Replies to post #14933 on Biotech Values

[DewDiligence]

ISIS has been a tangential player in the ophthalmic field for quite a while. They are even collaborating with PFE (#msg-6453838). Regards, Dew

[DewDiligence]

Isis Partner iCo Therapeutics Files IND for Antisense Drug to Treat Eye Disease

[“iCo” for a company working on eye disease is one of those corporate names that is *too* cute, IMO.]

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061221/lath012.html?.v=80

>>
Thursday December 21, 7:00 am ET

CARLSBAD, Calif., Dec. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ISIS ) announced today that iCo Therapeutics, an Isis licensee, has filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the FDA for iCo-007, for the treatment of eye diseases including age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR). Isis will receive a milestone payment from iCo based on this IND filing.

Designed and discovered by Isis, iCo-007 is a second-generation drug that inhibits the production of c-Raf kinase, an enzyme associated with the formation of new and often abnormal or fragile blood vessels in the eye. Blood vessel breakage and leakage can contribute to vision loss characteristic of AMD and DR.

C. Frank Bennett, Ph.D., Isis' Senior Vice President of Research, commented, "Our antisense drug partnering strategy continues to be successful, enabling us to efficiently expand our pipeline and move more antisense drug candidates into the clinic. iCo Therapeutics is a prime example of our strategy at work, inasmuch as we have partnered an Isis-discovered ophthalmologic drug candidate with an emerging company building an ocular franchise. The preclinical profile (see Reference) of iCo-007 is further evidence of the broad therapeutic applicability of Isis technology. We've been very pleased with our iCo collaboration and we look forward to continued clinical development of iCo-007."

Reference:
Danis, R.P., M.H. Criswell, F. Orge, E.V. Wancewicz, K. Stecker, S.P. Henry, and B.P. Monia. 2003. Intravitreous anti-raf-1 kinase antisense oligonucleotide as an angioinhibitory agent in porcine preretinal neovascularization. Current Eye Research 26:45.

ABOUT ISIS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

Isis is exploiting its expertise in RNA to discover and develop novel drugs for its product pipeline and for its partners. The Company has successfully commercialized the world's first antisense drug and has 15 drugs in development. Isis' drug development programs are aimed at treating cardiovascular, metabolic and inflammatory diseases. Isis' partners are focused in disease areas such as ocular, viral and neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. In its Ibis Biosciences(TM) division, Isis is developing and commercializing the Ibis T5000(TM) Biosensor System, a revolutionary system to identify infectious organisms. As an innovator in RNA-based drug discovery and development, Isis is the owner or exclusive licensee of approximately 1,500 issued patents worldwide. Additional information about Isis is available at www.isispharm.com.
<<