* Q4 loss/share $0.17 vs. est loss/shr $0.11

* Q4 revenue $32.3 mln vs. est $26.8 mln

* Sees higher cost related to R&D in 2010

March 1 - Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc (ISIS.O) posted a wider-than-expected quarterly loss and said it expects a reduction in 2010 revenue, citing the completion of amortization of certain upfront fees.

For the fourth quarter, the company posted a net loss of $16.8 million, or 17 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $10.3 million, or 11 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Revenue for the quarter rose 9 percent to $32.3 million.

Analysts on average expected the company to post a net loss of 11 cents a share, on revenue of $26.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The company said it sees expects operating expenses to increase modestly in 2010 due to higher research and development activities. It also projected a 2010 pro forma net operating loss in the mid $50 million range.

Isis also said it plans to report results from a late-stage study for its experimental cholesterol-lowering drug mipomersen by mid 2010 and file new drug applications for the drug in the United States and Europe in the first half of 2011 with partner Genzyme Corp (GENZ.O).

Shares of the company closed at $8.84 Friday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Krishnakali Sengupta in Bangalore; Editing by Aradhana Aravindan)