OUR MISSION
Curing a genetic disease remains an unsolved problem.
We are inspired to unleash the unlimited potential of bacteriophages to engineer cures for human genetic diseases, design next generation vaccines, and establish therapies against antibiotic resistant pathogens.
Currently, we are creating a groundbreaking stem cell gene therapy platform using bacteriophage T4 to cure HIV. This transformative therapy can be adapted to treat many other genetic diseases.
BACTERIOPHAGE T4
Bacteriophage T4 infecting E. coli bacterium. T4 is one of the most efficient genome delivery machines known. We believe, given the modifications below, we can leverage T4 to deliver therapeutics specifically and safely to human cells.
ATOMIC STRUCTURES
Our 45-years of basic and translational research led to resolution of T4 virus structures and mechanisms, to near atomic resolution. A key discovery is the genome packaging mechanism; how T4 employs a fast and powerful molecular motor to package its genome inside a nanocapsid shell to near crystalline density.
GENE THERAPIES
We engineer both the inside and outside of the large capacity T4 capsid to house therapeutic DNAs and proteins. By incorporating disease correction genes, and CRISPR genome editing molecules, we can deliver genetic payloads directly into human cells. This modular, plug-and-play, platform is expected to transform future gene therapies and personalized medicine.
VACCINES
The surface of T4 capsid is engineered to display repeated and symmetrical arrays of pathogen antigens. Highly protective anthrax, plague, and anthrax-plague dual vaccines, and COVID-19, FLU, and COVID-FLU dual vaccines have been designed. The chemicals-and-needle-free T4 nasal vaccines against pandemic and biothreat pathogens can be rapidly produced, stockpiled, and distributed to all communities across the globe.
