Silence Therapeutics (LON:SLN) has been placed under the microscope by N+1 Singer, which reckons the drugs developer is poised for success.
It said the group, which specialises in small interfering RNA (siRNA) that silences genes, has a strong technology platform in an emerging field of biotechnology.
And it said a revised strategy, allied to April’s successful £19mln cash call, has put it in a position to deliver high returns from its research programme.
“The stated development strategy of the company is to pursue projects with the highest chance of success,” said analyst Jens Lindqvist.
“This will entail targeting therapeutic areas where the links between gene expression, protein expression and disease have been well established and the target patient population clearly defined.
“To minimise the risk of expensive late-stage failure, programmes that allow for well-informed early decision making (in the pre-clinical and/or clinical setting) will be favoured.”
Important data milestones are expected over the next two years from three of its clinical trials that could trigger significant milestone payments from larger partners, N+1 points out.
Two of three have been farmed out to big pharma (Pfizer and Novartis), while a third, Atu027, a potential treatment for metastatic cancers, remains unlicensed.
The potential of Atu027 is being tested in combination with chemotherapy on 30 patients with pancreatic cancer, which is terminal. It is part of phase Ib/IIa trial that could pave the way to a third partnership.
In the meantime, the most immediate news flow is coming not from the company itself, but a rival with an identical technology.
America’s Alnylam (with a market capitalisation roughly four times that of the UK group) is expected to produce phase II data on its lead siRNA programme by the end of the month.
The showcase for Silence’s progress to date is likely to be the research and development day, which has been pencilled in for November.