utilizing a number of proprietary knockdown tools and transfection technologies. Under the accord, Altana also receives a license to use Atugen's gene-silencing and oligonucleotide-delivery technologies. The license was first granted in August 2001 and Altana has paid Atugen several research milestones. Atugen explains that it uses a unique target validation approach where both siRNA molecules and a third generation antisense technology (GeneBloc) are employed in parallel. This approach, called CrossValidation, is designed to exclude artifacts and non-specific effects that could arise if either technology were applied alone. The GeneBloc technology is, in contrast to other antisense technologies, extremely potent and devoid!
of toxicity, accordingto the firm. Furthermore, Atugen says it possesses a set of proprietary liposomal transfection reagents that is custom-tailored to individual cell lines and minimizes toxicity while obtaining high transfection rates.
Atugen's gene-silencing technologies are employed in in vitro and in vivo target validation and the company has a program to develop siRNA therapeutics.
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