¶ Tekmira Pharmaceuticals
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Tekmira Pharmaceuticals was a Canadian pharmaceutical company based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
¶ History
Tekmira was founded as a spin-out from its predecessor, Inex Pharmaceuticals, following a near-unanimous vote by Inex's shareholders in September 2006.[1] The spin-out process was completed on May 1, 2007, with shares of the new company launching on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX).[2]
¶ Lipid nanoparticles
On March 30, 2008, Tekmira announced it was combining its business with Protiva Biotherapeutics, reuniting the intellectual property that had become scattered across several startups out of the University of British Columbia (UBC). The new joint company signed a new deal with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals to allow access to their lipid nanoparticle patents - a key component of achieving Alylam's self-described “Alnylam 2020” strategy.[3][4]
An American brach of the company was incorporated in Seattle, Washington on October 20, 2008.[5]
An agreement was signed on July 27, 2009, mutually establishing the rights and limitations held by Alnylam, UBC, AlCana/Acuitas Therapeutics, Tekmira and Protiva, while explicitly acknowledging the complex nature of the variety of relationships they all had with each other.[6]
In June 2011, Tekmira filed a lawsuit against both Alnylam and AlCana/Acuitas, seeking damages for (among other things) “misappropriation of trade secrets, tortious interference with contractual relations, unjust enrichment, unfair and deceptive acts and trade practices, and civil conspiracy.”[7]
The case between Tekmira and Alnylam was settled in November 2012, resulting in a restructured licensing agreement allowing Alnylam to resume using Tekmira’s LNP patents under terms with new “clarity.”[8] This also allowed Acuitas to acquire a sublicense for some of the LNP technology from Tekmira - and conversely, Tekmira to use Acuitas’ RNAi tech - an arrangement which went into effect in December 2013.[9]
On December 19, 2014, Tekmira announced the appointment of Richard Henriques to the company's board of directors.[10] Henriques had previously served as Chief Financial Officer for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and held a leadership role at Merck. In the same press release, Tekmira announced that Ian MacLachlan was to resign as Executive Vice President and Chief Technical Officer as of December 31, 2014.
¶ Ebola
The United States Department of Defense awarded Tekmira a $140 million contract to develop a treatment against Ebola in response to the 2013 outbreak in West Africa, but the product failed to pass safety and efficacy testing and was pulled from trials in 2015.[11][12] The company merged with OnCore Biopharma, an offshoot of Gilead Sciences. This led to yet another name change to Arbutus Biopharma.[13]
¶ External links
¶ Further reading
- February 13, 2023: "Follow the Patents: Lipid Nanoparticles and COVID-19 Genetic Vaccines" by Liam Sturgess
INEX Pharmaceuticals provides timeline for completing spin-out of Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation. (2007, February 26). BioSpace. http://archive.today/2022.03.22-140608/https://www.biospace.com/article/releases/inex-pharmaceuticals-provides-timeline-for-completing-spin-out-of-tekmira-pharmaceuticals-corporation-/ ↩︎
Inex Pharmaceuticals announces completion of spin-out of Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation. (2007, May 1). Arbutus Bio. https://web.archive.org/web/20230830184647/https://investor.arbutusbio.com/static-files/7043d792-acbb-47ae-9b0f-ce74445f583a ↩︎
Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation and Protiva Biotherapeutics announce business combination to create new company focused on RNAi delivery and therapeutics. (2008, March 31). Fierce Biotech. http://archive.today/2022.03.22-142058/https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/tekmira-pharmaceuticals-corporation-and-protiva-biotherapeutics-announce-business ↩︎
Lindenboom, C. R., & Brodsky, J. (2021, January 10). Alnylam launches “Alnylam P5x25” strategy for planned transition to a top five biotech in market capitalization over next five years. Business Wire; Berkshire Hathaway. http://archive.today/2022.03.22-160320/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210110005034/en/Alnylam-Launches-“Alnylam-P5x25”-Strategy-for-Planned-Transition-to-a-Top-Five-Biotech-in-Market-Capitalization-Over-Next-Five-Years ↩︎
Washington Secretary of State - Corporations Division. (2023, February 25). TEKMIRA PHARMACEUTICALS CORPORATION. OpenCorporates. http://archive.today/2023.03.30-195647/https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_wa/602872481 ↩︎
Exhibit 10.2. (2009, July 27). Real Deal Docs. https://agreements.realdealdocs.com/Addendum-or-Modifications/Alnylam-Tekmira-Protiva-UBC-AlCa-2894169/ ↩︎
GlobeNewswire. (2011, June 3). Tekmira files amended complaint in Alnylam litigation. NBC News. http://archive.today/2022.03.22-142219/https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna43273972 ↩︎
Tekmira and Alnylam restructure relationship and settle all litigation. (2012, November 12). U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://web.archive.org/web/20220322141914/https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1447028/000117184312004102/newsrelease.htm ↩︎
George, J. (2017, February 10). Doylestown biopharm firm granted injunction over licensing dispute. American City Business Journals. https://web.archive.org/web/20170214043742/http://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2017/02/10/arbutus-biopharma-abus-injunction-acuitus-sales.html ↩︎
Rezler, J. P. (2014, December 19). Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Announces Leadership Changes. Securities and Exchange Commission. http://archive.today/2023.06.01-185035/https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1447028/000117184314005977/newsrelease.htm ↩︎
Biotech stock in spotlight: as the world awaits Ebola treatment, Tekmira Pharma in prime focus. TechNews. Retrieved March 22, 2022, from https://web.archive.org/web/20210527095559/http://technews.org/biotech-stock-in-spotlight-as-the-world-awaits-ebola-treatment-tekmira-pharma-remains-in-orime-focus/2913113/ ↩︎
Pollack, A. (2015, June 19). Clinical trial of experimental Ebola drug is halted. The New York Times. http://archive.today/2019.12.31-145430/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/20/health/clinical-trial-of-experimental-ebola-drug-is-halted.html ↩︎
Cutler, A., & Baradarani, H. (2015, July 20). Tekmira announces launch of Arbutus Biopharma, a Hepatitis B solutions company. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. http://archive.today/2022.03.22-200915/https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1447028/000117184315003907/newsrelease.htm ↩︎