Our mission is to develop innovative RNA therapeutics delivered directly to the respiratory tract, without lipid nanoparticle systems, to improve the lives of patients who suffer from respiratory diseases with high unmet medical need.   

We are on the threshold of a wave of breakthrough treatment modalities in respiratory medicine, including mRNA, siRNA, DNA and gene editing technologies. Targeted lung delivery of these modalities has been elusive and efforts to deliver safe and well-tolerated therapeutic benefits presents significant challenges. However, RIGImmune is committed to tackling these challenges with our innovative science.

Our company was formed in 2020 by the prominent Yale University professors and scientists, Drs. Anna Pyle and Akiko Iwasaki.  Anna Marie Pyle, PhD, and colleagues co-discovered RIG-I, an innate immune sensor, and a new class of oligonucleotide compounds called stem loop RNA therapeutics or “SLRs” for the selective targeting of RIG-I. Upon sensing viral RNA or tumor DNA, RIG-I stimulates the innate and adaptive immune responses by activation of the Type I interferon pathway. Co-founder Akiko Iwasaki, PhD, is renowned for her work with mechanisms of immune defense against viruses at the mucosal surfaces. RIGImmune executed an exclusive license agreement with Yale University in 2022 for the intellectual property estate related to the stem-loop RNA therapeutics developed by Drs. Pyle and Iwasaki.   

To discover and develop a technology platform that could effectively deliver RNA therapeutics directly to the respiratory tract without the need for lipid nanoparticle encapsulation, RIGImmune acquired SubIntro, a UK biotechnology company, in 2022. Subintro, Inc., co-founded by three notable and highly successful respiratory drug developers, Kaz Ito, PhD, DVM, Garth Rapeport, MD, and Jag Shur, PhD, was focused on the advancement of novel formulations for the local mucosal and inhalation delivery of modalities for use against serious respiratory diseases. The combination of RIGImmune and SubIntro has led to an innovative non-LNP technology platform that directly and effectively delivers RNA therapeutics to the respiratory tract. 

Critical success requirements for the delivery of RNA therapeutics to the respiratory tract

• High transfection efficiency (endosomal uptake and escape) 

• Formulation optimized for lung retention 

• Formulation can be applied to a diverse and broad range of payloads 

• Formulation tolerates shear stress post-aerosolization 

• Good tolerability and safety for acute and chronic applications 

NEED (Nano-Emulsion Enhanced Delivery) Platform

RIGImmune scientists have discovered and developed a non-LNP nano-emulsion respiratory delivery platform technology named NEED.  The innovative NEED formulation technology incorporates known excipients with established human safety profiles and fatty acids into a proprietary nano-emulsion complex that encapsulates a nucleic acid and protects the payload while facilitating intracellular uptake when administered directly to the respiratory epithelium.