Skip to main content
Premium Trial:

Request an Annual Quote

Regulus, Biogen Ink New Agreement for Potential MS miRNA Biomarkers

NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Regulus Therapeutics today announced a new collaborative agreement with Biogen Idec to identify microRNAs for multiple sclerosis.

The agreement, to be carried out by the Regulus microMarkers division, will profile whole blood samples from a cohort of MS patients who have received Biogen's MS therapy in order to discover potential miRNA biomarkers. The deal replaces a prior agreement reached by the firms in 2012, under which Regulus used its technology to extract, profile, and analyze miRNAs from small volumes of blood. As part of that research, Regulus profiled more than 400 serum samples from MS patients and compared them with profiles from healthy volunteers.

Regulus will receive a $2 million upfront payment under the terms of the new deal and is eligible for additional payments upon certain milestones being achieved related to the identification of potential miRNA biomarkers.

"Our collaboration has made significant progress to date and we are hopeful to continue to help advance Biogen Idec's leading multiple sclerosis franchise in a meaningful way with our innovative technology platform." David Szekeres, chief business officer and general counsel for Regulus, said in a statement.

The Scan

Positive Framing of Genetic Studies Can Spark Mistrust Among Underrepresented Groups

Researchers in Human Genetics and Genomics Advances report that how researchers describe genomic studies may alienate potential participants.

Small Study of Gene Editing to Treat Sickle Cell Disease

In a Novartis-sponsored study in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that a CRISPR-Cas9-based treatment targeting promoters of genes encoding fetal hemoglobin could reduce disease symptoms.

Gut Microbiome Changes Appear in Infants Before They Develop Eczema, Study Finds

Researchers report in mSystems that infants experienced an enrichment in Clostridium sensu stricto 1 and Finegoldia and a depletion of Bacteroides before developing eczema.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia Treatment Specificity Enhanced With Stem Cell Editing

A study in Nature suggests epitope editing in donor stem cells prior to bone marrow transplants can stave off toxicity when targeting acute myeloid leukemia with immunotherapy.