Orlรฉans at the Forefront of mRNA Revolution: From Cancer Vaccines to Novel Therapies
Orlรฉans, France – November 21, 2023 – A quiet revolution is underway at the โCenter de Recherche en Thรฉrapie Gรฉnique (ART)โ in Orlรฉans, โขas researchers unlock the vast potential of messenger RNA (mRNA) technology, extending farโข beyond its well-known success in โคCOVID-19 vaccines. The workโฃ in Orlรฉans focuses on tackling challenging diseases, includingโ aggressive cancers like pancreatic cancer, and exploring mRNA’s applications in metabolic,โข rare,โ genetic diseases, and even allergies.
“RNA contains many other possibilities,” explains Chantal Pichon, director of ART, โhighlighting the breadth of potential applications. “It can be used to boost immunity or compensate for poor cell functioningโฆ”
Theโ global race to develop โขtherapeuticโข mRNA vaccines is accelerating, with over 200 clinical trials โcurrently in progress, primarily in the โขUnited States, spearheaded by industry giants like Moderna, Pfizer, BioNTech, Merck, and Sanofi, as well as a โขsurge of young โขAmerican companies. China and โคJapan are also heavily invested in the field, as evidenced by BioNTech’s recent $1.25 billion acquisition of fellow mRNA pioneer โCureVac.
Despite the dominance of American companies, France boasts significant โexpertise in the field, with Pichon โpointing to “pioneers like รric Westhof in Strasbourg โคand RNAโ chemists, whichโ isโ very rare.” ART Orlรฉans playsโ a crucial role in โthe process, focusing โon the critical steps of RNA production, encapsulation for safe delivery into the body, and rigorous testing for โtoxicity and efficacy.
“We โproduce different RNAs, we โขencapsulate them to be able to โฃdeliver them intoโ the human body, and we test themโข on cells, to verify that there is no toxicity, and that it effectively works,” details Dimitri Szymczak.
A key area of innovationโ at โART โคis developing a cost-effective option to customary in vitro RNA โคproduction, which is often patented and expensive. By โproducing RNA in yeast, researchers aim to reduce costs by a โขfactor of ten to โfifty, though โpurification remains necessaryโฃ to meet pharmaceutical standards.
Currently, a dedicated team โคis focusedโ on a novel approach to treating pancreatic โcancer, a disease with historically poor outcomes. Dr. Birane Beye, a โgastroenterologist,โ notes the โlimited progress in survival โฃrates: “We went from 5% in 2000 to 10% today, or five points better in twenty years, which proves that therapies suchโข as chemotherapy or immunotherapy do not work very well.”
The โคteam is pioneering a โcombined strategy utilizing โคan mRNA vaccine and high-frequency ultrasound technology. The mRNA vaccine aims to “teach immune cells to defend themselves against this very aggressive cancer,” while the ultrasound is designed to overcome the tumor’s protective barrier. โ “High frequencyโ ultrasound, very powerful, are used for drive vibrations inside the tissues โwhich will generate gas bubbles: by exploding, these bubbles will destroy the barrier surrounding pancreatic cancer,โ which looks a bit like โฃa bunker, and allow the RNA vaccine to penetrate the tumor,” explains Dr. Beye.
“We combine the two to boost the treatment,” Pichon summarizes.โ Complementary research at theโข Toulouse cancer researchโค center (CRCT) isโค focused on overcoming cancer’s resistance โคtoโ chemotherapy.
While ultrasound-based technology has already demonstrated improvements inโ pancreatic cancer treatment outcomes, the efficacyโฃ of combining it with mRNA remains to be proven. Further funding will be criticalโค to continue this promising research,notably as today,Novemberโ 20th,marks World Pancreatic Cancer Day. The work in Orlรฉans represents a significantโ step forward in harnessing the power ofโค mRNA to address some of the most challengingโข medical conditions facing humanity.
