Key US patent granted

Key US patent granted

11 October 2017

Silence Therapeutics plc, AIM:SLN ("Silence" or "the Company") a leader in the discovery, delivery, and development of novel RNA therapeutics for the treatment of serious diseases with unmet medical need, announces that the US Patent and Trade Mark Office yesterday granted US patent application 15/594,349 as US Patent 9,783,802.

Silence previously reported issuance of a notice of allowance for US patent application 15/594,349 on 15 August 2017 and that relevant grant fees had been paid.

The allowed claims of US Patent 9,783,802 will provide Silence with further protection for its innovative chemical modification technology in the US. Silence believes that these newly granted claims are relevant to third-party RNAi medicines including Alnylam Pharmaceuticals' Patisiran, which has recently demonstrated positive phase 3 trial results for the treatment of TTR-mediated Amyloidosis.

Ali Mortazavi, Chief Executive Officer of Silence Therapeutics, commented:

"This grant provides further protection for our US patent estate. We continue to believe that several third party late-stage RNAi candidates require licences under our chemical modification patent portfolio. This includes Patisiran, which is currently the most advanced RNAi drug in clinical development and has recently shown positive top line phase 3 results. We are highly encouraged by this field-validating event and excited for the prospects of patients living with ATTR."

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About Silence Therapeutics plc

Silence Therapeutics develops a new generation of medicines by harnessing the body's natural mechanism of RNA interference, or RNAi, within its cells. Our proprietary technology can selectively inhibit any gene in the genome, specifically silencing the production of disease-causing proteins. Using our enabling delivery systems, we have achieved an additional level of specificity by delivering our therapeutic RNA molecules exclusively to target cells. Silence's proprietary RNA chemistries and delivery systems are designed to improve the stability of our molecules and enhance effective delivery to target cells, providing a powerful modular technology well suited to tackle life-threatening diseases.