Mirus Bio LLC (formerly Mirus Bio Corporation), develops and manufactures

transfection Transfection is the process of deliberately introducing naked or purified nucleic acids into eukaryotic cells. It may also refer to other methods and cell types, although other terms are often preferred: "transformation" is typically used to desc ...

reagents, electroporation solutions and related products for

life science Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy t ...

research.

History

Mirus Corporation was founded in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

in 1995 by three

University of Wisconsin - Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which rou ...

scientists: Jon A. Wolff, James E. Hagstrom and Vladimir G. Budker. Mirus focused on developing innovative non-viral gene delivery technologies for

gene therapy Gene therapy is a medical field which focuses on the genetic modification of cells to produce a therapeutic effect or the treatment of disease by repairing or reconstructing defective genetic material. The first attempt at modifying human DN ...

applications. These innovations also served as the basis for the company's

formulations and nucleic acid labeling and conjugation chemistries. Mirus researchers published several groundbreaking achievements including: the first demonstrations that

plasmid A plasmid is a small, extrachromosomal DNA molecule within a cell that is physically separated from chromosomal DNA and can replicate independently. They are most commonly found as small circular, double-stranded DNA molecules in bacteria; how ...

DNA could be effectively delivered to the rodent

liver The liver is a major Organ (anatomy), organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for ...

and

skeletal muscle Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other types of muscl ...

cells using rapid intravascular injections; the first demonstration that ‘caged’ DNA-containing

nanoparticles A nanoparticle or ultrafine particle is usually defined as a particle of matter that is between 1 and 100 nanometres (nm) in diameter. The term is sometimes used for larger particles, up to 500 nm, or fibers and tubes that are less than 1 ...

are resistant to aggregation under physiologic salt conditions; the first demonstration of siRNA-mediated knockdown of an endogenously expressed gene in mice; development of low-toxicity, DNA-containing nanoparticles for gene delivery to the

lungs The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side of th ...

; development of a clinically viable, high efficiency method for delivering plasmid DNA into mammalian skeletal muscle; development of a genetic immunization method for research animals; development of a technology for targeted delivery of siRNA to mouse liver; new chemistries for transfection; development of a non-viral vector providing sustained liver-specific transgene expression for more than one year.Wooddell C, Reppen T, Wolff, JA, Herweijer H. Sustained liver-specific transgene expression from the albumin promoter in mice following hydrodynamic plasmid DNA delivery. J Gene Med10:551, 2008. In 2008 the Therapeutics Division was acquired by Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. Mirus’ former Research Tools Division remains an independent entity now known as Mirus Bio LLC.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Biotechnology companies of the United States