MARLBOROUGH, Mass., Feb. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ: RXII), a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing innovative therapies addressing major unmet medical needs using RNA-targeted technologies, today announced that it has been granted a patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for the delivery of double stranded siRNAs (21 to 23 nucleotides in length) across the blood-retina barrier (e.g. topical or systemic delivery) for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration or diabetic retinopathy. The patent, part of RXi's acquired OPKO estate, is scheduled to expire in 2023.
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"This patent, in combination with our issued sd-rxRNA® patents, expands the scope of our intellectual property position in the area of Ophthalmology," said Dr. Geert Cauwenbergh, President and CEO of RXi Pharmaceuticals. He added that, "Not only does this further contribute to the potential commercial and business development opportunities in the future, it is another step towards achieving our long term goals for the acquired OPKO patent estate. Moreover, it further demonstrates our firm commitment to the development of our core technology platform as the key builder of our corporate value".
About RXi Pharmaceuticals Intellectual Property Estate
RXi's intellectual property estate includes patents and patent applications related to chemistries, sequences, configurations, compounds, delivery technologies, and therapeutic targets. We believe these patents and patent applications define broad coverage for the development and commercialization of advanced RNAi therapeutics. In particular, they relate to novel and proprietary structural and chemical modifications patterns, used to introduce "drug-like" properties to rxRNA® compounds. Fundamental IP related to development of RXi's rxRNA compounds covers distinct structures with duplex length shorter than 15 bases, or longer than 25 bases in the context of advanced and diverse chemical modifications patterns. In 2013, RXi acquired the OPKO RNAi intellectual property estate. The OPKO RNAi estate includes 12 patent families and provides broad patent filings for siRNA compounds which target genes involved in angiogenesis, cancer, immune disorders and inflammatory diseases. Methods for siRNA delivery across the blood-brain and blood-retina barrier are also covered for therapeutic and diagnostic use.
About RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation
RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ: RXII) is a biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing innovative therapies based on its proprietary, self-delivering RNAi (sd-rxRNA®) platform. Therapeutics that use RNA interference, or "RNAi," have great promise because of their ability to down-regulate the expression of specific genes that may be over-expressed in disease conditions. Building on the pioneering work of scientific founder and Nobel Laureate Dr. Craig Mello, a member of the RXi Scientific Advisory Board, RXi's first RNAi product candidate, RXI‑109, a self-delivering RNAi compound (sd-rxRNA®), entered into human clinical trials in June 2012 and is currently being evaluated in Phase 2 clinical trials to reduce the formation of dermal scars (fibrosis). RXI-109 is designed to reduce the expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a critical regulator of biological pathways involved in fibrosis, including scar formation in the skin. RXi's sd‑rxRNA oligonucleotides are designed for therapeutic use and have drug-like properties, such as high potency, target specificity, serum stability, reduced immune response activation, and efficient cellular uptake. These hybrid oligonucleotide molecules combine the beneficial properties of conventional RNAi and antisense technologies. This allows sd‑rxRNAs to achieve efficient cellular uptake and potent, long-lasting intracellular activity. For more information, please visit www.rxipharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements about future expectations, planned and future development of RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation's products, technologies and partnerships. Forward-looking statements about expectations and development plans of RXi's products and partnerships involve significant risks and uncertainties such as: the risk that we may not be able to successfully develop our candidates, or that development of RNAi-based therapeutics may be delayed or not proceed as planned, or that we may not develop any RNAi-based products; risks that the development process for our product candidates may be delayed, risks related to the development and commercialization of products by our competitors, the risk related to our ability to control the timing and terms of collaborations with third parties, the possibility that other companies or organizations may assert patent rights preventing us from developing our products, and risks related to the actual usage or realization of anticipated benefits of the sales of our common stock pursuant to the purchase agreement with Lincoln Park Capital Fund, LLC. Actual results may differ from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements. RXi does not undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect a change in its views, events or circumstances that occur after the date of this release.
Contact
RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation
Tamara McGrillen
508-929-3646
tmcgrillen@rxipharma.com
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SOURCE RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation