The potential of proteins for the treatment of diseases

Protein therapeutics represents a powerful field for the treatment of many diseases, having shown its potential for several years; especially since the ‘boom’ of recombinant protein production. In this post, we invite you to see the benefits of a new nanotechnology.

When compared to the traditional small molecule therapeutic approach, proteins bring both high biocompatibility and biodegradability. These facts are associated with a high safety profile. When considering activity, proteins present a much more targeted activity, directly related to their specific interaction with the target of interest. However, these molecules can suffer from unfolding and short half-life, due to enzymatic degradation, all associated with loss of activity. Their poor membrane permeability impedes intracellular delivery. All these drawbacks can be overcome using delivery vehicles that can carry, protect, and deliver the cargo.

The 1^st generation of cell therapies uses DNA-based vectors including plasmids and lentivirus, and has demonstrated its efficiency. However, it also raises some questions regarding biosafety, cost, and compatibility with high throughput production. Now, the messenger RNA approach can avoid the genome integration, is safer and can ensure low immune response. So, why not use mRNA for cell therapies?

Many researchers are facing the challenges of mRNA delivery, through the body into the cytoplasm of cells. In this post, we invite you to discover some useful and efficient solutions to improve and control all the steps of your mRNA delivery project.

Since its emergence in 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly spread to become the major health issue of the past two years. But it’s also a research field of interest for many researchers. With the latest findings, SARS-CoV-2 has more to reveal… including one related to ADCC.