Base-modified factor VIII mRNA delivery with galactosylated lipid nanoparticles as a protein replacement therapy for haemophilia A.

The bleeding disorder hemophilia A (HemA) requires systemic functional factor VIII protein infusions on prophylactic schedules. Recently, chemically modified mRNAs have emerged as promising protein replacement therapies to reduce repeated infusions and improve safety profiles. However, the influence of base modifications on mRNA translation kinetics to specific cell types remains unexplored. In this study, towards developing mRNA therapeutics for haemophilia A, we synthesized chemically modified mRNAs with commercially available base modifications of adenine, guanine, uridine, and cytidine, and evaluated transcription yield and translation kinetics in hepatic cell lines using reporter eGFP mRNA. Our findings demonstrated that mRNA with -methyl pseudouridine (mΨ) showed a 5-12-fold increase in translation efficiency in both hepatic and endothelial cell lines. As a proof of concept for developing mRNA therapy for HemA, where FVIII is deficient, we developed a mΨ modified functional FVIII mRNA with our liver-targeting lipid nanoparticle (Gal-LNP) system. We evaluated its delivery efficiencies in both hepatic cell lines and the HemA mouse model. The mΨ-FVIII mRNA showed high therapeutic efficacy up to 15 days in the HemA mouse model. Gal-LNPs were found to be safe for systemic administration. Our study reveals that incorporating mΨ base modifications on mRNAs could improve therapeutic efficacy in liver- and endothelial-based therapeutics. Optimized mRNA synthesis for superior expression kinetics in hepatic cells and its delivery with liver-targeted nanoparticles may emerge as protein replacement therapies for monogenic liver disorders.