SAN FRANCISCO, March 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sirna
Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:RNAI) today reported financial results
for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2005. For the
quarter ended December 31, 2005, Sirna reported a net loss of $5.8
million, or $0.10 per share, compared to a net loss of $8.9
million, or $0.23 per share, for the same period in 2004. Net loss
for the year ended December 31, 2005 was $23.9 million, or $0.48
per share, compared to $28.9 million, or $0.81 per share, for the
same period last year. Revenues for the fourth quarter of 2005 were
$1.0 million, up from $692,000 for the same quarter in 2004.
Revenues for the twelve months ended December 31, 2005 were $4.9
million compared to $1.5 million during the same period in 2004.
Revenues increased during 2005 compared to 2004 primarily due to a
$1.8 million success milestone payment received in July 2005
related to its oncology collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company,
and a $1.7 million increase in contract manufacturing revenues. In
addition, the Company recognized $417,000 in revenue from the $5.0
million cash up-front fee received from Allergan, Inc., in
September 2005. This up-front fee is being amortized over the
development period. Operating expenses decreased to $7.3 million
and $29.9 million for the three and twelve-month periods ended
December 31, 2005, respectively, compared to $9.6 million and $30.6
million for the same periods in 2004. The quarter-to-quarter
decrease is primarily due to a $1.9 million R&D expense in the
fourth quarter of 2004 related to the acquisition of Skinetics,
Inc., which has become the foundation for the Company's dermatology
program. Sirna ended the fourth quarter with $45.7 million in cash
and marketable securities. The Company expects to use approximately
$25.0 million in cash to fund 2006 operations, to be partially
offset by potential new collaboration fees received during the
year. "Sirna had an exciting fourth quarter," stated Howard W.
Robin, Sirna President and CEO. "Most importantly, we selected a
clinical candidate, Sirna-034, in our hepatitis C antiviral
program. This candidate was selected on the basis of impressive
systemic efficacy in multiple animal model systems, including
non-human primates, which is a first in the field of RNAi-based
therapeutics. We expect to initiate Phase 1 clinical trial enabling
toxicology studies this month and to file an IND for Sirna-034 in
the fourth quarter this year." Recent highlights include: * The
completion of Phase 1 clinical trial of Sirna-027 for age-related
macular degeneration demonstrated that Sirna's short interfering
RNA (siRNA) molecule targeting Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor
Receptor-1 (VEGFR-1) is safe and well tolerated. Twenty-five of 26
patients (96%) showed visual acuity stabilization and 23% of those
patients experiencing clinically significant improvement in visual
acuity eight weeks after a single injection. The trial also showed
a relevant decrease in central foveal thickness measured by ocular
coherence tomography (OCT), which is the first demonstration of
biological activity of a siRNA in humans. * The selection of
Sirna's hepatitis C virus (HCV) drug candidate, Sirna-034. The
compound consists of multiple, chemically optimized, siRNAs
formulated in Sirna's proprietary nanoparticle technology. These
siRNAs target highly conserved sequences in the Hepatitis C viral
genome and is designed to inhibit viral replication and
dramatically reduce the generation of drug resistant mutant
variants. In preparation for Phase 1 clinical trials, Sirna has
begun manufacturing material for its preclinical toxicology studies
to be followed by the filing of an IND application with the FDA
during fourth quarter of 2006. Sirna is the first company to
demonstrate systemic efficacy of siRNAs in non-human primates. *
The exclusive worldwide license to the Rana Patents on
chemically-modified short interfering RNA (siRNA) from the
University of Massachusetts. The license is complimentary to
Sirna's existing chemical modification-related intellectual
property portfolio, which collectively provide Sirna a strong
patent position in the discovery, development and commercialization
of chemically optimized siRNAs. In addition, in January the United
States Patent and Trademark Office granted Sirna U.S. Patent No.
6,989,442 for the chemical synthesis and manufacturing of
ribonucleic acids (RNA). The patent broadly covers a process for
the synthesis, deprotection and purification of nucleic acids with
one or more ribonucleotides. * The addition of the company to the
NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (NASDAQ:^NBI), effective on November 21,
2005. Howard W. Robin and the Sirna senior management team will
discuss progress to date in Sirna's clinical and preclinical
programs, business development efforts as well as the fourth
quarter financial results during a conference call on Wednesday,
March 1st at 4:30 p.m. EST (2:30 p.m. MST and 1:30 p.m. PST). A
live audio webcast of the call will be available at the Company's
corporate web site at http://www.sirna.com/. Participants are urged
to log on to the web site 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start
time to download and install any necessary audio software. To
access the live telephonic broadcast, domestic callers should dial
(877) 502-9274; international callers may dial (913) 981-5584. An
audio webcast replay will be available on Sirna's web site,
http://www.sirna.com/, for 30 days. Additionally, a telephonic
replay of the call will be maintained through midnight, Wednesday,
March 15, 2006. To access the replay, please dial (888) 203-1112
from the U.S. or (719) 457-0820 when calling internationally, using
confirmation code 5659654. About Sirna Therapeutics Sirna
Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing
RNAi-based therapies for serious diseases and conditions, including
age-related macular degeneration (AMD), hepatitis B and C,
dermatology, asthma, Huntington's disease, diabetes and oncology.
Sirna Therapeutics has presented interim Phase 1 clinical trial
data for its most advanced compound, Sirna-027, a chemically
optimized siRNA targeting the clinically validated vascular
endothelial growth factor pathway to treat AMD. Sirna-027, which
has been partnered with Allergan, Inc., has demonstrated that it is
safe and well tolerated with 25 of 26 patients showing visual
acuity stabilization and 23% of those patients experiencing
clinically significant improvement in visual acuity eight weeks
after a single injection. In addition, Sirna recently announced
that it has selected Sirna-034, a systemically delivered, optimized
siRNA compound, as its candidate for advancement to human clinical
testing against Hepatitis C virus. Sirna has a leading intellectual
property portfolio in RNAi with 49 issued patents and over 240
pending applications worldwide. More information on Sirna
Therapeutics is available on the Company's web site at
http://www.sirna.com/. Safe Harbor Statement Statements in this
press release which are not strictly historical are
"forward-looking" statements which should be considered as subject
to many risks and uncertainties. For example, most drug candidates
do not become approved drugs. The development of Sirna-027 and
Sirna-034 as well as Sirna's other programs are still at a
relatively early stage and subject to significant risks and
unknowns. Moreover, Sirna's ability to develop products and operate
as a going concern requires significant cash to fund its operating
programs. Additional risks and uncertainties include Sirna's early
stage of development and short operating history, Sirna's history
and expectation of losses and need to raise capital, the rate at
which Sirna uses cash, the timing of receipt of development
milestone payments from collaborating partners, Sirna's need to
obtain clinical validation and regulatory approval for products,
Sirna's need to obtain and protect intellectual property, risk of
third-party patent infringement claims, Sirna's need to attract and
retain qualified personnel, Sirna's need to engage collaborators,
availability of materials for product manufacturing, the highly
competitive nature of the pharmaceutical market, the limited
trading volume and history of volatility of Sirna's common stock,
Sirna's concentration of stock ownership, and risks from relocating
Sirna headquarters. These and additional risk factors are
identified in Sirna's Securities and Exchange Commission filings,
including the Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in other SEC filings. Sirna
undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking
statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may
arise after the date of this release. Contacts: Gregory Weaver, SVP
Finance and Chief Financial Officer, Sirna Therapeutics, Inc.,
415-281-2700 Francesca DeMartino of The Ruth Group, 646-536-7020
SIRNA THERAPEUTICS, INC. CONDENSED BALANCE SHEET (in thousands)
December 31, December 31, 2005 2004 Assets Cash, cash equivalents
and securities available-for-sale $45,692 $36,083 Accounts
receivable 23 66 Property, plant and equipment, net 1,906 2,507
Other assets, net 1,896 2,901 Total assets $49,517 $41,557
Liabilities and stockholders' equity Current liabilities $6,549
$6,855 Deferred revenue -- long term 2,917 -- Long-term liabilities
275 375 Stockholders' equity 39,776 34,327 Total liabilities &
stockholders' equity $49,517 $41,557 SIRNA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Unaudited) (in thousands,
except per share amounts) Three months ended Twelve months ended
December 31, December 31, 2005 2004 2005 2004 Revenue Contract
revenues $419 $546 $2,366 $687 Contract revenues-manufacturing 592
146 2,532 860 Total revenues 1,011 692 4,898 1,547 Expenses Cost of
goods sold 434 129 2,097 792 Research and development 4,636 5,913
20,138 21,137 General and administrative 2,240 1,686 7,642 6,740
Acquired in-process research and development -- 1,883 -- 1,883
Total expenses 7,310 9,611 29,877 30,552 Operating loss (6,299)
(8,919) (24,979) (29,005) Interest income, expense and other
expense 524 61 1,062 148 Net loss $(5,775) $(8,858) $(23,917)
$(28,857) Net loss per share (basic and diluted) $(0.10) $(0.23)
$(0.48) $(0.81) Shares used in computing net loss per share 59,570
38,209 49,438 35,795 DATASOURCE: Sirna Therapeutics, Inc. CONTACT:
Gregory Weaver, SVP Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Sirna
Therapeutics, Inc., +1-415-281-2700; or Francesca DeMartino of The
Ruth Group, +1-646-536-7020, for Sirna Therapeutics, Inc. Web site:
http://www.sirna.com/
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