MRFF invests $8m into two nationally significant Monash-led mRNA projects
A/P Trevaskis, A/P Johnston, Prof. Davidovich
The Commonwealth Government’s Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) has invested $8 million into establishing Australia’s first National Centre for Biopharmaceutical Optimisation of mRNA Therapeutics (CORTx) and an ‘RNA Mass Spectrometry Platform’, also an Australian first.
CORTx is headquartered at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS) and is being led by Associate Professor Angus Johnston and Associate Professor Natalie Trevaskis.
The new national facility has received $4m in MRFF funding to focus on a critical step in the development process for mRNA medicines - evaluating delivery and biodistribution in the body, informing the plausibility of the candidate to progress toward human studies. This information is critical for maximising the potency, safety and manufacturability of mRNA medicines.
The RNA Mass Spectrometry Platform has also received a $4m grant and is being led by Professor Chen Davidovich from Monash’s Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI). The platform will advance the local development of RNA therapeutics and enable earlier detection of diseases, including cancer.
In recent years mRNA vaccines have transformed the way we fight infectious disease such as COVID-19, and now mRNA therapies are showing significant promise to treat a wide range of diseases including cancer, infectious diseases, auto-immune and metabolic diseases.
About the National Centre for Biopharmaceutical Optimisation of mRNA Therapeutics (CORTx)
Headquartered at MIPS, CORTx brings together academia and industry including partnerships with leading biotech companies, Moderna and iCamuno, along with the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research (WEHI), The Australian National University (ANU), University of Melbourne and University of Queensland.
Associate Professor Johnston said that globally mRNA therapeutics are revolutionising the treatment and management of disease and it’s critical Australia remains at the forefront of the field.
“There is now a solid scientific foundation for applying mRNA technology to address cancer and auto-immune, infectious and metabolic diseases, with Australia well placed to reap significant health and economic benefits by investing in infrastructure to produce mRNA medicines for local use and export,” Associate Professor Johnston said.
Associate Professor Trevaskis said CORTx will facilitate collaboration between academia and industry to achieve a common goal.
“Through CORTx, experts from universities, research institutes and biotech companies will now have local access to technology, infrastructure and expertise enabling them to evaluate and optimise promising candidate mRNA therapies following best practice methods,” said Associate Professor Trevaskis.
Director of MIPS and one of the project’s Chief Investigators, Professor Chris Porter, said the CORTx grant will establish, extend and enhance Australia’s mRNA infrastructure.
“MIPS has established expertise and much of the cutting-edge infrastructure needed to support this Centre, including access to world-leading experience in drug optimisation through the Centre for Drug Candidate Optimisation,” said Professor Porter.
“The mRNA candidates advanced through CORTx will help progress mRNA therapeutics for unmet medical needs and play a key role in protecting Australia’s health security, now and for future generations.”
About the RNA Mass Spectrometry Platform
Professor Chen Davidovich, a Monash BDI Lab Head and EMBL Australia Group Leader, will lead a team of 15 Chief Investigators to set up this Australian-first platform, designed to provide a suite of essential analytical services for the Australian RNA therapeutics sector. This will accelerate the on-shore development of mRNA-based vaccines and other emerging RNA technologies, such as miRNA, siRNA, ASO, tRNA and CRISPR RNA.
Mass spectrometry is a group of methods that detects a wide range of molecules and their chemical modifications, including RNA modifications – chemical groups added to RNA that are essential for enhancing the stability and activity of RNA therapeutics. However, Australia’s limited RNA mass spectrometry services leaves many biomedical teams unable to assess essential quality measures of RNA therapeutics under their development.
Professor Davidovich said the surge in RNA therapeutic development and investment since the COVID-19 pandemic has created a demand for domestic services for RNA mass spectrometry.
“Right now, if you really want to find a place that provides a full package of analytical services for people developing RNA therapeutics and studying RNA, you will most likely need to collaborate with someone outside of Australia,” Professor Davidovich said.
Professor Davidovich said the platform will enable quality assurance and biomarker detection services, benefiting both Australian researchers and the general public by facilitating access to new RNA therapeutics and early disease biomarkers.
The 15 Chief Investigators on the project come from six Australian universities and research institutes, and two hospitals, and include Professor John Carroll, Director Monash BDI, and Professor Ralf Schittenhelm, Professor Anthony Purcell, Professor Jamie Rossjohn and Dr Gavin Knott, all research leaders at BDI, and Professor Mark Shackleton, a research leader in Monash’s School of Translational Medicine.
In the last five years Monash scientists have been at the forefront of mRNA technology, including the local design, development and manufacture of Australia's first mRNA clinical candidate, a second-generation COVID-19 mRNA vaccine. The University’s knowledge and expertise in translating fundamental science into products for clinical trials now serves as a platform for navigating the challenges of producing the next generation of mRNA medicines.
Monash is also home to The Victorian mRNA Innovation Hub, an initiative bringing together mRNA experts from Monash University, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, and the University of Melbourne. Funding for the Hub comes from the Victorian government’s mRNA Victoria Activation Program initiative, which has provided ongoing support to the state's mRNA research and development capabilities.
Keep up to date with our work on life-saving vaccines and therapeutic treatments on our Monash RNA webpage.
Read Minister Butler’s media release for more information about this round of MRFF grants.