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miRagen to Present at the DIA/FDA Oligonucleotide-Based Therapeutics Conference Today
BOULDER, Colo., Oct. 28, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- miRagen Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: MGEN), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing proprietary RNA-targeted therapies with a specific focus on microRNAs, will present an overview of its novel second generation miR-29 mimics (MRG-229) at the DIA/FDA Oligonucleotide-Based Therapeutics Conference in Bethesda, Maryland, today. In a separate session at the conference, miRagen will also review clinical development of its microRNA inhibitors. The Company will report on the effects of MRG-229, a preclinical miR-29 mimic product candidate, in both in vitro and in vivo animal models of lung fibrosis. These include the bleomycin induced pulmonary fibrosis model in rodents, in normal human lung fibroblasts (NHLF) in vitro, and in human lung slices treated with profibrotic agents, all of which demonstrated reductions in the levels of a variety of fibrosis markers. Specifically, the presentation will highlight the following:
“We are encouraged by the second generation miR-29 mimics data presented to date. We believe these new molecules have been demonstrated to be more potent, have longer duration of action, and better tissue distribution than previously tested compounds,” said Paul Rubin, M.D., Executive Vice President, R&D, of miRagen Therapeutics. William S. Marshall, President and CEO of miRagen Therapeutics, added, “We believe these novel second generation miR-29 mimics could become systemic treatments for indications where pathological fibrosis has been implicated in the lung and the liver, including IPF and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Patients with IPF have been documented to show reduced levels of miR-29 in their lungs, and low miR-29 levels have been shown to correlate with poorer survival in these patients. IPF affects more than 3 million patients world-wide resulting in significant morbidity and mortality despite existing therapies.” In a Phase 1 clinical trial with healthy human volunteers, remlarsen, miRagen’s first generation miR-29 replacement, was administered through incisional wounds and was observed to be safe and well tolerated, and treatment was observed to result in a decrease in fibrosis or scarring, without effecting wound healing. miRagen has also previosly reported that miR-29 replacement with remlarsen was observed to reduce scar formation in animal models of retinal fibrosis and corneal injury. There are multiple pathologic conditions resulting in exaggerated fibrosis of the skin and of the eyes that are without beneficial pharmacological therapies, including keloid and hypertrophic scarring in the skin and fibrosis of the retina and cornea. About miRagen Therapeutics, Inc. Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties for purposes of the safe harbor provided by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release other than statements of historical fact, including statements regarding miRagen’s strategy, future operations, future financial position, future revenue, projected expenses, prospects, plans and objectives of management or the expected features of or potential indications for miRagen’s product candidates are forward-looking statements. The words “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “expect,” “predict,” “potential,” “opportunity,” “goals,” or “should,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management’s current expectations and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results and performance could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of many factors, including, without limitation: that miRagen has incurred losses since its inception, and anticipates that it will continue to incur significant losses for the foreseeable future; future financing activities may cause miRagen to restrict its operations or require it to relinquish rights; miRagen may fail to demonstrate safety and efficacy of its product candidates; miRagen’s product candidates are unproven and may never lead to marketable products; miRagen’s product candidates are based on a relatively novel technology, which makes it difficult to predict the time and cost of development and of subsequently obtaining regulatory approval, if at all; miRagen’s product candidates may cause undesirable side effects or have other properties that could delay or prevent the regulatory approval; and the results of miRagen’s clinical trials to date are not sufficient to show safety and efficacy of miRagen’s product candidates and may not be indicative of future clinical trial results. miRagen has based these forward-looking statements largely on its current expectations and projections about future events and trends. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those described under the heading “Risk Factors” in miRagen’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Moreover, miRagen operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for its management to predict all risks, nor can it assess the impact of all factors on its business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements it may make. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the future events and trends discussed in this press release may not occur and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. miRagen undertakes no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to such forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Investor Relations Contact: |