Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corp. announced today that promising preclinical data from its collaboration with the National Cancer Institute has been published in an article in Oncogene, one of the world’s leading cancer journals. The article presents encouraging preclinical data related to the treatment of liver cancer using small interfering RNA enabled by Tekmira’s lipid nanoparticle delivery technology.

Scientists at the National Cancer Institute have collaborated with Tekmira to develop small interfering RNA to silence the CSN5 gene, which could represent a novel therapeutic target to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and other cancers. The latest data indicated Tekmira’s technology inhibits cell-cycle progression and greatly increases the rate of programmed cell death in HCC cells.

If this data is validated in later tests, it could really open the door for Tekmira. CSN5 over-expression has been observed in a number of cancers. These include: breast, liver, lung, thyroid, skin, ovarian and pancreatic. Liver cancer itself is the third most lethal cancer, causing 600,000 deaths annually due in part to a lack of effective treatment options.

For further information on Tekmira Pharmaceuticals and its technology, please visit the company’s website at www.tekmirapharm.com

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