- OliX Pharmaceuticals to accelerate the development of effective targeted therapy for liver diseases using AM Chemical’s GalNAc-conjugation technology
SUWON, Republic of Korea, March 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OliX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (KOSDAQ: 226950), a leading developer of RNAi therapeutics, today announced that the Company has signed an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with AM Chemicals (AMC) for the rights to patents and know-how encompassing the technology to conjugate N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) to OliX' asymmetric small interfering RNA (asiRNA) molecules for liver targeting.
Under the agreement, AMC will supply a selection of GalNAc-modified phosphoramidites and solid supports to OliX Pharmaceuticals. AMC will also provide support for RNA synthesis, for which AMC is entitled to receive upfront milestone and royalty payments.
Small interfering RNA (siRNA) is a short, double-stranded RNA molecule that silences expression of genes with sequence complementarity based upon a RNA interference (RNAi) mechanism. Since the FDA-approval of the first siRNA therapeutics, Patisiran, in 2018, a number of siRNA therapeutic candidates are currently in various stages of development across multiple disease indications. Targeted delivery of siRNAs to hepatocytes has been achieved by direct conjugation of GalNAc moiety, for receptor-mediated endocytosis via the asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR) that is primarily expressed on the surface of hepatocytes, allowing inhibition of disease-causing genes in the liver. Recently, FDA approved Givosiran, the GalNAc-conjugated siRNA for acute hepatic porphyria.
"We are excited to employ AMC's GalNAc conjugate technology," said Dong Ki Lee, Ph.D., founder and Chief Executive Officer of OliX. "Liver-targeting strategy using GalNAc conjugation has become the standard in the RNAi industry. We believe that the combination of AMC's GalNAc-linker technology with OliX' proprietary asymmetric siRNA (asiRNA) will greatly accelerate the development of effective targeted therapy for various liver diseases with high unmet medical needs."
"We are pleased to be entering into this partnership with OliX Pharmaceuticals," said Andrei Guzaev, President and Chief Scientific Officer of AMC. "OliX Pharmaceuticals, with its demonstrated leadership in the field of RNAi technology, is an ideal partner for extending the application of AM Chemical’s GalNAc-modified phosphoramidites in the pharmaceutical industry. We look forward to working closely with OliX Pharmaceuticals."
About OliX Pharmaceuticals
OliX Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage pharmaceutical company developing therapeutics against a variety of disorders by down-regulating expression of disease-causing genes, based on its own proprietary RNAi technology. The Company’s core RNAi platform, asymmetric siRNA (asiRNA), is a unique gene silencing technology based on RNA interference (RNAi), which is considered as the most efficient gene silencing technology. Based on asiRNA technology, OliX has developed cell penetrating asiRNA (cp-asiRNA), a therapeutic RNAi platform to effectively target locally administrable diseases, such as hypertrophic scar, dry and wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), subretinal fibrosis, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and neuropathic pain. OliX has also developed another therapeutic RNAi platform, GalNAc-asiRNA, to target a variety of liver diseases. Learn more: https://www.olixpharma.com/eng/main/main.php
About AM Chemicals
AM Chemicals LLC is a developer and manufacturer of high quality solid supports, specialty phosphoramidites, and ancillary reagents for oligonucleotide synthesis. AMC offers uniquely designed products in sizes from gram-scale to semi-bulk and bulk production quantities of catalog items. AMC conducts extensive research on novel reagents for oligonucleotide synthesis. The most recent addition to the AMC’s IP portfolio is a novel family of non-nucleosidic phosphoramidites and solid supports for targeted cellular uptake of oligonucleotides. For more information on AMC’s product offering and services, please visit www.amchemicals.com.
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