RNA Therapeutics

As new and unprecedented risks to global health continue emerging, the advent of innovative drug delivery systems for RNA-based products holds great promise.

Although the rapid approval and world-wide application of RNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 has already showcased their potential, there is still a lot to learn. CD spectroscopy with Chirascan systems may add the puzzle piece you need for a better understanding of your RNA drug product—and to leverage your development and manufacturing.

In a collaboration with SINTEF (Norway) and Malvern Panalytical (UK), we set out to have a closer look at the thermal stability of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) developed for mRNA drug delivery.

CD data for mRNA-LNPs showed a transition corresponding to mRNA melting and a high-temperature transition attributed to LNP disintegration. Wavelength-dependent differences suggested that the latter is not the same one as observed for empty LNPs.

Together with insight from DSC data, these preliminary findings suggest that mRNA-LNPs are indeed more than just the sum of their constituent components, and it will be crucial to investigate further the intermolecular interactions that govern LNP stability, including lipid-lipid interactions, mRNA-lipid interactions, as well as intramolecular mRNA interactions that give rise to its secondary structure.