HAMDEN, CT March 15, 2009 – RxGen and Santaris Pharma announce the recent conclusion of a highly successful three day scientific meeting in St. Kitts, West Indies. The meeting was designed to engage leading scientists and postdoctoral students working in all aspects of microRNA research in a symposium addressing microRNA biology and its involvement in human disease. The format allowed for the presentation and active discussion of the most recent findings in the field, including basic research and development in multiple model systems, research and bioinformatic strategies, and safety and efficacy evaluations of therapeutics targeting microRNA pathways across various disease models. Attendees included Victor Ambros of UMMS, Greg Hannon of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Eric Olson of UT Southwestern, and other thought leaders in the field, providing a unique venue for fostering collaborative research related to novel diagnostic and therapeutic development, The event also provided a truly one of a kind training and educational experience for post-doctoral students that were invited to participate. The field of microRNA biology is a fast moving, demanding ongoing collaboration to improve our understanding of its biomedical potential. Appreciating the many implications of this emerging biology for human health, RxGen and Santaris are eager to continue in their organization and sponsorship of such symposia. The meeting organizing committee included Gregory Hannon (CSHL), Sakari Kauppinen (Santaris), and Matthew Lawrence (RxGen).
About microRNAs
MicroRNAs are endogenous 23-nucleotide regulatory RNAs that can pair to complementary sites in mRNAs of protein-coding genes to downregulate the expression from these transcripts, and additionally upregulate the expression of other genes in complex regulatory pathways that have yet to fully elucidated. By influencing the evolution and stability of many mRNAs, microRNAs act as cellular rheostats to fine-tune protein production and maintain homeostasis. As such microRNAs are increasingly appreciated to play important roles in development and disease, representing an important new class of potential therapeutic targets. MicroRNA biology is an emerging field with tremendous potential to advance understanding of human disease, which promises to lead to the development and clinical implementation of novel therapeutic treatments for a wide range of disorders, including cancer, cardiovascular, metabolic, cardiovascular, neurologic and infectious diseases. Since initially being described by Victor Ambros’s lab in 1993, microRNAs have been demonstrated to play a role in an ever expanding number of developmental and pathological pathways, with over 5000 pubmed citations as of mid-2009 that have grown significantly per annum, reflecting a pace of discovery that generates sufficient new understanding to support a recurring yearly meeting to productively address advances in understanding of microRNAs in human disease
