The narrative revolves around John Maraganore and Stanley Crooke, former CEOs of Alnylam and Ionis Pharmaceuticals.
JM: “When we were preparing for our IPO in early 2004, we were surprised and puzzled by a claim from Ionis stating that our activities related to an siRNA therapeutic infringed certain Ionis chemistry patents. We were in the early stages of R&D and years away from commercializing an siRNA therapeutic and thus covered under the ‘safe harbor’ from infringement claims afforded drug developers. Also, we had done extensive diligence on the IP landscape for RNAi at founding and believed we could operate outside of any existing IP. Yet we did recognize that the Ionis claim could affect our IPO, so we initiated negotiations with them.”
SC: “There were a lot of other siRNA would-be companies at the time and we were entertaining proposals from all of them. When I met John and Barry Greene I said… I don’t know whether siRNA is ever going to be a drug, but if it’s going to be a drug it will be with these guys—and so we ended up doing that license. And from there we collaborated on many projects including co-founding a company.”
JM: “The synergy allowed us to do some really good science together. We had very frequent engagements and we also found ways in which we could avoid competition with each other on specific programs which was a smart thing to do. It made sense from a business standpoint. At the same time, Ionis had a partner in the siRNA space that they could count on and Ionis benefited economically from our success as well.”
SC: “So we did all kinds of great stuff together and then… [in 2015] we had a couple of drugs that were directly competitive and we discovered that… we’re both really competitive! We had a falling out and we didn’t talk to each other for a few years…”
[In 2020 Stan Crooke stepped down as Ionis’ CEO to focus on his n-Lorem Foundation which works to provide personalized medicines to the rarest of rare disease patients (nano-rare).]
SC: “As I thought about the patients that we’re trying to serve at n-Lorem, I realized that I needed all the help I could get and John could be an incredibly helpful person for these patients. It made no sense to hang on to whatever bitterness I felt. Still I was very worried when I wrote that email to John asking if he’d like to talk.”
JM: “I never stopped admiring Stan and I was watching the n-Lorem story from afar and thought it was powerful. There’s a phrase in Talmud that ‘whoever saves a single life saves the whole world’. We ultimately got back together. To me it reminded me of a big brother and a younger brother—they get into a fight and but they still come together at the end because they are family.”
SC: “We did come together around a family, and that family is the nano rare patients. And it’s vital to these patients that the two of us work together. I am embarrassed to have waited as long as I did to write to John…”
ps: As I was researching the story, I came across this picture on Stan’s Twitter and I emailed John to get more context. John wrote: “Stan and I were friends and competitors at the same time… what my daughters call “frenemies,” but mostly friends because of our mutual respect for each other! Stan pioneered antisense technology and our success with RNAi couldn’t have happened without him and his passion and zeal. The picture with Henri solidifies our current commitment together to do EVERYTHING for patients, especially for those “forgotten” with N=1 diseases, where most companies won’t go. I’m so grateful to know him and have worked with him.”