Tekmira ups potency of delivery platform

New research published in the journal Nature Biotechnology has disclosed that Tekmira Pharmaceuticals (TSX:TKM) has developed a new lipid component that provides a ten-fold improvement in the potency of its SNALP delivery platform.

“This work advances Tekmira’s leadership position in the delivery of RNA interference therapeutics and supports our strategy of expanding the tremendous potential for the development of SNALP-based products by Tekmira and its partners,” CEO Dr. Mark Murray said in a statement.

The research was led by Tekmira and conducted in collaboration with the University of British Columbia and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals.  Tekmira’s SNALP technology, or stable nucleic acid-lipid particles, has been shown to be a safe and effective way to deliver RNAi drugs to disease sites.

“With this research, we are continuing to improve our SNALP delivery technology, which is utilized in our RNAi product candidates and those of our partners, including Alnylam and Roche,” Dr. Murray added.  “Over the next 12-to-18 months, we expect to support up to six SNALP-based products in clinical development.”

Tekmira is currently advancing two RNAi drug candidates: ApoB SNALP as a treatement for elevated “bad” cholesterol, and PLK1 SNALP as a treatment for cancer.  The ApoB drug recently completed a Phase 1 clinical trial, and a new and more potent SNALP formulation is expected to be tested in an additional Phase 1 study in the second half this year. A PLK1 SNALP Phase 1 clinical trial is also planned in the second half.