The European Innovation Council selects an international, multicenter project aimed at developing RNA vaccines against cancer with Certest LNP Delivery Technology

The European Innovation Council (EIC) has selected an international multicenter project in its EIC Pathfinder Open 2026 call for proposals, which aims to develop RNA vaccines against cancer.

Dr. Puri Fortes, principal investigator at Cima Universidad de Navarra (Spain), leads this consortium, which includes the teams of Dr. Juan Martínez at Certest Biotec, Dr. Sebastiaan van Heesch at the Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology and Dr. Jonas Teuwen at the Netherlands Cancer Institute (Netherlands), and Dr. Andreas Schlosser at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt (Germany).

With a budget of 3.8 million euros, the ADVANCE project is studying the use of targeted lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) loaded with RNA vaccines to treat hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common form of liver cancer and a tumor with a poor prognosis. The incidence is expected to exceed one million cases annually in the coming decade, due to rising rates of alcohol consumption and obesity.

Dark Antigens

“Although hepatocellular carcinoma can be treated in the early stages through resection or liver transplantation, most cases are diagnosed in advanced stages, when treatment options are limited. Our project proposes a completely novel strategy that involves stimulating the immune system using ‘dark’ antigens derived from small proteins,” explains Dr. Fortes.

“At Certest, we have proprietary RNA and lipid nanoparticle technologies. Through ADVANCE, we will apply these capabilities to target dendritic cells, which help activate the immune response, and liver cancer cells, contributing to the development of a therapeutic vaccine designed to help the immune system recognise and fight liver cancer,” says Juan Martínez, Chief Scientific Officer at Certest.

The project suggests that cellular stress in cancer could promote the selective translation of certain RNAs, thereby generating a unique set of tumor-specific peptides that are absent in healthy tissues.

Advanced LNP Delivery Technology

A key component of the ADVANCE project is the development of targeted lipid nanoparticles to enable efficient RNA delivery to the intended cells and tissues. This approach builds on the potential of LNP technology as one of the most promising and powerful delivery platforms for RNA-based therapies, particularly in challenging therapeutic areas such as oncology, where efficient and selective delivery remains a major hurdle.

Certest Biotec brings its proprietary lipid nanoparticle technology and extensive screening capabilities to the consortium. Through its in-house library of ionizable lipids and systematic screening platform, the company can identify and optimize formulations tailored to specific therapeutic applications, cargoes and target tissues.

This approach leverages the development of highly versatile and powerful delivery solutions, moving beyond one-size-fits-all formulations towards customized LNP systems designed to address the specific requirements of each therapeutic program.

Application to Other Types of Cancer

As researchers explain, “our goal is to demonstrate a proof of concept for efficacy through preclinical in vitro and in vivo validation of a first-of-its-kind therapeutic lipid nanoparticle RNA vaccine that enhances T-cell responses and destroys cancer cells.”

The ADVANCE project aims to lay the groundwork for extending antigen discovery and RNA-based vaccination strategies to other hard-to-treat cancers and to advance their clinical application.

About Certest Biotec SL

Certest Pharma is the pharmaceutical division of a biotechnology company founded in Zaragoza, Spain, in 2002. The company leverages innovative, end-to-end solutions for nucleic acid-based therapies, with a strong focus on advanced lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technologies for the targeted delivery of therapeutic molecules.

Its platform integrates a proprietary library of ionizable lipids, optimized LNP formulations, targeted bioconjugation solutions, and capabilities for the design, synthesis, and evaluation of RNA and oligonucleotides. Certest collaborates with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as research institutions, to develop tailored delivery solutions that meet the evolving needs of next-generation RNA-based medicines.