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Abbott and Dharmacon Generating Large-Scale siRNA Library By Malorye Branca Bio-IT World (online) (07/29/03)—Abbott Laboratories is scaling up its RNA interference (RNAi) effort through a new agreement with Dharmacon Inc. The two companies are building a library containing 4000 of the short, double-stranded RNAs that have captured widespread attention for their extraordinary ability to turn off genes. The new deal follows on the heels of a smaller project, in which the two companies generated short-interfering RNAs (siRNAs) against 507 kinases—a type of molecule that is an increasingly popular target among drug developers. “Through that project, we identified several novel, and very interesting, cancer targets,” says Stephen Fesik, divisional vice president of cancer research at Abbott Laboratories. The new agreement covers gene targets in conditions including cancer, diabetes, pain management, inflammation, and neurological disorders. The library is being designed and built using Dharmacon’s SMART technology and 2’—ACE RNA chemistries. “Dharmacon has built up an understanding of how to better design and make siRNAs,” says Fesik. RNA interference is becoming regarded as genomic researchers’ “salvation,” because it lets them more easily plow through the huge number of new genes that have come out of the human genome project. Only some of these genes are going to turn out to be worth investigating, however: Finding out which ones are is a multi-billion dollar question in the drug industry. “This [siRNA] enables Abbott to find many more novel targets and to understand functions that would be difficult to explore by other means,” says Fesik. “This ability is revolutionary to our work.” Dharmacon will retain rights to all the siRNAs designed under this agreement, and will be making these commercially available to other customers. Financial details were not disclosed. |
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