New gene editing, synthetic biology, and nanobody technologies are reinventing the landscape of medicine. Combined with genomics and machine learning, this new toolbox has released a flood of possibilities for medicine, inspiring research and giving new hope to patients with genetic diseases. 

Genomic medicine researchers at Sanofi are accelerating progress toward gene and cell therapies using an array of technologies, from nucleic acid nanostructures to viral and non-viral gene-delivery platforms. This work builds on four of the company's core strengths: 

  • Deep research and translational expertise in gene therapy;
  • Emerging leadership in immuno-oncology R&D;
  • Proprietary technology platforms for delivering therapeutic genes into target cells; and
  • Integrated, large-scale clinical manufacturing for gene and cell therapies.

Voices from the Lab: Christian Mueller, Head of Genomic Medicine at Sanofi

"A major bottleneck in the delivery of gene therapies has been the capacity of companies to support strong genomic medicine R&D and generate the highly specialized materials needed for manufacture. Sanofi has both," said Christian Mueller, Head of Genomic Medicine at Sanofi. "We are one of very few companies with the in-house capability to discover, develop, and manufacture gene and cell therapies at the right scale. But it's about more than just capacity – our cross-functional teams are working as one, from early research through development and production, to create new medicines that are potentially curative."

A biotechnology playground

Sanofi's genomic medicine R&D teams collaborate across disease areas to address challenges in genetic rare and neurological diseases, as well as some common diseases.

"For a scientist, Sanofi is like a big playground where you have access to all these incredible tools for exploring and building," said Sourav Choudhury, who leads the capsid engineering and adeno-associated virus (AAV) immunology laboratories for genomic medicine. "Here, you can take an idea out of a completely non-related field of research, test it out and see if it works. We can collaborate easily with teams working on technology platforms like Synthorin® molecules and apply technologies like machine learning to accelerate discovery."

Technology Platforms

Removing bottlenecks in manufacturing

Sanofi researchers are deploying the full technology toolkit in their quest to repair faulty genes behind many genetic and chronic diseases. This includes AAVs, viral-free gene delivery technologies, and mRNA therapeutics. Building on its long-standing expertise in virus-based vaccine CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing & Controls) and manufacturing, the company is well placed to accelerate the delivery of genomic medicines.

Gene and Cell Therapies at a Glance

How Sanofi scientists design DNA delivery systems

Smoothing the path to discovery

Sanofi is strengthening operations by creating deeply cross-functional teams. Specialists in viral vector engineering, cell line development, cell culture, biochemistry, chemistry, toxicology, translational medicine, preclinical evaluation, Good Manufacturing Practices, and regulatory are dedicated to making genomic medicine a reality.

By bringing all our scientists working on gene therapy under one umbrella, we are building knowledge together and making the most of an incredibly diverse range of expertise and experience. In genomic medicine, we are streamlining the process of translating research discoveries through development and into the clinic, allowing us to bring novel medicines to patients more rapidly." 

Cate O'Riordan, Senior Distinguished Scientist and Head of the Genomics Translational Unit for gene therapies at Sanofi

Find out more

Genomic Medicine R&D

Gene Therapy at a Glance

Sanofi Technology Platforms

Gene Therapy and Genome Editing Policy summary

The science behind Sanofi's hemophilia pipeline

How Sanofi's candidate vaccines against COVID-19 are designed to work

MAT-GLB-2004192 v 1.0 | March 2021