- Research papers focused on the importance of LNP structures and injection route in developing better LNP non-viral gene therapies for autoimmune diseases and metabolic disorders, such as diabetes.
- The studies also show the potential of HighField’s unique lipid-based drug development platforms for designing antibody conjugated tLNPs for gene editing of T cells, B cells, NK cells, endothelial cells and hematopoietic stem cells.
HANGZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HighField Biopharmaceuticals, a clinical stage company using lipid-based therapeutics to treat cancer and other diseases, announced today publication of two scientific journal articles revealing the importance of LNP structure design on the in vivo behavior of LNPs in delivering RNA molecules.
The studies in the Journal of Controlled Release (JRC) and Pharmaceutical Research examine in vivo behavior of mRNA LNP vaccines and reveal how LNP particle size, distribution and internal structure affect the safety and efficacy of the gene therapies.
“LNPs have achieved significant success for non-viral gene delivery, particularly in COVID-19 vaccines, but not much has been known about how the LNP structure affects bioactivity,” said HighField CEO and Scientific Founder Yuhong Xu, Ph.D.
In the December 2024 JRC article, titled “Characterization of mRNA-LNP structural features and mechanisms for enhanced mRNA vaccine immunogenicity,” Dr. Xu and her colleagues commented that LNPs are routinely characterized by their particle size and polydispersity, but the internal structure of these particles was not specified.
“The significance of our study is that we now know the LNP structure is important for determining mRNA distribution and activities in vivo; much more so than the contribution of particular lipid structures,” Dr. Xu explained.
The JRC research was a follow-on study to another paper, titled Biodistribution and Non-linear Gene Expression of mRNA LNPs Affected by Delivery Route and Particle Size.” The paper earned Dr. Xu and her co-authors the AAPS’s 2024 award for Pharmaceutical Research High Impact Article.
The two studies support HighField’s approach for designing LNPs with stable lipid membrane structures (mLNP) and multiple surface anchored antibodies (tLNP) to expand the application of cell and gene therapies to a broad range of complex diseases and enable the sustained release of therapeutic proteins along with the interaction and transfection of specific cell types.
HighField’s pipeline of non-viral gene therapy candidates includes HFG1, an mLNP that provides expression of a GLP-1R agonist for weight loss and diabetes; and HFG2, a tLNP for cell specific gene editing ex vivo and in vivo.
Dr. Xu said the company’s tLNPs have the potential to replace recombinant viruses for gene editing of given cell types such as T cells, B cells, endothelial cells, and hematopoietic stem cells. She added that HighField is focusing on metabolic diseases, and autoimmune and neurodegenerative conditions.
In addition to its tLNP platform, HighField has antibody targeted liposomes (immunoliposomes) with its LipoADCplexTM and TRAFsomeTM platforms for safer, more effective cancer immunotherapies.
About HighField Biopharmaceuticals
HighField is a clinical stage company focused on novel applications of liposome constructs to disrupt existing immuno-oncology and other disease technologies. The company also has a research and development center and a GMP-compliant production facility. HighField’s lead clinical development program is HF1K16, a drug encapsulated immune modulating liposome containing all-trans retinoic acid targeting myeloid-derived suppressor cells for treatment of solid tumors. The company’s pipeline also includes drug encapsulated immunoliposomes for solid tumor cancers and lipid therapeutics for gene delivery and gene therapy. For more information visit https://highfieldbio.com.
Contacts
Business Development Contact:
Silver Jiang
jiangxy@hf-biopharm.com
Media Contact:
Dan Eramian
Opus Biotech Communications
danieleramian@comcast.net
425-306-8716
