Principal Entity
Nanofacile Inc.
Co-Investigator:
Martin Sauvageau
Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal (IRCM)
Secondary Entity:
NEIGES Biotechnologies Inc.
Project of $594,400 over 18 months
- Supported by CQDM through:
Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie du Québec (MEIE) - And by co-funding partner:
– Nanofacile Inc.
– NEIGES Biotechnologies Inc.
– IRCM
Challenge:
RNA-based therapies, highlighted by the success of COVID-19 vaccines, have opened up new possibilities for treating cancer as well as metabolic and genetic diseases. However, these therapies often fail to reach their full potential due to delivery challenges: even when the appropriate therapeutic molecule is identified, finding a vector capable of delivering it precisely to the target tissue remains a slow and unpredictable process. This represents a major barrier that limits the impact of many promising treatments.
Solution:
This project, led by the Québec-based company Nanofacile in collaboration with NEIGES Biotechnologies—also based in Québec—and Prof. Martin Sauvageau from the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, aims to develop an innovative, patentable, and scalable platform for the rapid formulation, characterization, and screening of lipid and polymeric nanoparticles (LNPs/PNPs) for targeted RNA delivery. The platform builds on Nanofacile’s existing technology and integrates new features to improve production scalability and increase sample availability for testing. The project team will evaluate the enhanced platform against current alternatives by comparing performance across key quality and efficacy criteria using high-throughput methods. Finally, the project will demonstrate the platform’s potential by developing nanoparticles designed for RNA delivery to intestinal cells, validated using advanced human organoid models developed by NEIGES Biotechnologies.
Expected Achievements /Impacts:
This project addresses a critical unmet need in the targeted delivery of therapies to specific cells and tissues for the treatment of severe gastrointestinal diseases. The results are expected to accelerate the development of more precise treatments for these conditions and strengthen Québec’s position as a global leader in RNA delivery and precision medicine.
