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Introduction
Tracing Tau to Tackle Alzheimer's Disease
Translational Imaging Center Revamps for Revolutionary 7T MRI
Hope for Slowing ALS
The Heart of Progress: Innovative Valves Create a Legacy for the Future
Test-Driving Carbon Fiber Materials in Space
Lab-on-a-chip Shines Light on Bystander Effect
Creating an Antibody to Fight Silent Killers
A New View of Strep
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RNA Therapeutics
RNAcore supports national product development of a new class of biologics
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VGXI has a successful track record of supplying preclinical through cGMP-grade DNA plasmids for vaccines, gene therapies and viral vector production. The addition of RNA manufacturing services will make it the world’s first dedicated contract manufacturing organization to encompass both DNA and RNA biopharmaceuticals.
RNA based therapeutics and vaccines are developing rapidly, with an expected market value of $1.2 billion by 2020. The pairing of the RNAcore and VGXI fills a critical product development gap with a GMP manufacturing solution that enables biotechnology companies and academic consortia to drive novel mRNA therapies through FDA approval pathways to market.
—
John P. Cooke
, MD, PhDJoseph C. “Rusty” Walter and Carole Walter Looke
Presidential Distinguished Chair in Cardiovascular Disease Research
Houston Methodist
The Houston Methodist RNAcore is a national academic center that produces custom research-grade and clinical-grade RNA therapeutics. The team is led by John Cooke, MD, PhD, the Joseph C. "Rusty" Walter and Carole Walter Looke Presidential Distinguished Chair in Cardiovascular Disease Research, and produces RNA therapeutics and delivery strategies for applications including cardiovascular regeneration and cancer therapeutics.
Only 75 years ago, molecular biologists were just beginning to grasp the basics of genetic structure: DNA, found in the cell nucleus, establishes the genetic code, while RNA, found in the cytoplasm, is responsible for carrying it out, helping in the creation of basic proteins to build molecules and cells.
As recently as the 1960s, scientists were still struggling to understand RNA, due to its tendency to transmute so rapidly. But persistence paid off and today their understanding of RNA is crucial to the fields of gene therapy and epigenetics, as it focuses on changes in gene expression rather than altering the genetic code itself.
Houston Methodist entered into an exclusive license with GeneOne Life Science and its subsidiary, VGXI, to produce clinical grade RNA.
To be able to study—and ultimately implement—gene therapies, researchers and clinicians must have a steady source of RNA that is pure and stable. Houston Methodist's RNAcore has developed a process for producing RNA that is reliable and reproducible on a large scale. The RNAcore has become a leader in RNA synthesis, generating RNA constructs including mRNA, modified mRNA, microRNA cassettes, and noncoding RNA for scientific and medical collaborators. In addition to its manufacturing methods, the RNAcore also has developed exceptional technologies for improved stability of RNA products and enhanced delivery of nucleic-acid-based therapies.
In September 2018, Houston Methodist entered into an exclusive license with GeneOne Life Science and its subsidiary, VGXI, to produce clinical grade RNA. The agreement will encourage development of new RNA vaccines and therapies by combining the design capabilities of the RNAcore with the manufacturing capabilities of VGXI, an industry leading plasmid DNA contract manufacturer, which has expanded its facility in The Woodlands, Texas, in anticipation of the collaboration.
Gene therapy delivers RNA into cell for immunotherapy
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