Alnylam Pharmaceuticals said this week that its Tuschl II patent has been fully upheld by the European Patent Office in opposition proceedings.
The patent, EP 1407044, generally relates to compositions, methods, and uses of siRNAs capable of triggering an RNAi effect. Alnylam said that opponents to the patent included Merck subsidiary Sirna Therapeutics, Silence Therapeutics, Pfizer, and BASF.
"Tuschl II remains a very important and valuable patent in our overall broad estate of patents important for the development and commercialization of RNAi therapeutics, and a patent family to which we are the exclusive licensee," Alnylam President and COO Barry Greene said in a statement.