The current and future value of mRNA vaccines and therapeutics

The unprecedented and rapid global effort to develop vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 catapulted mRNA into the mainstream. It almost seemed as if mRNA-based therapeutics materialized out of nowhere, but they are based on technology that has been in development since 1990.

It was countless experiments over those decades that allowed companies — like BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna — to leverage their internal research programs to develop the two mRNA vaccines that did much to reframe the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

These events catalyzed a significant increase in the implementation of mRNA-based drug development programs within the biopharma industry. The number of clinical trials featuring RNA-based drug products has increased dramatically since 2020. Infectious disease and cancer are the main targets (83%) for these clinical trials and, while some use antisense oligos (ASOs), small interfering RNA (siRNA) and other RNA modalities, the vast majority of these use mRNA. Given this interest, it is no surprise that the mRNA cancer vaccines and therapeutics market was estimated to be worth about $47 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow to $109 billion by 2028.

With experience in both chemistry and biologics, Curia is uniquely positioned to provide mRNA drug development solutions spanning discovery and engineering, mRNA drug substance formulation, and fill-finish and manufacturing of lipids and nucleosides.

• Different types of RNA modalities
• Application of mRNA-based drugs
• Lipid nanoparticles
• Curia’s mRNA development manufacturing services

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