• Overview
• Current Partnerships & Alliances

Archemix has established several important alliances — multi-target, product-based and technology-based — with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to advance the development of aptamer therapeutics. These alliances provide Archemix with a significant source of research funding, and offer substantial downstream milestone and royalty revenue potential.

Multi-Target Alliances

A multi-year alliance with a potential deal value of $611M to discover, develop and commercialize aptamer therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of cancer, inflammatory and autoimmune indications. Under the terms of the agreement, Archemix received a $29.8 million equity investment. The alliance combines Archemix' proprietary SELEX technology to discover and generate aptamer candidates with Merck's demonstrated drug development and commercialization capabilities.

The alliance gives Merck Serono the option to obtain product licenses to certain of Archemix's lead stage aptamer programs in oncology and the right to select and develop aptamers against six additional targets in oncology and other indications, including autoimmune and inflammation disorders. In addition, Merck Serono is granted a license to use Archemix's SELEX technology for internal target validation. Archemix has the option to exercise a co-development and co-promote option on any of the products being developed on a 50:50 cost and profit-sharing basis in the United States.

A multi-year alliance with a potential deal value of $260M that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class aptamer-based therapeutics to three disease-associated targets identified by Takeda. Takeda will be granted exclusive, worldwide rights for research, development, manufacturing and commercialization for any resulting aptamer-based products. Archemix will receive committed research funding and research and clinical development milestone payments for each target selected for therapeutic development. In addition, Archemix will earn royalties and milestones on worldwide sales of the developed aptamers commercialized by Takeda.

A multi-year alliance with Pfizer with a potential deal value of $111M through which Archemix will use its proprietary SELEX technology to discover and generate product candidates to three disease-associated targets identified by Pfizer. Pfizer will be responsible for developing and commercializing the resulting product candidates.

A multi-year alliance with a potential deal value of $125M for the discovery, development and commercialization of aptamers against two targets with application in the prevention and treatment of cancer.

A multi-year alliance with élan with a potential deal value of $687M focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class aptamer therapeutics to treat autoimmune disease. The companies will seek to develop aptamer therapeutics to IL-23, a cytokine that has emerged as a mediator in chronic autoimmune inflammatory diseases, as well as additional protein targets.

Product-Based Partnerships

Archemix granted Aptamera (acquired by Antisoma in 2005) a non-exclusive license to its aptamer technology for therapeutic use, including AS1411 and its derivatives. AS1411, an aptamer targeting nucleolin, completed Phase 1 trials in 2006. AS1411 has shown activity against a wide range of solid and blood cancer cell lines in preclinical experiments and could therefore have potential against a variety of human cancers. Initial clinical development is focused on one blood cancer, AML (acute myeloid leukaemia) and one solid tumour, renal cancer (kidney cancer or renal cell carcinoma). A phase 2 clinical trial is ongoing in AML and a phase 2 trial is planned in renal cancer.

An partnership with Nuvelo through which Archemix is responsible for the discovery of short-acting aptamers targeting the coagulation cascade for use in acute cardiovascular procedures. Nuvelo will be responsible for the development and worldwide commercialization of these aptamers. In addition, Nuvelo has designated NU172 (ARC2172), a short-acting, direct thrombin inhibiting aptamer, as a development candidate.

Archemix granted Ophthotech Corporation an exclusive license under our technology and patent rights to develop and commercialize aptamers that target C5, including our former product candidate, ARC1905, for use in the prevention and treatment of eye diseases. C5 is one of several proteins that comprise the complement system. The complement system is a component of the body’s immune system and is an important mechanism that the body uses to fight infections or recover from injury. The complement system can be activated in settings in which tissues are damaged as a result of surgical procedures, causing unwanted and potentially harmful inflammation.

In April 2004, we entered into a research and license agreement with Eyetech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for the discovery, development and commercialization of aptamers for ophthalmologic diseases and conditions. Eyetech had designated a single compound candidate, E10030, for development. E10030 is an aptamer that targets and suppresses platelet-derived growth factor-B, or PDGF-B, which is a key protein that regulates cell growth and plays a role in many eye diseases. Eyetech was acquired by OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in November 2005 and subsequently renamed (OSI) Eyetech, Inc. In July 2007, OSI assigned its rights under the agreement to Ophthotech, and Ophthotech has advised us that it intends to continue the clinical development of E10030 for diseases in the eye.

In October 2003, we entered into an agreement with Regado Biosciences, Inc. for the discovery and development of aptamers. Regado has the exclusive right to discover, develop and commercialize products containing antidote-controlled aptamers for the treatment of diseases related to the modulation of fibrin depositions, platelet adhesion and/or platelet aggregation.

The REG1 anticoagulation system, which targets Factor IX, completed Phase 1 trials in 2006, the results of which were recently published (Circulation. 2006;114:2490-2497). REG1 began Phase 2 trials in November of 2007.

Technology-Based Partnerships

A collaboration and license agreement with Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in which Archemix was granted an exclusive license to its chemistry patent rights and a non-exclusive right to its know-how, with the right to sublicense, to discover, develop and commercialize products containing aptamers. Isis also granted to us a non-exclusive license under its analytical and manufacturing patent rights and know-how, with no right to sublicense, to discover, develop and commercialize products containing aptamers. We granted Isis a royalty-free, non-exclusive license under specified know-how disclosed by us to Isis to discover, develop and commercialize products that do not contain aptamers.

In June 2007, we entered into an amended and restated agreement with SomaLogic, Inc., which superseded an earlier agreement. We granted SomaLogic non-exclusive rights to our own and licensed intellectual property for the development and commercialization of aptamer-based in vitro diagnostics. In addition, we granted SomaLogic non-exclusive rights to a number of non-therapeutic applications of aptamers including ex vivo applications such as target validation and drug screening and exclusive rights for the use of aptamers as purification agents. SomaLogic granted us non-exclusive rights to their own and licensed intellectual property for the development and commercialization of aptamer therapeutics and specified nontherapeutic applications of aptamers including target validation. In addition, SomaLogic granted us exclusive rights to therapeutic uses of aptamers discovered by SomaLogic for a limited number of targets specified by Archemix and Archemix has the option of providing targets to SomaLogic for the generation of aptamers which Archemix may license from SomaLogic on specified terms.

Archemix granted NascaCell a sublicense to use SELEX technology for aptamer-based target validation and drug screening applications.

Archemix granted NOXXON a sublicense to use SELEX technology for the purpose of researching, developing and commercializing Spiegelmers^®. Spiegelmers^® are aptamers that are created out of nucleotides that have the opposite stereochemistry of nucleotides found in nature.

Archemix granted Ribomic a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-bearing license for the use of an IgG aptamer for affinity purification uses.