Circular RNA: A New Era In Therapeutics

The recent news published in Drug Discovery News with entitled “Circular RNA: a new era in therapeutics”. The article has reported that “Originally regarded as a genetic anomaly or an experimental artifact, circular RNA (circRNA) garnered attention after scientists discovered it had a functional role in human cells. In 2011, Erik Digman Wiklund, then a molecular biology graduate student at Aarhus University and now Circio’s Chief Executive Officer, published the first study describing a functional human circRNA”.  The news quoted Erik that “I forgot about circRNA after that,”. Further, he said, recalling his transition from academia to a business career. A decade later, as circRNA emerged as a promising therapeutic avenue, Wiklund revisited his earlier work, spurred by its newfound popularity. After persuading a former laboratory colleague to join him, they founded a company aimed at developing innovative circRNA medicines for rare diseases, vaccines, and cancer. While circRNA therapeutics are still in early stages, Wiklund’s team has demonstrated circRNA’s superior and enduring protein expression compared to traditional mRNA vectors, hinting at its potential to redefine DNA and virus-based therapies in the future. More about the topic can be accessed here.