The UK government is investing almost £30 million to establish a specialised facility to support the development of new RNA therapies, it has been announced.
The UK RNA Biofoundry, which will be based at CPI’s RNA Centre of Excellence in Darlington, will give UK scientists and businesses working in the field the necessary tools to progress their ideas and speed up the rate that new RNA therapies get to market and into the hands of patients.
RNA therapies are a class of treatments that use RNA-based molecules to modulate gene expression in order to prevent or treat certain diseases. They are currently being explored for a variety of conditions including cancer, heart disease and some genetic disorders. Messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines were vital in the development of novel vaccines for the prevention of Covid-19 during the pandemic, and this success reignited interest in RNA-based therapies.
Manufacturing clinical grade RNA on the scales needed for early trials is costly and complex, however the UK government said the ‘unique and specialised’ facility would act as a ‘high-tech workshop’ for manufacturing RNA materials affordably, quickly and to the necessary clinical standard. The facility will also be able to switch to vaccine production if required to help ensure the UK’s resilience to future pandemics.
‘RNA therapies are a new frontier in healthcare,’ said the UK science minister, Patrick Vallance. ‘With their ability to reprogramme our cells, and adapt to different diseases, they could be the answer to many treatments the British public are desperately in need of, tackling cancers, infectious diseases and more,’ he added. ‘This new biofoundry will accelerate the journey RNA therapies take from labs to the markets, to give our innovators the best opportunities to turn their great ideas into the lifesaving treatments for our NHS patients, and faster.’
Jane Wall, managing director of the UK BioIndustry Association, said RNA technology holds ‘great promise’ for healthcare and UK economic growth. ‘By creating the right conditions for growth through infrastructure, investment and partnerships, we can accelerate the translation of cutting-edge RNA research into new medicines and vaccines for NHS patients and export around the world,’ she said. ‘Investments such as this are critical to ensure the UK leads the world in innovative approaches to manufacturing and reinforcing the UK’s position as a global leader in life sciences.’
The biofoundry is an early step in the delivery of the recently published Life Sciences Sector plan, which outlines targeted actions to support research and development, attract investment, grow advanced manufacturing and accelerate health innovations. It follows on from the UK government’s Industrial Strategy, published in June, which set out aspirations for the UK to be the leading life sciences economy in Europe by 2030, and the third globally by 2035, after the US and China.
This boost for RNA-based research in the UK comes shortly after the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in the US terminated 22 mRNA vaccine research projects, totalling $500 million (£370 million) in funding. During a 5 August briefing, HHS secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr claimed the Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated that ‘mRNA vaccines don’t perform well against viruses that infect the upper respiratory tract’ and that the HHS had ‘determined that mRNA technology poses more risks than benefits for these respiratory viruses’.
No comments yet