Alnylam and Monsanto Form Strategic Alliance
Kelli Powers, 314-694-4003Monsanto Public AffairsorCynthia Clayton, 617-551-8207Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate CommunicationsorSpectrumAmanda Sellers (Media), 202-955-6222 x2597
(NYSE: MON) and (Nasdaq: ALNY) announced today they have formed a strategic alliance to advance biological technologies in the field of agriculture. The new alliance brings Alnylam’s broad RNAi-based intellectual property (IP) and proprietary technologies to Monsanto’s new BioDirect™ technology, which aims to deliver innovative biological solutions for farmers.
Under the terms of the agreement, Monsanto receives worldwide, exclusive rights to use Alnylam’s platform technology and IP in the field of agriculture, including the ability to grant sublicenses. Monsanto will pay Alnylam $29.2 million in upfront payments. In addition, Alnylam is eligible to receive milestone payments and additional funding for collaborative research efforts. Further, Alnylam is eligible to receive royalty payments on products utilizing Alnylam technology and IP. Moreover, Monsanto becomes Alnylam’s strategic partner in agriculture for a 10-year period.
“We are very pleased to partner with Alnylam, a leading technology company with unparalleled intellectual property and a technology platform that will support our work in agricultural biologicals, introduced earlier this year with BioDirect technology,” said Tom Adams, Vice President of Chemistry Technology at Monsanto. “We believe biological products have great promise in agriculture and we are excited to be collaborating with Alnylam in this area.”
“There could be no stronger partner for these applications, as Monsanto has a deep commitment to innovation and scientific excellence, and to the advancement of technologies to improve agriculture,” said Rachel Meyers, Ph.D., Vice President, Research and RNAi Lead Development at Alnylam. “This new alliance furthers our vision for RNAi technologies across a broad range of applications and is representative of our passion to pioneer these new frontiers. While we remain focused on the advancement of RNAi therapeutics as a new class of innovative medicines – and, specifically our ‘Alnylam 5x15’ product strategy – this collaboration with Monsanto enables broader uses of Alnylam intellectual property and technologies for additional value creation.”
Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality. Monsanto remains focused on enabling both small-holder and large-scale farmers to produce more from their land while conserving more of our world's natural resources such as water and energy. To learn more about our business and our commitments, please visit: . Follow our business on Twitter at , on the company blog, Beyond the Rows at , or subscribe to our .
Alnylam is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics based on RNA interference, or RNAi. The company is leading the translation of RNAi as a new class of innovative medicines with a core focus on RNAi therapeutics for the treatment of genetically defined diseases, including ALN-TTR for the treatment of transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis (ATTR), ALN-AT3 for the treatment of hemophilia, ALN-PCS for the treatment of severe hypercholesterolemia, ALN-HPN for the treatment of refractory anemia, and ALN-TMP for the treatment of hemoglobinopathies. As part of its “Alnylam 5x15” strategy, the company expects to have five RNAi therapeutic products for genetically defined diseases in clinical development, including programs in advanced stages, on its own or with a partner by the end of 2015. Alnylam has additional partnered programs in clinical or development stages, including ALN-RSV01 for the treatment of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, ALN-VSP for the treatment of liver cancers, and ALN-HTT for the treatment of Huntington’s disease. The company’s leadership position on RNAi therapeutics and intellectual property have enabled it to form major alliances with leading companies including Merck, Medtronic, Novartis, Biogen Idec, Roche, Takeda, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, Cubist, Ascletis, and Monsanto. In addition, Alnylam and Isis co-founded Regulus Therapeutics Inc., a company focused on discovery, development, and commercialization of microRNA therapeutics; Regulus has formed partnerships with GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi. Alnylam has also formed Alnylam Biotherapeutics, a division of the company focused on the development of RNAi technologies for applications in biologics manufacturing, including recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies. Alnylam’s VaxiRNA™ platform applies RNAi technology to improve the manufacturing processes for vaccines; GlaxoSmithKline is a collaborator in this effort. Alnylam scientists and collaborators have published their research on RNAi therapeutics in over 100 peer-reviewed papers, including many in the world’s top scientific journals such as , , , and . Founded in 2002, Alnylam maintains headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit
RNAi (RNA interference) is a revolution in biology, representing a breakthrough in understanding how genes are turned on and off in cells, and a completely new approach to drug discovery and development. RNAi is a natural process of gene silencing that occurs in organisms ranging from plants to mammals. By harnessing the natural biological process of RNAi occurring in our cells, the creation of a major new class of medicines, known as RNAi therapeutics, is on the horizon.
Certain statements contained in this release are “forward-looking statements,” such as statements concerning the company’s anticipated financial results, current and future product performance, regulatory approvals, business and financial plans and other non-historical facts. These statements are based on current expectations and currently available information. However, since these statements are based on factors that involve risks and uncertainties, the company’s actual performance and results may differ materially from those described or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, among others: continued competition in seeds, traits and agricultural chemicals; the company’s exposure to various contingencies, including those related to intellectual property protection, regulatory compliance and the speed with which approvals are received, and public acceptance of biotechnology products; the success of the company’s research and development activities; the outcomes of major lawsuits and the previously-announced SEC investigation; the previously reported material weakness in our internal controls over financial reporting; developments related to foreign currencies and economies; successful operation of recent acquisitions; fluctuations in commodity prices; compliance with regulations affecting our manufacturing; the accuracy of the company’s estimates related to distribution inventory levels; the company’s ability to fund its short-term financing needs and to obtain payment for the products that it sells; the effect of weather conditions, natural disasters and accidents on the agriculture business or the company’s facilities; and other risks and factors detailed in the company’s most recent Form 10-K Report to the SEC. Undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements, which are current only as of the date of this release. The company disclaims any current intention or obligation to update any forward-looking statements or any of the factors that may affect actual results.
Various statements in this release concerning Alnylam’s future expectations, plans and prospects, including without limitation, statements regarding Alnylam’s views with respect to the potential for RNAi therapeutics, as well as the potential for RNAi in agricultural applications, its expectations regarding the receipt of milestone payments, additional funding for collaborative research efforts and potentially royalty and other payments under the Monsanto agreement, and Alnylam’s expectations regarding its “Alnylam 5x15” product strategy, constitute forward-looking statements for the purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, without limitation, Monsanto’s ability to successfully apply RNAi technology in the field of agriculture, Alnylam’s ability to discover and develop novel drug candidates, successfully demonstrate the efficacy and safety of its drug candidates, the pre-clinical and clinical results for these product candidates, which may not support further development of such product candidates, actions of regulatory agencies, which may affect the initiation, timing and progress of clinical trials for such product candidates, obtaining, maintaining and protecting intellectual property, obtaining regulatory approval for products, competition from others using technology similar to Alnylam’s and others developing products for similar uses, and Alnylam’s ability to establish and maintain strategic business alliances, including its collaboration with Monsanto, and new business initiatives, as well as those risks more fully discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of its most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent Alnylam’s views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Alnylam does not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
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