Oligonucleotides News and Research

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Oligonucleotides are short sequences of nucleotides (RNA or DNA), typically with twenty or fewer bases. Automated synthesizers allow the synthesis of oligonucleotides up to 160 to 200 bases.

Wyeth and Santaris Pharma to collaborate on RNA-based medicines

Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth, and Santaris Pharma have announced that the companies have entered into a worldwide strategic alliance to discover, develop and commercialize new medicines based on Santaris Pharma's proprietary Locked Nucleic Acid (LNA) drug platform, which allows specific targeting and regulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) and messenger RNAs (mRNAs) as a means to affect gene expression mediated by the targeted RNAs.

12 Jan 2009

Patient-derived induced stem cells retain disease traits

The dying cells - the same type lost in patients with the devastating neurological disease spinal muscular atrophy - confirmed that the University of Wisconsin-Madison stem cell biologist had recreated the hallmarks of a genetic disorder in the lab, using stem cells derived from a patient.

22 Dec 2008

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals update on Kreutzer-Limmer patent estate

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that the European Patent Office (EPO) has ruled in favor of the Appellants in oral proceedings before the Board of Appeals related to the '623 (EP 1144623) patent in its Kreutzer-Limmer patent estate.

10 Dec 2008

Roche NimbleGen launches microarrays for analysis of DNA copy number variation

Roche NimbleGen, Inc. has launched NimbleGen Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) microarrays in a 12x135K format for analysis of DNA copy number variation.

19 Nov 2008

Santaris Pharma releases positive data on LNA-based survivin inhibitor

Santaris Pharma announced today that SPC3042, a RNA-based antisense oligonucleotide developed using the company's proprietary Locked Nucleic Acid (LNA) technology, potently blocks survivin, a key survival protein in cancer cells, in both in vitro and in vivo models of prostate cancer. Importantly, SPC3042 works synergistically with the anticancer drug paclitaxel (Taxol) in both model systems.

10 Nov 2008

An inflamed response

Paul Martin, Professor of Cell Biology in the University of Bristol Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology, and Biochemistry, talked to Cherry Lewis about the discovery made in his lab that speeds up wound healing and reduces the size of the wound scar. She was interested not only in the discovery itself, but also in the processes and years of research that led up to it.

15 Jul 2008

Nanoparticles detect telomerase activity

Telomerase, an enzyme that prevents chromosomes from shortening when they divide, is widely suspected of playing a key role in making cancer cells immortal.

9 Jul 2008

Electrostatic-based RNA assays technique could revolutionize medical diagnostics

The dream of personalized medicine - in which diagnostics, risk predictions and treatment decisions are based on a patient's genetic profile - may be on the verge of being expanded beyond the wealthiest of nations with state-of-the-art clinics.

30 Jun 2008

Nanoparticle delivers antisense agent to tumors

A multifunctional drug delivery system consisting of a lipid-based nanoparticle, a standard anticancer drug, and a short nucleic acid designed to augment the activity of that drug has demonstrated the ability to treat drug-resistant tumor cells.

15 Jun 2008

Profoundly important discovery of differences in heart's precursor cells

Scientists have long thought that the cells that ultimately give rise to the heart all respond to the same cue before turning into the muscle tissue of this vital organ.

15 Apr 2008

New potential approach to treat spinal muscular atrophy

In the neuromuscular disease called spinal muscular atrophy, or SMA, a protein deficiency caused by a single gene mutation leads to serious damage in growing nerve cells and the muscles they control.

7 Apr 2008

PharmAthene signs agreement to acquire biodefense vaccines business from Avecia

PharmAthene, Inc., a biodefense company specializing in the development and commercialization of medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, and Avecia Biologics Limited, a contract manufacturer of biopharmaceuticals, has announced that the companies have entered into a definitive sale and purchase agreement under which PharmAthene will acquire all of the assets and intellectual property related to Avecia's biodefense vaccines business.

24 Mar 2008

Deadly genetic disease prevented before birth in zebrafish with genetic patch

By injecting a customized "genetic patch" into early stage fish embryos, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis were able to correct a genetic mutation so the embryos developed normally.

24 Mar 2008

Potential method for repairing misspelling in DNA code that causes spinal muscular atrophy

Researchers at the University of Delaware have discovered a novel technique - that acts like a "spell-checker" for correcting a misspelling in the DNA code - to repair the defective gene that causes spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

12 Feb 2008

ClC-1 helps mice get a move on

In addition to the progressive muscle weakness and degeneration common to all forms of muscular dystrophy, patients with the most common form of muscular dystrophy affecting adults, myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1), also experience an inability to voluntarily relax the muscles (a problem known as myotonia).

16 Nov 2007

New target for Hepatocellular carcinoma therapy

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major health problem worldwide. Currently, the only chance for obtaining a cure in patients with HCC is by either a surgical resection or liver transplantation.

25 Oct 2007

Affymetrix files more patent infringements against Illumina in U.S. and Europe

Affymetrix Inc. has announced that it has filed additional patent infringement lawsuits against Illumina Inc. in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, in the U.K. High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, Patents Court and in the German, Düsseldorf Regional Court, Patent Division. Affymetrix is seeking all available remedies, including injunctive relief.

From Illumina, Inc. 24 Oct 2007

Microarray-based genomic selection accelerates discovery of subtle DNA variations

A new technology developed by scientists at Emory University will allow researchers to more easily discover subtle and overlooked genetic variations that may have serious consequences for health and disease.

15 Oct 2007

Isis Pharmaceuticals awarded $1.5 million NIH grant to improve RNAi-based therapeutics

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that it has been awarded a multi-year Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for up to $1.5 million to design oligonucleotide drugs that can exploit the RNA interference (RNAi) antisense mechanism for disease treatment.

4 Oct 2007

eIF4E-specific anti-sense oligonucleotides knock down cancer

A new study by Jeremy Graff and colleagues from Eli Lilly and Company has demonstrated the anti-cancer effect of a new therapeutic in a mouse model of human tumors and has spawned clinical trials to test the ability of this therapeutic to treat human cancers.

5 Sep 2007