Dharmacon, Inc., the leading global supplier of innovative RNA and RNA-interference (RNAi) research products, today announced an agreement with Exelixis, Inc. (Nasdaq:EXEL), a leading genomics-based drug discovery company, to develop a short interfering RNA (siRNA) library for approximately 600 proprietary and publicly available genes for kinases and other high priority drug discovery targets. The library is being developed using Dharmacon's proprietary SMARTselection™ and SMARTpool™ technology platform and manufactured using its 2'-ACE® RNA synthesis chemistry. Exelixis and Dharmacon will apply their strong bioinformatics capabilities to develop the siRNA library. Exelixis plans to use the resulting siRNA reagents for high throughput functional genomic studies designed to characterize drug targets and pathways in mammalian model systems, and Dharmacon will offer siRNA research tools for the publicly available genes to its large base of customers.
RNAi is a powerful new tool of biomedical research that uses siRNA segments to turn off, or silence, the expression of specific genes targeted for study and then assesses the impact on a cell or an entire organism. Dharmacon's technology overcomes difficulties that have been associated with RNAi by using proprietary algorithms to select the best siRNA sequences for each application, eliminating the need for time-consuming and costly trial and error and then pooling candidates for guaranteed gene silencing. Together these proprietary SMARTselection and SMARTpool technologies create potent and specific gene silencing agents that can accelerate critical investigations across a broad range of biomedical and biological research.
"This collaborative effort with a sophisticated drug discovery innovator like Exelixis reinforces the broad utility and outstanding characteristics of our proprietary SMARTselection and SMARTpool technologies for siRNA research," said William S. Marshall, Ph.D., executive vice president research and production at Dharmacon. "Our state-of-the-art synthetic chemistries and breakthrough SMARTselection and SMARTpool technologies uniquely enable RNAi studies to be conducted efficiently and cost effectively using high throughput approaches. By routinely achieving unparalleled levels of gene silencing with a very high probability of success, we can help accelerate and enhance the drug discovery capabilities of our customers."
"We believe that Dharmacon's technology will provide robust and reliable gene silencing in mammalian cells, thereby contributing to many aspects of our drug discovery efforts," said Greg Plowman, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president of research at Exelixis. "We look forward to collaborating with Dharmacon on this exciting project."
Under the terms of the agreement, Dharmacon and Exelixis will collaborate to develop siRNA reagents for the library. Dharmacon retains rights to the siRNA reagents developed under the agreement using publicly available genes. Dharmacon plans to make the siRNA reagents from this public gene library commercially available to other customers as they are developed. The companies expect the siRNA library to be completed during the third quarter of 2003. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
About Dharmacon
Dharmacon, Inc. is the world's leading provider of innovative RNA, RNA-interference (RNAi) research products and related technologies to the life sciences industry. Founded in 1995, Dharmacon discovered and commercialized 2'-ACE®, a novel, highly productive chemical strategy for RNA synthesis. Using its core expertise in chemistry, biology, bioinformatics, and production, Dharmacon has pioneered a custom small interfering RNA (siRNA) design service that employs its proprietary SMARTselection™ and SMARTpool™ algorithms for maximizing the efficiency of gene silencing, a powerful and increasingly widely used new technology based on siRNA. The company provides the most reliable and highest quality RNA oligonucleotides and other custom RNA modification options that leverage Dharmacon's proprietary chemistries. Dharmacon also offers amidites, synthesizers, and reagents for in-house synthesis, providing a total solution for RNAi researchers. Dharmacon is based in Lafayette, Colorado. For more information, please visit the company's web site at www.dharmacon.com.