Alnylam to Develop RNAi Therapeutics for Spinal Cord Injury

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, a leading therapeutic RNA interference (RNAi) company, is initiating a program to develop RNAi therapeutics for spinal cord injury as part of its previously announced strategic collaboration with Merck & Co. to develop RNAi therapeutics and technology.

The new program will focus on a specific drug target proposed by Merck, and Alnylam will proceed with preclinical development of an RNAi therapeutic for this target. The drug target is in the Nogo pathway, which plays a key role in preventing regeneration of nerves after injury, such as spinal cord injuries. An RNAi therapeutic that inhibits this pathway could potentially reduce or prevent paralysis caused by such injuries.