EJP RD’s innovative Rare Diseases Research (RDR) Challenges call in partnership with Fondation Maladies Rares was aimed at facilitating and funding collaboration between industry, academia, SMEs, and patient organisations to solve specific research challenges in rare diseases.
The second challenge issued under the RDR call was for the development of a delivery system for intranasal administration of biological drugs to neonates. We are glad to announce that the project INDENEO (INtraNasal Device for NEOnates) started at the end of April 2022 in response to this challenge, bringing together an international consortium of four partners: EVEON, the Chiesi Group, Les Cliniques universitaires Saint Luc (Belgium) and the CEA (Fontenay aux Roses site – France). The project is co-funded by the Chiesi Group.
The INDENEO project aims to develop a dropper system from nose to brain for biological drugs and advanced therapies in neonates. For certain rare diseases involving the CNS, for example, neonatal encephalitis, intranasal delivery allows to target the central nervous system, thanks to the transfer from the nose to the brain of the molecules. Minimally invasive and restrictive, this is recognized as one of the most useful and reliable routes for brain drug absorption leading to quick drug action, with greater efficacy and reduced risk of infection. INDENEO will last 18 months with two main milestones: the design and development of a functional prototype, then the pre-clinical validation.
Speaking on behalf of the EJP RD, Dr Christine Fetro of the Fondation Maladies Rares said: “INDENEO is one of three projects selected for funding within the Rare Diseases Research (RDR) Challenges call led by the Foundation for Rare Diseases and EJP-RD. We are very excited about this innovative project fostering public-private partnerships to drive rare disease research towards effective treatments, which is at the very heart of this European funding initiative.”
Press release from EVEON: https://eveon.eu/images/pressrelease/20220705-PR-Project_Indeneo.pdf