Aanastra develops in‑vivo CAR‑T therapies using its proprietary PEP‑NP™ delivery platform to generate anti‑CD19 CAR‑T cells directly within patients. By targeting T‑cells with non‑viral nanoparticles, the approach aims to treat hematologic cancers and autoimmune diseases while avoiding the immunogenicity and liver toxicity associated with traditional viral or lipid‑based delivery systems.
Funding
Funding not disclosed
Founders
Product
Problem
Current RNA delivery vectors, such as viral particles and lipid nanoparticles, trigger immune responses, cause liver toxicity, and cannot be safely administered repeatedly, limiting treatment of disseminated diseases like hematologic cancers and autoimmune disorders. Ex vivo CAR‑T manufacturing is complex, costly, and requires lymphodepletion, creating scalability and safety challenges.
Solution
Aanastra’s proprietary PEP‑NP™ platform delivers messenger RNA directly to circulating T‑cells in the body, enabling in‑vivo generation of anti‑CD19 CAR‑T cells. By encoding the CAR construct in RNA and targeting T‑cells systemically, the approach avoids the immunogenicity and hepatic accumulation associated with traditional viral or lipid carriers, allowing multiple dosing cycles. The resulting CAR‑T cells expand in situ and eliminate CD19‑positive B cells, providing a therapeutic effect for hematologic malignancies and certain autoimmune diseases. This method simplifies the manufacturing workflow, eliminates the need for ex vivo cell processing, and reduces the safety risks linked to lymphodepletion. The platform is designed to be adaptable for other target antigens, supporting broader applications of RNA‑based cellular immunotherapies.
Target Audience
Primary customers are pharmaceutical and biotech companies developing cellular immunotherapies for hematologic cancers and autoimmune diseases, as well as clinical research programs seeking scalable in‑vivo CAR‑T solutions.
Features
- Peptide‑engineered nanoparticle (PEP‑NP™) that selectively binds and transfects circulating T‑cells after intravenous administration
- mRNA payload encoding anti‑CD19 CAR, enabling transient yet functional CAR expression without genomic integration
- Low immunogenicity and minimal liver accumulation, supporting repeat dosing schedules
- In‑vivo CAR‑T cell expansion and persistence, delivering therapeutic activity without ex vivo cell handling
- Scalable, off‑the‑shelf manufacturing process for RNA‑nanoparticle formulation
- Platform extensibility to encode alternative CAR specificities for other disease targets