Triplex Pharmaceutical Corp. announced Tuesday that it hasbeen granted two U.S. patents on triplex technology. The firstpatent, number 5,176,996, to which the private company hasexclusive rights, covers the rules that define the composition ofsynthetic triplex-forming oligonucleotides, the Woodlands, Tex.firm said. The second patent, number 5,175,266, which TriplexPharmaceuticals co-owns with Houston's Baylor College ofMedicine, covers the use and process for preparingoligonucleotides with a phosphate-free internucleosidebackbone.

Triplex Pharmaceutical is developing human therapeuticsbased on triple helix technology, which uses oligonucleotidecompounds designed to bind selectively to DNA and therebyinhibit the production of disease-associated proteins.

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