Phillip Sharp on intellectual property

"RNA doesn't have the potential to cure difficult diseases. It has already demonstrated it's real." That's Nobel Laureate Phillip Sharp on why the same technology behind COVID vaccines is now treating genetic diseases that were once untreatable. In 1977, Sharp made a discovery that stunned the scientific world: human genes come in pieces. That finding won him the Nobel Prize in 1993—and laid the foundation for an entirely new class of medicines. He went on to co-found Biogen in 1978 and Alnylam in 2002, helping build the biotech industry from scratch. In this conversation with Ravi Sarathy, Sharp reveals what it actually takes to turn breakthrough science into breakthrough medicine: 16 years of development, over $2 billion raised, clinical trial failures, market skepticism, and the persistence to keep going when everyone else said it couldn't be done. You'll discover: What it felt like to get "the call" from Sweden at 6 AM on a Monday morning Why Millennium passed on RNAi ("too far down the road")—and how that rejection created the buzz Alnylam needed The patent strategy that gave Alnylam "freedom to operate" in a skeptical market How lipid nanoparticle technology developed for RNAi became the backbone of COVID vaccines Why rare diseases were the entry point—and how that's expanding to Alzheimer's The phase 3 failure that forced a complete redesign How RNAi compares to CRISPR gene editing Whether you're a scientist, biotech entrepreneur, or investor, this is a masterclass in translating fundamental research into medicines that change lives. ABOUT THE GUEST: Dr. Phillip Sharp is MIT Institute Professor Emeritus and 1993 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine for discovering RNA splicing. He co-founded Biogen (1978) and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (2002), pioneering the biotech industry and RNAi therapeutics. His work contributed to treatments for rare genetic diseases and the lipid nanoparticle technology used in COVID vaccines. He has mentored generations of scientists and entrepreneurs while serving on numerous biotech company boards. Learn more about Dr. Phillip Sharp: https://ki.mit.edu/people/faculty/sharp PBS Documentary "Cracking the Code: Phil Sharp and the Biotech Revolution" Premieres October 6, 2025 at 10 PM on PBS INDEPENDENT LENS Watch on PBS: https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/d... Stream on PBS App: Available after broadcast CHAPTERS: 0:00 - "RNA Has Already Demonstrated It's Real" 0:49 - Introduction to Dr. Phillip Sharp 1:58 - What It Takes to Win a Nobel Prize 3:10 - The 1977 Discovery: Genes Come in Pieces 4:00 - The Call from Sweden at 6 AM 5:06 - The Nobel Ceremony Experience 6:24 - From Science to Business: The RNAi Opportunity 8:22 - The 1998 Discovery That Changed Everything 10:06 - Pitching Millennium (And Getting Rejected) 10:46 - Building the Founding Team 13:17 - The Critical Importance of Patents 16:23 - Acquiring Key Technologies for Delivery 18:10 - Lipid Nanoparticles: From RNAi to COVID Vaccines 18:46 - Choosing Which Diseases to Target 21:08 - The Lock and Key: Designing siRNA for Specific Genes 22:28 - Hereditary TTR: The First FDA-Approved Drug 23:00 - The Orphan Drug Act and Rare Diseases 24:23 - The Not-So-Smooth Path: 16 Years to Market 25:45 - Financing Strategy: Research Agreements, IPOs, and Debt 28:04 - Setbacks and How Alnylam Responded 30:31 - The Phase 3 Failure That Forced a Redesign 31:42 - International Clinical Trials and Global Markets 35:22 - RNAi as a Platform: Competition and Positioning 38:45 - From Rare Diseases to Chronic Conditions 41:40 - The Alzheimer's Opportunity 43:40 - RNAi vs. CRISPR: Complementary Approaches 47:40 - Alnylam Today: $60B Market Cap, Path to Profitability 49:05 - Advice for Young Scientists and Biotech Entrepreneurs 53:08 - The PBS Documentary: "Cracking the Code" 55:00 - Balancing Career, Family, and Impact ABOUT THE SHOW: International Business Today explores critical issues in global business with top academic experts and thought leaders. Hosted by professors from Northeastern University's D'Amore-McKim School of Business. Subscribe:    / @internationalbusinesstoday   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2y21Xex... Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast... #NobelPrize #Biotech #RNA #Alnylam #Biogen #PhillipSharp #DrugDevelopment #RNAi #GeneTherapy #Pharmaceuticals #ScientificEntrepreneurship #MIT #COVIDVaccine #LipidNanoparticle #RareDiseases