ANTARES VISION GROUP ENDORSES INNOVATION FOR FUTURE DRUGS
The Group is a founder of the National Research Centre “Developing Gene Therapy and Medicines with RNA Technology” in Padua, Italy. Technologies and skills for data traceability, inspection, and management will support the R&D process for RNA-based drugs.
Travagliato (Bs), 14 June 2022 – Antares Vision Group, the technological partner of excellence in digitalization and integrated data management, the global leader in track and trace hardware and software solutions, and one of the main players in inspection systems for quality control, signed an agreement with the Padua, Italy-based National Research Centre “Developing Gene Therapy and Medicines with RNA Technology”.
The Group is one of the Centre’s founders and is committed to releasing its solutions within the scope of digital healthcare, smart digital innovation, software platforms, digital twin systems, traceability and serialisation technologies, origin and certification of drugs and products, quality inspection with computer vision and Internet of Things (IoT) sensors and data analysis, and by leveraging Artificial Intelligence.
The Centre, funded for € 400 million by the European Union under its NextGenerationEU programme and boasting prominence in research and development for gene therapy and RNA-based pharmaceuticals, has two primary goals: boosting the technological know-how necessary to design and provide RNA-based drugs and to further develop gene therapy. It will also work to identify promising drugs and candidate genes in five major disease areas: genetic diseases, cancer, metabolic-cardiovascular disorders, neurodegenerative ailments, and inflammatory-infectious pathologies.
Once at its full capacity, the Centre is expected to reach a yearly production output of up to 250-300 gene therapy-based drugs.
Antares Vision Group, under the name Spoke, will be the executing body where equipment is located and research activities are carried out. It will work jointly with the Italian Institute of Technology, several outstanding hospitals, and numerous universities throughout Italy, including the University of Brescia on behalf of the Centre for RNA Medicine. The Group will be involved in two platforms: the “RNA/DNA delivery platform” and “From target to therapy: a centre of pharmacological, safety and regulatory expertise”.
The RNA/DNA delivery platform will develop new materials (polymers and lipids), nano-platforms, surface viral delivery systems, extracellular vesicles, and microneedles for a new generation of drug administration technologies. Furthermore, it will rapidly disseminate therapeutic concepts through an unprecedented interdisciplinary effort that merges chemistry, nanotechnology, and pharmaceutical technologies, as well as imaging and microscopy, bioengineering, molecular biology, and pharmacology.
The From target to therapy: a centre of pharmacological, safety and regulatory expertise platform aims to develop preclinical tools and cutting-edge methods in order to study the effects of RNA-based pharmaceuticals on the innate and adaptive immune systems. It will achieve this goal through pharmacological studies, specific technological platforms for preclinical and clinical pharmacology, modelling cells, organs, tissues, and animals based on human and animal engineering, as well as tools and methods to scrutinise the actions and potential side effects of drugs.
“Taking part in the foundation of the Padua-based National Research Centre is a great opportunity to innovate the pharmaceutical industry”, said Emidio Zorzella, Antares Vision Group president and CEO. “RNA-based drugs are a future promise and, by combining skills and technologies from various prominent institutions and universities, we can contribute to the digital conversion of the supply chain, with a view to ensuring efficiency, customisation and sustainability”.
University of Brescia Deputy Rector and Pro-Rector for Research Marina Pizzi said the institution was honoured to participate in the foundation of the Centre, a pivotal initiative for Italian research: “The university will contribute to the National Research Centre Developing Gene Therapy and Medicines with RNA Technology with studies aimed at identifying therapeutic targets for cancer treatment and the development of nucleic-acid-based drugs, as well as systems of micro-vesicles capable of properly delivering said drugs to cancer cells. The University’s co-operation with Brescia-based Antares Vision Group, one of the founders of the Centre itself, will be crucial to achieve successful results in the fields mentioned above”.