> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Protiva Biotherapeutics - URL: https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/protiva-biotherapeutics/ - Published: 2026-03-21T17:40:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-03-21T17:41:14.000Z - Author: Liam Sturgess - Tags: Profiles, #docs, #organization, Organization, Biotechnology, Canada, #toc, British Columbia, Pharmaceutical **Protiva Biotherapeutics** was a Canadian biotechnology company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. ## History To improve prospects of successfully advancing gene therapy techniques, a team of scientists at the University of British Columbia (UBC) led by Pieter Cullis developed and patented a new form of lipid nanoparticle (LNP) designed to deliver genetic material to host cells.[\[1\]](#fn1) From 1994 onward, a series of patents were filed describing the technology Cullis and his colleagues created, including the addition of a chemical called polyethylene glycol (PEG) to further increase the LNP’s ability to pass into cells.[\[2\]](#fn2)[\[3\]](#fn3)[\[4\]](#fn4)[\[5\]](#fn5) This included a variation on the LNP design that Cullis developed in 2000 with several colleagues including Ian MacLachlan, which became the basis for a spinoff company the team named Protiva Biotherapeutics, focused entirely on gene therapy.[\[6\]](#fn6)[\[7\]](#fn7) ### Partnerships In 2001, Protiva received a $14.5 million investment from [Lumira Ventures](https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/Lumira-Ventures).[\[8\]](#fn8) Protiva partnered with Roche subsidiary [Alnylam Pharmaceuticals](https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/Alnylam-Pharmaceuticals) in Cambridge, Massachusetts to collaboratively develop products using RNAi to inhibit, or “turn off”, target genes (compared to mRNA, which turns on production of proteins), which bore fruit in a 2006 study demonstrating success silencing genes in monkeys.[\[9\]](#fn9) The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) participated in multiple rounds of investing into Protiva, including $4,950,000 in 2006 and $3,300,000 in 2007.[\[10\]](#fn10) The BDC is wholly owned by the [Government of Canada](https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/Government-of-Canada), meaning the federal government has a potential financial conflict of interest in the [COVID-19 vaccines](https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/COVID-19-vaccine) that later used lipid nanoparticle licenses associated with Protiva. ### Merger with Tekmira On March 30, 2008, Protiva announced it was combining its business with [Tekmira Pharmaceuticals](https://www.whiteroseintelligence.com/Tekmira-Pharmaceuticals), reuniting the intellectual property that had become scattered across several startups out of the University of British Columbia (UBC). The new joint company signed a new deal with Alnylam Pharmaceuticals to allow access to their lipid nanoparticle patents - a key component of achieving their self-described “Alnylam 2020” strategy.[\[11\]](#fn11)[\[12\]](#fn12) ## External links - [Campfire Wiki](https://www.campfire.wiki/doku.php?id=pharmaceutical%5Fcompanies:protiva%5Fbiotherapeutics) --- 1. Kulkarni, J. A., Cullis, P. R., & van der Meel, R. (2018). *Lipid nanoparticles enabling gene therapies: from concepts to clinical utility.* Nucleic Acid Therapeutics, 28(3), 146–157\. [↩︎](#fnref1) 2. Choi, L. S. L., Madden, T. D., & Webb, M. S. (1994, September 30). *Polyethylene glycol modified ceramide lipids and liposome uses thereof.* Canadian Patents Database. [↩︎](#fnref2) 3. Madden, T. D., Cullis, P. R., & Holland, J. W. (1994). *Bilayer stabilizing components and their use in forming programmable fusogenic liposomes (Canadian Intellectual Property Office Patent No. 2201121).* Canadian Patents Database. [↩︎](#fnref3) 4. Cullis, P. R., Fenske, D. B., Hope, M. J., & Wong, K. F. (1995, February 27). *Method for loading lipid vesicles (Canadian Intellectual Property Office Patent No. CA 2213861).* Canadian Patents Database. [↩︎](#fnref4) 5. Cullis, P. R., Choi, L. S. L., Monck, M., & Bailey, A. (1996, April 11). *Fusogenic liposomes (Canadian Intellectual Property Office Patent No. CA 2252055).* Canadian Patent Database. [↩︎](#fnref5) 6. Cullis, P. R., Fenske, D. B., & MacLachlan, I. (2000, October 25). *Lipid formulations for target delivery (Canadian Intellectual Property Office Patent No. CA 2426244).* Canadian Patents Database. [↩︎](#fnref6) 7. Vardi, N. (2021, August 17). *COVID’s forgotten hero: the untold story of the scientist whose breakthrough made the vaccines possible.* Forbes. [↩︎](#fnref7) 8. *FOI Request - HTH-2015-51828.* (2016, February 12). Government of British Columbia. [↩︎](#fnref8) 9. Zimmermann, T. S., Lee, A. C. H., Akinc, A., Bramlage, B., Bumcrot, D., Fedoruk, M. N., Harborth, J., Heyes, J. A., Jeffs, L. B., John, M., Judge, A. D., Lam, K., McClintock, K., Nechev, L. V., Palmer, L. R., Racie, T., Röhl, I., Seiffert, S., Shanmugam, S., & Sood, V. (2006). *RNAi-mediated gene silencing in non-human primates.* Nature, 441(7089), 111–114\. [↩︎](#fnref9) 10. *laura998.* (2018). Protiva Biotherapeutics. RaisedToday. [↩︎](#fnref10) 11. *Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation and Protiva Biotherapeutics announce business combination to create new company focused on RNAi delivery and therapeutics.* (2008, March 31). Fierce Biotech. [↩︎](#fnref11) 12. Lindenboom, C. R., & Brodsky, J. (2021, January 10). *Alnylam launches “Alnylam P5x25” strategy for planned transition to a top five biotech in market capitalization over next five years.* Business Wire; Berkshire Hathaway. [http://archive.today/2022.03.22-160320/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210110005034/en/Alnylam-Launches-“Alnylam-P5x25”-Strategy-for-Planned-Transition-to-a-Top-Five-Biotech-in-Market-Capitalization-Over-Next-Five-Years](http://archive.today/2022.03.22-160320/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210110005034/en/Alnylam-Launches-%E2%80%9CAlnylam-P5x25%E2%80%9D-Strategy-for-Planned-Transition-to-a-Top-Five-Biotech-in-Market-Capitalization-Over-Next-Five-Years) [↩︎](#fnref12)