Cequent Pharmaceuticals

About Cequent Pharmaceuticals

Cequent Pharmaceuticals, Inc. operated as an early-stage biopharmaceutical company, established in 2006 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with a focus on developing a new class of drugs based on RNA interference (RNAi). The company was founded by Dr. Chiang J. Li, who also served as the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Li, an MD graduate from Harvard Medical School and a faculty member at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, leveraged his research team's invention of transkingdom RNAi (tkRNAi) as the foundation of the company.

Cequent’s core business revolved around its proprietary TransKingdom RNAi (tkRNAi) platform. This technology addressed a primary challenge in the RNAi field: the effective delivery of RNAi molecules to target cells. The tkRNAi process utilized engineered, non-pathogenic bacteria as a vehicle to produce and deliver short hairpin RNA (shRNA) directly into target cells to silence specific disease-causing genes. This method was designed to be administered orally or intravenously, after which the bacteria would be naturally degraded by the host's cells. The company's initial drug candidates targeted the prevention of colon cancer and treatments for inflammatory bowel disease. One of its lead candidates, CEQ501, was an oral therapeutic for Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP), a genetic precursor to colon cancer.

The company's business model focused on the research and development of these novel therapeutics, backed by venture capital. Cequent raised a total of $12.4 million over two funding rounds from investors including Novartis Venture Fund, Gold Hill Capital, and Ampersand Ventures. In April 2010, a definitive agreement was announced for Cequent to be acquired by MDRNA, Inc. in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $46 million. The acquisition was completed in July 2010, and the combined entity was renamed Marina Biotech, Inc., aiming to merge Cequent's tkRNAi delivery platform with MDRNA's existing RNAi technologies. Following the merger, Marina Biotech continued the clinical development of Cequent's lead program, CEQ508, for FAP.