Alnylam donates some intellectual property

By Chris Reidy, Globe Staff

The British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. said that Alnylam will contribute more than 1,500 issued or pending patents on its RNA interference (RNAi) technology patent estate to the patent pool established by GSK earlier this year.

Headquartered in Cambridge, Alnylam is seeking to use RNAi technology to do such things as silence genes whose inappropriate activity is causing diseases.

"The patent pool was formed to aid in the discovery and development of new medicines for the treatment of 16 neglected tropical diseases (NTD), as defined by the US Food and Drug Administration, in the world's Least Developed Countries," the two companies said in a press release. "By adopting a more flexible approach to intellectual property, the patent pool will facilitate access to compounds and technologies for organizations that want to conduct research on treatments for these neglected diseases."

A recent Globe column examined Alnylam and intellectual property issues. To read that column, please click here.