Dharmacon and amaxa Collaborate to Improve siRNA Delivery into Cells; Nucleofector(R) Technology Enables siRNA Transfer into Pr

Dharmacon, Inc., a business unit of the Fisher
Biosciences group and the world's leading supplier of innovative RNA
and RNA interference (RNAi) research products, and amaxa, a global
leader in the development and commercialization of non-viral gene
transfer products, today announced an agreement to co-promote data
generated using Dharmacon's siRNA libraries with amaxa's
Nucleofector(R) technology.
   Despite the rapid advance of RNAi gene silencing for drug
discovery and development, some research has been hampered by the
insufficient delivery of siRNA into primary cells and non-standard
cell lines. Nucleofection gives researchers the ability to efficiently
transfer nucleic acids (siRNA) into those cells and use them for gene
silencing experiments. amaxa's new Nucleofector(R) 96-well Shuttle(TM)
system allows parallel processing of a large number of transfection
experiments and works well with Dharmacon's libraries as well as
smaller siRNA samples.
   "The combined technologies of Dharmacon and amaxa enable us to
broaden the application of siRNA so that it can be introduced into
difficult cell lines, and with the 96-well Shuttle system researchers
can also accomplish this in high throughput," said William S.
Marshall, Ph.D., vice president of technology and business development
for Fisher Biosciences. "We will work closely with amaxa to provide
our customers with coordinated technical service, pre-tested protocols
and application models to optimize the use of our siRNA reagents with
the amaxa technology."
   Rainer Christine, CEO of amaxa, said: "We believe Dharmacon
provides excellent-quality siRNA, and that made the company an obvious
choice for partnering. At amaxa, we provide our customers with
solutions for whichever cell types they consider the best model system
for their experiments. By working closely with Dharmacon, we can help
researchers accelerate the speed and accuracy of their experiments
using siRNA."
   The co-promotion agreement between amaxa and Dharmacon is
effective as of today.

   About amaxa

   As a globally active specialist in nucleic acid delivery, amaxa's
mission is to significantly enhance the speed and quality of
pharmaceutical development and basic research in gene transfer, gene
silencing, and gene-based medicine. To this end, amaxa develops and
commercializes non-viral gene transfer products and leverages them for
industrial and clinical applications. The Nucleofector(R) technology
provides the first efficient non-viral method for transfer of DNA or
siRNA not only into the cytoplasm, but also directly into the nucleus
of cell lines and primary cells. Based on electroporation, the
technology combines novel and unique electrical parameters and cell
type-specific solutions. Founded in 1998, amaxa is located in Cologne,
Germany, and in Gaithersburg, Md., USA, and currently employs 145
people. The company's research team is one of the largest R&D groups
worldwide working on non-viral gene transfer. For more information
please visit www.amaxa.com.

   About Dharmacon

   Dharmacon is a business unit within the Fisher Biosciences group
and the world's leading provider of reliable, high-quality RNA
oligonucleotides, small interfering RNA (siRNA) and related
RNA-interference (RNAi) products and technologies. Using its core
expertise in chemistry, biology, bioinformatics and production,
Dharmacon has developed industry-leading siRNA design, chemical
modification, and delivery technologies for maximizing the efficiency
of gene silencing. Dharmacon's proprietary SMARTselection(TM) and
SMARTpool(R) technologies result in potent and specific gene-silencing
agents that can accelerate life-science research and drug discovery.
Dharmacon's siGENOME(TM), a comprehensive and flexible siRNA
collection, offers guaranteed silencing reagents for all unique human,
mouse and rat genes. The company's advanced siRNA modification
technologies further enhance silencing specificity, stability, and in
vivo performance. For more information about Dharmacon products and
services visit www.dharmacon.com or call 303-604-9499.

   About Fisher Biosciences

   Fisher Biosciences, a unit of Fisher Scientific International Inc.
(NYSE: FSH), manufactures and supplies a wide range of products and
services across the general-chemistry and life-sciences arenas. From
fine and high-purity chemicals, clinical diagnostics, proprietary
protein-research and cell-culture products, and
sterile-liquid-handling systems, to innovative RNA-interference
technology and high content screening, Fisher Biosciences serves
scientific-research, healthcare, drug-discovery, and general
industrial customers around the world. For more information please
visit www.fisherbiosci.com.