PORTFOLIO

RNA-based therapeutics have transformative potential in medicine. However, the limited delivery technologies available to turn these molecules into effective drugs hold back their true power. Procavea Biotech has developed an innovative solution to this problem: a novel RNA delivery platform based on nonviral protein cages. When compared to approved delivery modalities and those in development, our technology has distinct advantages in its stability, engineerability, and ease of manufacturing. Although a handful of RNA-based therapies have been approved, delivering these molecules to organs other than the liver still poses a significant challenge. At Procavea, our goal is to leverage the engineerability of protein cages and the programmability of genetic medicines to address currently intractable disease targets with novel RNA-based drugs. Our proprietary technology puts us in a unique position to directly address the major bottleneck in oligonucleotide drug development and deliver on the promise of RNA medicines.

We have established the ‘OP’ delivery system, which is the first non-viral protein cage specifically designed for the delivery of oligonucleotides to cells. At the beginning of the project, we had demonstrated proof-of-concept in vitro for the delivery of small molecule drugs, DNA and RNA. Through the first stage of the Innobooster, we have generated initial in vivo data showing the delivery of siRNA to extrahepatic tissues in a living animal. As we move into the next stages of the project, our focus is on further in vivo translation of the technology platform and determination of a specific disease indication that could benefit the most from a combination of our unique delivery technology with an RNA therapeutic.