[Another agreement expansion with J&J's LifeScan]
>>RICHMOND, Calif., Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: SGMO - News) announced today the second expansion of its research collaboration with LifeScan, Inc. to use Sangamo's proprietary zinc finger DNA binding proteins (ZFPs) to develop therapeutic cell lines as a treatment for diabetes. LifeScan, a Johnson & Johnson company (NYSE: JNJ - News), is a leading manufacturer of blood glucose meters. Under the agreement, Sangamo will receive expanded research funding from LifeScan through 2006.
"Our research collaboration with LifeScan illustrates the potential of our ZFP technology to play a key role in regenerative medicine approaches," said Edward Lanphier, Sangamo's president and chief executive officer. "We can design and engineer ZFP transcription factors (ZFP TFs) that specifically regulate the expression of genes that LifeScan has identified as critical for the development of potential cell therapeutics for the treatment of diabetes. Our initial collaboration has gone very well and we believe that LifeScan's decision to extend our agreement demonstrates their enthusiasm for our technology and its potential for developing novel therapeutics."
Proteins known as transcription factors are critical components for the expression of genes in all organisms. A transcription factor regulates gene expression by recognizing and binding to a specific DNA sequence associated with a particular gene and causing that gene to be activated or repressed. Activation or repression of a gene in a cell can have a specific effect on the cell's function that may be therapeutically useful.
Diabetes is a chronic disease in which the body does not make, or does not properly regulate the hormone insulin. Insulin helps the body to store and use the energy from sugar, starches and other foods. The result is that the body doesn't get the energy it needs, and unmetabolized sugar (glucose), builds up in the blood causing damage to the body and its systems. An estimated 18.2 million Americans, or about 3 percent of the U.S. population, have diabetes. Annually, 1.3 million new cases of diabetes are diagnosed among people 20 years or older in the United States.<<
snip
Cheers, Tuck |
