The center will provide a single point of entry for drug discovery and development innovators to access new capabilities in intracellular drug delivery. (Credit: CPI)

Funded by Innovate UK’s Transforming Medicines Manufacturing program, with a grant of £10 million ($12.6 million) over three years, a new center will provide a single point of entry for drug discovery and development innovators to access new capabilities in intracellular drug delivery.

The partnership is the first of its kind in the UK and will investigate and develop new lipid nanoparticle (LNP) formulations for the delivery of RNA medicine, and a frame-work to develop next-generation nano delivery systems.

The Intracellular Drug Delivery Centre will help predict the stability, efficacy, performance, and any potential adverse reactions of RNA vaccines and therapeutics. This will help unlock the potential of RNA-based medicines, creating greater access to cutting-edge, cost-effective vaccines, and therapeutics for the benefit of patients.

“We’re excited to be leading this novel partnership, bringing together leading experts in intracellular drug delivery,” says Dr. Juliana Haggerty, head of the Intracellular Drug Discovery Centre at CPI. “This unique collaboration can provide the industry with unparalleled access to cutting-edge technologies to accelerate drug design, development, characterization, and manufacture. The new center will make it easier for industry to access expertise in this important sector.”

The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the enormous potential of nucleic acids — the building blocks of mRNA vaccines; but significant innovation is needed to develop new nucleic-acid-based therapies, understand how they work in the body, and improve manufacturing processes.

Industry needs novel drug-delivery systems, such as LNPs, to support and complement RNA therapeutic developments. Current LNP systems are expensive to access, so identifying novel, cost-effective alternative delivery methods will promote access to nucleic-acid-based vaccines and therapeutics not just in the UK, but around the world.

The new drug-delivery center will provide industry with the much-needed infrastructure to address these challenges and will build on the outstanding expertise and know-how of all partners. According to CPI, the center is also designed to also attract inward investment and to promote resilience and sustainable growth in the UK healthcare ecosystem in order to meet key objectives of its Transforming Medicines Manufacturing program.

There will also be a strong emphasis on training and developing the future workforce through courses and network building for early-career researchers. The funding will cover additional state-of-the-art equipment at its facilities in Sedgefield in the North East of England, along with complementary capability development for its partners.

“Lipid nanoparticles have proven to be a valuable platform for the targeted delivery of medicines and vaccines. Collaborations between industry and academia, such as this new Intracellular Drug Delivery Centre, will be crucial in pushing this technology forward and helping us to deliver the next generation of RNA-based vaccines,” says Prof. Robin Shattock, chair in Mucosal Infection and Immunity at Imperial College London.

The center’s vision is to enable people to live longer, healthier lives and drive economic growth in the health and life sciences sector through innovation, according to Dr. Sarah Goulding, executive director, Healthy Living and Agriculture Domain at Innovate UK. “Nucleic-acid-based therapies and vaccines have emerged as exciting new medicines, and developing innovative formulations is a key step to addressing unmet medical needs for patients,” she says. “Innovate UK is investing in this collaboration to drive and de-risk novel technology to improve the targeted delivery of novel medicines, building a leading UK capability for this sector.” The center will provide new capabilities for mRNA-based drug development and manufacture of cost-effective vaccines and therapeutics in the UK, boosting not only economic growth but also security of supply, according to Prof. Yvonne Perrie, head of Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Strathclyde.

CPI is an independent innovation center. For more information, visit here  .

Read the report “Shaping the UK into an epicentre for complex medicines.”

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Shaping the UK Into an Epicentre for Complex Medicines

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    Medical Design Briefs Magazine

    This article first appeared in the August, 2023 issue of Medical Design Briefs Magazine (Vol. 13 No. 8).

    Read more articles from this issue here.

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    Overview

    The "State of the Discovery Nation 2021" report, produced by the Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) and CPI, provides a comprehensive overview of the UK’s landscape for developing complex medicines. It captures insights from 21 UK-based organizations involved in this field, representing over 30% of the community, and includes detailed interviews with key stakeholders.

    A significant finding of the report is the pressing need for regulatory understanding among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the complex medicines sector. Over 50% of participants identified regulatory hurdles as a major barrier to progress, with only 19% reporting no issues. There is a strong demand for a structured "road map" that offers guidance and practical support to navigate the regulatory landscape, particularly for complex medicines that lack established precedents for submissions.

    Collaboration emerged as another key theme, with two-thirds of respondents expressing a desire for partnerships to enhance scientific and technological development. SMEs face challenges in securing grants and investment, as well as accessing expertise and tissue samples, which are critical for advancing their research.

    The report emphasizes the importance of establishing a supportive network that integrates expertise and infrastructure, with the Catapult Network serving as a central hub. Recommendations include developing training programs to cultivate a skilled workforce in complex medicines, creating a networking portal to facilitate partnerships, and targeting investment to bolster UK start-ups.

    Additionally, the report highlights the need for improved access to imaging facilities for preclinical investigations and the development of new bioanalytical methods. These technical challenges are crucial for understanding how therapeutics are distributed in the body and for demonstrating efficacy and safety.

    Overall, the report advocates for a coordinated approach to support the development of complex medicines in the UK, aiming to position the country as a leading destination for investment in this innovative sector. By addressing the identified gaps and fostering collaboration, the UK can enhance its capabilities in medicines discovery and development, ultimately benefiting patients with unmet medical needs.