Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Management and Scientific Co-Founders to Present at Upcoming Conferences

WATERTOWN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Dicerna), a second generation RNA interference (RNAi) company developing novel therapeutics utilizing its proprietary Dicer Substrate Technology™ and Dicer Substrate siRNA (DsiRNA) molecules, today announced that Martin D. Williams, chief business officer, and scientific co-founders John Rossi, Ph.D., and Mark Behlke, M.D., Ph.D., will be presenting at the following conferences in September:

“Targeted and Non-targeted Delivery of Dicer Substrate RNAs for the Treatment of HIV Infection”

• 7^th Annual RNAi & miRNA Europe, co-located with qPCR Europe, Epigenetics Europe and Genomics Automation Europe, being held September 14-15, 2010 at The Burlington Hotel in Dublin.

John Rossi, Ph.D., Dicerna scientific co-founder and scientific advisory board chair, as well as professor in the department of molecular and cellular biology and dean, Irell and Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences at City of Hope's Beckman Research Institute, will give a keynote presentation titled “Targeted and Non-targeted Delivery of Dicer Substrate RNAs for the Treatment of HIV Infection,” at 9:00 a.m. on September 14. In his presentation, Dr. Rossi will provide insight into the recent developments in the use of HIV envelope specific aptamers and non-liganded dendrimers to deliver therapeutically active Dicer substrate siRNAs in vivo. The work will highlight targeting both viral and cellular sequences in a humanized mouse model for HIV infection.

Mark Behlke, M.D., Ph.D., Dicerna scientific co-founder and scientific advisory board member, as well as chief scientific officer at Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), will give a presentation titled “Use of Dicer-substrate siRNA Against HPV-driven Tumors,” at 2:45 p.m. on September 14. In his presentation, Dr. Behlke will discuss potent DsiRNA suppressors of the HPV E6/E7 oncogene, which were administered to mice and dramatically reduced the size of HPV-driven tumor implants.

• Sachs Associates 10^th Annual Biotech in Europe Investor Forum, being held September 29-30 at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Zurich Airport in Switzerland.

Martin D. Williams, Dicerna senior vice president and chief business officer, will present a company overview on September 29. In his presentation, Mr. Williams will discuss the company’s novel, second generation approach to developing RNAi therapeutics and delivery systems based on its leading-edge Dicer Substrate Technology platform, and how Dicerna's DsiRNA molecules differentiate the company from other RNAi approaches.

About Dicer Substrate RNAi

Dicer is a critical enzyme involved in the RNAi gene silencing cascade and acts as the natural initiation point for this pathway by processing double-stranded RNA so that it can be used for gene silencing. Dicer then delivers these modified small RNA molecules to the mature gene silencing complex. Dicerna’s synthetic Dicer Substrate siRNA (DsiRNA) molecules are 25 or more base pairs in length and are processed by Dicer. By utilizing this distinct early entry point into the pathway, DsiRNA molecules have greater potency and longer duration of action than other RNAi approaches. In addition, DsiRNA molecules have enhanced delivery potential because their structure creates a natural conjugation point for cellular targeting agents.

About Dicerna

Dicerna Pharmaceuticals is a private, venture-backed RNAi-focused biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutic agents and related drug delivery systems in multiple disease areas based on its proprietary Dicer Substrate Technology™ platform and Dicer Substrate siRNA (DsiRNA) molecules. Dicer Substrate Technology is a second generation RNAi approach that results in greater potency, longer duration of action and enhanced delivery potential, differentiating it from other RNAi approaches. Dicerna believes that its Dicer Substrate Technology is based on intellectual property that is both broadly enabling and distinct from other IP in the field. Dicerna has exclusive, worldwide rights to the Dicer Substrate Technology and has the sole right to grant sublicenses to the company’s portfolio of Dicer Substrate Technology intellectual property. Dicerna has a major alliance with Kyowa Hakko Kirin for DsiRNA pharmaceuticals and drug delivery systems, initially focused on oncology. The company also has a partnership with Ipsen to research and develop novel DsiRNA therapeutics with targeted delivery in oncology and endocrinology. Dicerna is based in Watertown, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit www.dicerna.com.