Madrid, 18 January 2011.

Sylentis, a biopharmaceutical subsidiary of Grupo Zeltia (MC: ZEL) that is a pioneer in the research and development of new drugs based on gene silencing (interference RNA, RNAi) and one of the first four companies in the world to have RNAi-based products in clinical trials, has been granted the Madrid Excelente insignia.

Madrid Excelente is a distinction granted by the Madrid Regional Government to acknowledge and certify quality and excellence in company management with a view to fostering competitiveness in business.  The Madrid Excelente seal refers to a company's overall quality, not that of any particular product or service. Madrid Excelente recognises companies that are focused on innovation and constant improvement, social responsibility, meeting people's needs and making an active contribution to the region's economic and social development.

Many companies have been awarded this distinction as evidence that they fulfil high standards of quality and excellence; they include a number of pharmaceutical companies that operate in the Madrid region, such as Lilly, Roche, Rovi, Molypharma, Abbott and MSD.

About Sylentis

 

Founded in 2006 as a spin-off from Grupo Zeltia subsidiary Genómica, S.A.U., Sylentis is a subsidiary of Grupo Zeltia and a pioneer in Spain in the search for new therapies based on interference RNA (RNAi). The company aims to design effective short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) using bioinformatic programmes such as SIRFINDER®, which optimises the design of siRNAs with pharmacological potential. Sylentis initially focused on developing therapies to treat glaucoma/ocular hypertension, conditions which are addressed by the company's most advanced compounds at present. It also has other research lines whose compounds are in the R&D and preclinical phases.

About interference RNA (RNAi)

 

RNAi has arisen in recent years as a promising technology with therapeutic applications, and was recognised worldwide when its discoverers, Fire and Mello, received the Nobel Prize in 2006. Discovered in plants in the 1990s, RNAi consists of highly efficient selective and specific inhibition of gene expression. RNAi is mediated by small fragments of double-stranded RNA, consisting of 19-23 nucleotides, which promote degradation of messenger RNA (mRNA), thus inhibiting synthesis of the proteins for which they code and which are responsible for the pathology. RNAi therapy has great potential as this mechanism is used naturally by cells to regulate gene expression in a way that is both non-toxic and highly effective.

About Zeltia:

Zeltia S.A. is a world-leading biopharmaceutical company specialised in the development of marine-based drugs for use in oncology and central nervous system illnesses. Grupo Zeltia consists mainly of the following companies: PharmaMar, the world-leading biotechnology company in advancing cancer care through the discovery and development of innovative marine-derived medicines;Noscira, a biotech firm focused on discovering and developing new drugs against Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases of the central nervous system; Genómica, Spain's leading molecular diagnostics company; Sylentis, dedicated to researching therapeutic applications of gene silencing (RNAi); and a chemical division comprising Zelnova and Xylazel, two highly profitable companies that are leaders in their respective market segments.


For more information: +34 91 444 4500

This note is also available in the "News" section of the websites of Sylentis www.sylentis.com and Zeltia www.zeltia.com