Feldan's Shuttle Technology Drives Collaborative Initiative Supported by a Médicament Québec Grant to Accelerate mRNA-Based Therapy Development
Quebec, Canada, September 23, 2025 – Feldan Therapeutics ("Feldan"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in the development of intracellular delivery-based therapies, announces a new collaborative research initiative aimed at accelerating the development of mRNA-based therapies through its endosomal escape technology, the Feldan Shuttle.
The project benefits from a CA$1.5M grant awarded by Médicament Québec (MQ), an initiative supported by the Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy (MEIE). MQ's mission is to strengthen Quebec's and Canada's autonomy and dynamism in bioinnovation and bioproduction. The project will be conducted in collaboration with Professor Bruno Gaillet (Laval University), Director of Activities, and TransBIOTech.
Central to this initiative is the Feldan Shuttle ("the Shuttle"), a proprietary delivery platform developed by the Feldan team to overcome the challenge of endosomal entrapment, a major impediment to the development of RNA-based therapies. Although RNA-based approaches have recently led to significant breakthroughs in therapies and vaccines, their progress remains limited due to the entrapment of RNA-derived molecules within endosomes, a cellular compartment that naturally sorts and retains extracellular molecules, thereby preventing them from reaching their intracellular target. The Shuttle was designed to overcome this barrier.
Engineered from natural peptides with cell-penetrating properties and sequences promoting endosomal permeabilization, the Shuttle enables rapid delivery and efficient endosomal release. This facilitates the action of therapeutic compounds, such as antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), on their targets to generate a therapeutic response. Within the scope of this project, Feldan and its collaborators will seek to integrate the Shuttle's endosomal escape function into lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), to address one of the primary limitations of this widely used delivery system for mRNA-based drugs.
“This collaboration is a continuation of our efforts to expand the reach and impact of our Shuttle platform,” stated François-Thomas Michaud, Chief Executive Officer of Feldan Therapeutics. “By optimizing endosomal escape and the delivery of RNA-based therapies, we can accelerate the development of new treatment options for patients. We thank Médicament Québec for its support and are delighted to join forces with Université Laval and TransBIOTech to advance this important project.”
“Efficient RNA delivery remains an unresolved challenge. The support provided by MQ and MEIE will enable the improvement of vaccine technologies and strengthen Quebec's leadership position in this sector,” emphasized Professor Bruno Gaillet, Director of Operations and Professor at Université Laval.
“At TransBIOTech, we are proud to lend our preclinical validation expertise to this promising collaboration,” added Frédéric Couture, Ph.D., Head of Pharmacology at TransBIOTech. “By working in conjunction with Feldan Therapeutics and Université Laval, we aim to accelerate the development of RNA-based therapies and help overcome major obstacles in drug delivery. This project perfectly illustrates our mission to support biotechnology companies in developing innovative therapeutic solutions for patients.”
What is mRNA?
Messenger RNA, or mRNA, is a molecule that carries genetic instructions from DNA to ribosomes, the cellular 'factories' responsible for protein production.
About Feldan:
Feldan is a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in the development of intracellular delivery-based drugs. Feldan designed the Feldan Shuttle, a proprietary peptide-based technology that enables safe, rapid, and efficient local delivery of antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) inside cells. This technology paves the way for a new generation of treatments by providing access to otherwise inaccessible intracellular targets.
Feldan's pipeline focuses on diseases affecting the skin and lungs. The company is currently conducting a Phase 1/2a clinical trial for FLD-103, a non-surgical treatment for basal cell carcinoma (BCC). To offer patients new transformative treatments, Feldan is advancing FLD-201, an inhaled therapy for non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB), currently in preclinical development, while continuing to optimize its technology for broader therapeutic applications.
To learn more: www.feldan.com
About the consortium and collaborators:
Professor Bruno Gaillet, from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Université Laval, leads the activities of this initiative. Academic collaborators include Professor Alain Garnier (Department of Chemical Engineering, Université Laval), as well as Dr. Carole-Ann Huppé and Dr. Frédéric Couture from TransBIOTech. Based in Lévis (Quebec), TransBIOTech is a college technology transfer center (CCTT) recognized for its expertise in customized in vitro and in vivo validation, which contributes to accelerating the preclinical development of new molecules and delivery approaches. Feldan acts as the industrial partner in this initiative, under the direction of Dr. David Guay, Vice-President – Technology and Innovation, and Dr. Al Halifa Soultan, R&D Director, who will oversee the development and optimization of the Feldan Shuttle platform.
About Médicament Québec:
Médicament Québec (MQ), an initiative funded by the Government of Quebec, brings together research and educational institutions, as well as companies, around a common project. It aims to increase Quebec's and Canada's autonomy and dynamism in bioinnovation and biomanufacturing. MQ supports structuring and collaborative academic research activities to strengthen local drug supply chains.
