As per the deal, Mirna will be responsible for the development and commercialization of any products arising under the agreement and Marina Biotech will support pre-clinical and process development efforts.
In addition, Marina Biotech is entitled to receive up to $63m in total upfront, clinical and commercialization milestone payments, as well as royalties on sales, based on the outcome of the collaboration.
Mirna Therapeutics CEO and president Paul Lammers said the company has identified an optimal delivery technology that would allow for systemic administration of their potent miRNA tumor suppressors.
"With the dramatic in vivo results achieved with our miRNA mimics, we believe the Smarticles technology solves the delivery challenge for us, and we are now looking forward to bringing our miRNA mimics into the clinic in the next 18 months as promising targeted cancer therapeutics," Lammers added.