LONDON, Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ — Silence Therapeutics plc (AIM:
SLN) (“Silence” or the “Company”) announces the issuance of two new
patents by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
which are broadly directed to double-stranded short interfering RNA
(siRNA) sequences against the validated cancer targets epidermal
growth factor receptor related protein (EGFR-RP) and vascular
endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR1). EGFR-RP and
VEGFR1 have been demonstrated to play key roles in the underlying
causes of various cancers including abnormal angiogenesis and
uncontrolled cell division. Similar to vascular endothelial
growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2), VEGFR1 also is implicated in the
development and progression of age-related macular degeneration
(AMD) and other serious ocular diseases. The EGFR-RP patent
is broadly directed to methods of reducing EGFR-RP with a DNA or
RNA molecule, including siRNA molecules. The sequence covered
by the VEGFR1 patent is a potent 25mer siRNA, demonstrating
Silence’s continued ability to secure meaningful intellectual
property protection for its portfolio of 25mer sequences.
“The past several months have seen Silence add a number of
high-value patents to its broad RNAi intellectual property
portfolio. Whereas many of these recent issuances have
focused on the structural modification of RNAi therapeutics to
improve efficacy, today’s announcement underscores our efforts to
concurrently build critical protection in the equally important
areas of siRNA sequences and siRNA delivery,” said Philip Haworth,
Ph.D., chief executive officer of Silence Therapeutics. “We
are particularly pleased that we have been able to secure an
additional patent covering 25mer siRNA sequences, validating our
belief that we can build a portfolio of proprietary 25mer siRNA
sequences that will provide us an added level of protection in the
RNAi space. Furthermore, the breadth of the issued EGFR-RP
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