Genflow Biosciences Plc (LON:GENF, OTCQB: GENFF, FRA:WQ5), a European biotechnology company focused on the development of gene therapies for age-related diseases, has announced that it has entered into a strategic technology collaboration with Acuitas Therapeutics, a globally recognised leader in lipid nanoparticle delivery systems whose technology has underpinned some of the most commercially successful mRNA therapeutic programmes brought to market to date.
Strategic Significance
The Board considers this collaboration to represent a material step forward in the advancement of the Company’s SIRT6 platform. Acuitas’ LNP technology is among the most clinically and commercially validated delivery platforms in the mRNA therapeutics industry, and the Company’s ability to access this capability on a fully funded basis reflects the external confidence in Genflow’s proprietary science.
The collaboration will enable Genflow to evaluate the integration of LNP-based delivery with its SIRT6 mRNA payload across a newly initiated development programme, with the objective of generating preclinical data to support future clinical and commercial development decisions.
Terms of the Collaboration
Under the agreement, Genflow will provide its proprietary SIRT6 mRNA payload to Acuitas, which will formulate the payload using its proprietary LNP platform. The resulting formulations will be returned to Genflow for use in preclinical evaluation studies.
The collaboration is fully funded by Acuitas. There is no cash consideration payable by Genflow, and the arrangement is entirely non-dilutive to existing shareholders. The Company does not expect the collaboration to have a material impact on near-term revenues.
While the current agreement is focused on initial preclinical evaluation activities, it establishes a formal framework for potential further development and strategic engagement between the parties, subject to the outcome of the ongoing work.
About Acuitas Therapeutics
Acuitas is a privately held biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, and is one of the foremost specialists in the development and licensing of LNP technology for mRNA-based therapeutics. Acuitas’ LNP platform has been incorporated into multiple landmark mRNA programmes that have achieved both regulatory approval and large-scale commercial success, establishing Acuitas as a pre-eminent partner of choice for leading organisations advancing mRNA medicines globally.
The Board regards Acuitas’ decision to invest its own resources in formulating Genflow’s SIRT6 mRNA payload as a meaningful and independent validation of the quality and potential of the Company’s proprietary technology.
Outlook and Commercial Potential
The data generated through this collaboration are expected to inform key future development decisions, including delivery optimisation, target tissue engagement, and the structuring of potential partnering and licensing arrangements with third parties. The Company’s SIRT6 platform addresses mechanisms of fundamental importance to age-related disease, and the addition of an optimised LNP delivery modality is expected to materially broaden the scope and commercial attractiveness of the programme.
The Company will provide further updates on the progress of this collaboration as developments warrant and in accordance with its obligations under the Market Abuse Regulation.
Eric Leire, Chief Executive Officer of Genflow Biosciences, commented:
“This collaboration with Acuitas is, in our view, one of the most significant steps we have taken in the development of our SIRT6 platform to date. Acuitas are the gold standard in LNP delivery – their technology has already transformed modern medicine – and the fact that they are committing their own resources to work with our science is a powerful endorsement of what we are building. For our shareholders, the headline facts are straightforward: we are gaining access to world-class, clinically proven delivery technology at no cost and with no dilution. This is precisely the kind of capital-efficient, high-impact collaboration that de-risks our pipeline, strengthens our partnering position, and accelerates our path towards clinical development. We look forward to sharing further updates as this programme advances.”
