Lining up for aptamers

Aptamer company Archemix Corp. says that two deals signed over the last two weeks with Pfizer Inc. and Merck KGaA show that interest in its technology has intensified since it collected the first human data on systemically delivered aptamers with partner Nuvelo Inc. in 2005.

"Originally, our potential partners were quick to remind me that Macugen, the first marketed aptamer, was administered locally in the eye," President and CEO Errol de Souza told BioCentury. "When people saw that, yes, we could give