CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Nov. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Archemix Corp., the aptamer therapeutics company, announced today that it has granted Ribomic Inc. a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-bearing license for the use of an IgG aptamer for affinity purification uses. Detailed financial terms were not disclosed, but include upfront and milestone payments, and royalties on sales of any products covered by the licensing agreement.
“Archemix is dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of therapeutic aptamers. However, the aptamer technology is broadly applicable to additional applications outside our core strategic interests,” said Dr. Errol De Souza, President and Chief Executive Officer of Archemix. “Our license to Ribomic exemplifies our efforts to provide broad access to our aptamer intellectual property estate to companies working in areas outside of our business focus. Agreements with companies such as Ribomic are an important part of our overall strategy to create shareholder value by leveraging our intellectual property portfolio in aptamers through collaborations.”
“Ribomic recognizes the value of the antibody purification market and is looking to use aptamers to capture a significant portion of the market that is likely to exceed $100 million presently,” said Shin Miyakawa, Chief Executive Officer of Ribomic, Inc. “This license from Archemix is the first of its kind in Asia and an essential step in our commercialization efforts. We believe that this license will allow us to rapidly commercialize an aptamer-based reagent which possesses superior qualities and we expect it to replace current protein-based approaches.”
About Aptamers
Aptamers are single-stranded nucleic acids that form well-defined three dimensional shapes, allowing them to bind target molecules in a manner that is conceptually similar to antibodies. Aptamers combine the optimal characteristics of small molecules and antibodies, including high specificity and affinity, chemical stability, low immunogenicity, and the ability to target protein-protein interactions. In contrast to monoclonal antibodies, aptamers are chemically synthesized rather than biologically expressed, offering a significant cost advantage.
About Archemix Corp.
Archemix Corp. is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The company’s mission is to develop aptamers as a class of directed therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of human disease. Because of their unique properties and proven efficacy, aptamers offer an alternative to biologics and small molecules in numerous applications and offer the potential to be a major class of drugs for the treatment of unmet medical needs.
Archemix’s aptamer expertise is complemented by a robust patent estate comprised of over 220 issued and 230 pending patents covering the identification, composition, and use of therapeutic aptamers. In addition to the company’s core aptamer generation technology, Archemix possesses strong expertise in both pre-clinical and clinical drug development. Further information on Archemix can be found at http://www.archemix.com.
About Ribomic Inc.
Based on the research that has been conducted at the Medical Institute of Science, The University of Tokyo, Ribomic is a bio-venture company based in Tokyo, Japan. The company’s mission is to discover and develop new aptamer products.
For further information about Archemix or aptamers, or to speak with Dr. Errol De Souza, please contact Davia Temin or Suzanne Oaks of Temin and Company at +1-212-588-8788 or news@teminandco.com. Further information on Ribomic can be found at http://www.ribomic.com, or call +81-3-3440-3303 to speak with Masaaki Takagi of Ribomic.
Archemix Corp.
CONTACT: Davia Temin or Suzanne Oaks of Temin and Company,+1-212-588-8788, or news@teminandco.com, for Archemix Corp.
