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Biotech / Medical : Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc. SGMO -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: tnsaf who wrote (159)	9/14/2005 12:04:16 PM
From: tuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 368

[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

To: tnsaf who wrote (159)	11/16/2005 4:21:27 PM
From: tuck	Respond to of 368

[ZFP phospholamban repressor for congestive heart failure; preclinical data presented] >>RICHMOND, Calif., Nov. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: SGMO - News) today announced that data from its program to develop a ZFP Therapeutic(TM) for congestive heart failure (CHF) were presented at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association (AHA) on November 16, 2005, in Dallas, Texas. Sangamo's collaborator Frank Giordano, M.D., Associate Professor of Cardiology at Yale University School of Medicine, presented the data in the Gene Expression/Molecular Biology II session in which he also served as co-moderator. The data presented demonstrate that Sangamo has designed zinc finger DNA- binding protein transcription factors (ZFP TF(TM)) that repress the expression of the phospholamban (PLN) in human cells and in rat cardiomyocytes with singular specificity. When administered directly into the heart of adult rats a ZFP TF PLN repressor was shown to improve cellular calcium flux and enhance both the rate and extent of relaxation and contraction of the heart muscle cells. Moreover, in a rat model of heart failure, treatment with Sangamo's ZFP TF PLN repressor demonstrated improved contractility and hemodynamics or blood movement into and out of the heart. "We are very excited by these data," said Dr.Giordano. "PLN is a critical regulator of cardiac homeostasis and muscle contractility and has been well- validated in a number of animal models as a target for congestive heart failure. However, the conventional approach of developing small molecule antagonists of PLN has proven to be very difficult. Sangamo's technology provides a novel approach which has the potential to address the molecular root of the disease and may provide improvement in contractility in failing hearts regardless of the origin of the disease." "Heart failure affects more than five million people and is associated with more than 300,000 deaths each year," said Edward Lanphier, Sangamo's president and CEO. "The cost of medical care, primarily resulting from hospitalization, is estimated to exceed $19 billion annually. The current standard of care aims at increasing the efficiency of the weakened heart. Treatments to increase cardiac contractility are complicated by side effects of arrhythmias that increase morbidity and limit their use. We believe that our approach to develop a therapeutic that directly decreases the expression of PLN in the heart provides a new way to address this significant problem. We are currently expanding these studies and investigating different delivery options for this potential new therapeutic." In congestive heart failure, the heart's ability to pump is decreased leaving it unable to circulate enough blood to meet the body's needs. CHF is often caused by some other heart disease or condition that progressively damages the heart and is more common as people grow older. It can lead to degeneration of health, stamina and body condition and can be life- threatening. Once severe symptoms develop, if left untreated, the five-year survival rate is 25 to 50 percent -- worse than the survival rates for many cancers.<< snip Anyone know if it is common or acceptable to address CHF/contractility issues in human patients with a direct injection into the heart? Will they need a different delivery system? Cheers, Tuck