Sorrento Therapeutics Inc (SRNE)

[dia76ca]

One of the most interesting Sorrento acquisitions is SmartPharm. They have received a $34 million grant from DARPA to develop a plasmid DNA version of the powerful 2020 Mab. Here's what SmartPharm says about this program.
"We have used our tool box to create a scalable and cost-effective solution for creating pop-up immunity in people against coronavirus that has the capability to be rapidly scaled to deliver millions of doses. Our solution starts with our novel DNA plasmid that can express protein in muscle for weeks. This plasmid will be used to express an antibody capable of binding to and neutralizing the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This type of DNA plasmid has already been produced for other products in a fully cGMP-compliant manner and at significant quantities.

We plan to combine this DNA with a new, GMP-compliant polymer solution that may significantly enhance DNA expression in skeletal muscle. This polymer has been demonstrated to have the kind of safety profile to make it appropriate for use in humans. These two components would be delivered together through a standard hypodermic needle—a standard approach typically used in vaccines. Our approach eliminates the need for electroporation devices, which are currently being used in the delivery of these types of DNA-based antibody treatments."