Nastech Pharmaceutical Company (MM) (NASDAQ:NSTK)
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From Jun 2019 to Jun 2024
Nastech Pharmaceutical Company Inc. (Nasdaq: NSTK) announced today that Günter
Blobel, M.D., Ph.D., has joined the Scientific Advisory Board of MDRNA,
Inc., Nastech’s wholly-owned subsidiary for
the development of RNAi technology and therapeutics. Dr. Blobel is a
Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at The Rockefeller
University in New York City. In 1999, Dr. Blobel was awarded the Nobel
Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work in protein research.
Dr. Blobel joined The Rockefeller University in 1967 as a postdoctoral
fellow in the cell biology laboratory of Professor Emeritus Philip
Siekevitz, Ph.D. and Nobel Laureate George Palade, M.D. Dr. Blobel was
appointed an assistant professor in 1969, associate professor in 1973,
professor in 1976 and John D. Rockefeller Jr. Professor in 1992. He
received a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) appointment in 1986
when HHMI established a unit at The Rockefeller University.
In addition to the 1999 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Dr.
Blobel was the recipient of a 1993 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research
Award, the Mayor's Award for Excellence in Science and Technology in
1997, the King Faisal Award in 1996, the Ciba Drew Award in Biomedical
Research in 1995, the National Academy of Sciences' 1978 U.S. Steel
Foundation Award in Molecular Biology and a 1982 Gairdner Foundation
International Award. He became a member of the Leopoldina and was
elected to membership in the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in 1983,
the year he received the Academy's Richard Lounsbery Award for work in “uncovering
the molecular interactions that control the traffic of newly synthesized
proteins in eukaryotic cells; for his incisive experiments; and for the
beauty of the findings.” Dr. Blobel also
received the 1983 Warburg Medal, the highest award of the German
Biochemical Society; the V.D. Mattia Award of the Roche Institute of
Molecular Biology; the E. B. Wilson Award from the American Society for
Cell Biology; Columbia University's Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize; the
Waterford Bio-Medical Science Award; and the Max-Planck Forschungspreis.
He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, associate
member of the European Molecular Biology Organization, a member of the
American Philosophical Society and an honorary member of the German
Society of Cell Biology and of the Japanese Biochemical Society. He
served as president of the American Society for Cell Biology in 1990.
“We are fortunate and honored to have Dr.
Blobel join MDRNA’s Scientific Advisory Board,”
stated Steven C. Quay, M.D., Ph.D., Chairman and CEO of Nastech. “We
will benefit from his expert advice and years of experience in the field
of protein targeting as we move forward in the development of our RNAi
technology and therapeutics.”
Dr. Blobel joins a number of other researchers on the MDRNA Scientific
Advisory Board including Dr. Roger D. Kornberg of Stanford University
School of Medicine and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Chemistry,
Dr. Carl Novina of the Harvard Medical School, and Dr. James E. Rothman
of Columbia University’s Judith P. Sulzberger,
M.D. Genome Center.
About RNA Interference (RNAi)
RNA interference, or RNAi, is a cellular mechanism that can be used to
turn off the production of a protein by using small interfering RNAs
(siRNAs). siRNAs are double-stranded RNA molecules that are able to
silence a gene in a sequence-specific manner by degradation of the
target messenger RNA. Nastech's RNAi research and development programs
seek to develop safe and effective therapeutics by identifying key
protein targets, designing the siRNAs that will turn off the production
of the targeted proteins, and developing a formulation for the delivery
of this potential new class of therapeutics.
About MDRNA, Inc.
MDRNA, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nastech Pharmaceutical
Company Inc. MDRNA develops innovative RNA-based products and
technologies. Discovery of the biological process of RNA interference
(RNAi) garnered the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2006, and
holds tremendous potential as a basis for human therapeutics. Nastech
began work on RNAi in 2003 and has assigned its intellectual property,
as it relates to the development of RNA-based therapeutics, to MDRNA in
order to bring greater focus on the development of RNA-based
technologies and enhance shareholder value arising from this exciting
new field. Additional information about MDRNA is available at http://www.mdrnainc.com.
About Nastech
Nastech is a biopharmaceutical company developing innovative products
based on proprietary molecular biology-based drug delivery technologies.
Nastech and its collaboration partners are developing products for
multiple therapeutic areas including osteoporosis, obesity, diabetes,
autism, respiratory diseases and inflammatory conditions. Additional
information about Nastech is available at http://www.nastech.com.
Nastech Forward-Looking Statements
Statements made in this press release may be forward-looking statements
within the meaning of Federal Securities laws that are subject to
certain risks and uncertainties and involve factors that may cause
actual results to differ materially from those projected or suggested.
Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: (i) the
ability of Nastech or a subsidiary to obtain additional funding; (ii)
the ability of Nastech or a subsidiary to attract and/or maintain
manufacturing, research, development and commercialization partners;
(iii) the ability of Nastech, a subsidiary and/or a partner to
successfully complete product research and development, including
preclinical and clinical studies and commercialization; (iv) the ability
of Nastech, a subsidiary and/or a partner to obtain required
governmental approvals; and (v) the ability of Nastech, a subsidiary
and/or a partner to develop and commercialize products that can compete
favorably with those of competitors. Additional factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those projected or suggested in
any forward-looking statements are contained in Nastech's most recent
periodic reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q that are filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Nastech assumes no obligation to
update and supplement forward-looking statements because of subsequent
events.