Introducing the Langerhans Cell Targeted Delivery System

LC-TDS

Contributing to precision medicine.

CUTANOS

Next-Gen Vaccines: Targeted mRNA Delivery to Immune Cells

A novel delivery platform to direct LNP formulations directly to dendritic cells 

The immune system protects our body from harmful invaders, like viruses and bacteria. A central role play dendritic cells (DCs) for recognizing these invaders and teaching other immune cells to fight them. At the same time, DCs are also responsible for tolerating the body’s own structures (autoantigens) – a delicate “orchestra” of immune modulation!

Cutanos developed ligand-based platform to targeted one specific type of DCs: Langerhans Cells (LCs). 

HOW IT WORKS

HOW IT WORKS

or how a small molecule ligand brings the mRNA to its destination

Through this first-of-a-kind targeted delivery approach, the LC-TDS is hardly taken up by off-target cells, which promises significant dose sparing and potentially fewer side effects.

Cutanos’ LC-TDS differs from all other immunomodulating technologies due to its modular design allowing flexible adaptation for different applications. This further results in a high compatibility with other technologies. Another major advantage is the injury-free administration via the skin through minimally invasive microneedles or microinjectors, which increases application safety and patients compliance.

WHO WE ARE

WHO WE ARE

THE FOUNDERS AND MANAGEMENT 

Dr. Robert Wawrzinek Co-Founder & CEO

Dr. Robert Wawrzinek

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Dr. Robert Wawrzinek
Co-Founder & CEO

 

Florian Sparber Head of Tolerance and Autoimmune diseases

Florian Sparber

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Dr. Florian Sparber
Chief Scientific Officer

Prof. Dr. Christoph Rademacher Co-Founder & Advisor

Prof. Dr. Christoph Rademacher

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Prof. Dr. Christoph Rademacher
Co-Founder & Advisor

 

THE SCIENTISTS

Federica Quattrone

Federica Quattrone

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Dr. Federica Quattrone
Head of Inflammation and Infectious diseases

 

Klara Klein Scientist & Project Lead

Klara Klein

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Dr. Klara Klein
Senior Scientist

NEWS

NEWS & MEDIA

To get the latest on Cutanos development please refer to our press releases and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Research Paper Release

Langerhans Cell-targeted Protein Delivery Enhances Antigen-Specific Cellular Immune Response

Targeted antigen delivery to immune cells, particularly dendritic cells, has emerged as a promising strategy to enhance therapeutic efficacy of vaccines, while minimizing adverse effects associated with conventional immunization. In this study, we use our previously described small glycomimetic molecule that selectively recognizes the Langerhans cell (LC)-specific surface receptor Langerin and demonstrate specific delivery of protein antigens to these specialized dendritic cells. Our results show that Langerin-mediated antigen delivery significantly enhances the immune response in vivo, resulting in increased expansion and activation of antigen-specific T cells, compared to immunization with unmodified antigen. We demonstrate the feasibility of our LC-targeted platform for immune cell-specific immunization with protein antigen and underscore the potential of LCs as an access point for next-generation vaccines and immunotherapies.

More information

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.05.05.652195v1 

BARDA VITAL Symposium in Berlin

Cutanos Wins BARDA VITAL Prize Challenge for Innovative Vaccine Technology!

 Vienna, Austria (July 1, 2024) – Cutanos GmbH, a biotechnology company based in Vienna, Austria, was awarded first place in the BARDA VITAL Prize (BVP) Challenge, endowed with USD 20,000 by the BARDA Accelerator Network (BAN), at the BARDA VITAL Symposium in Berlin, Germany. Established by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the BARDA Accelerator Network (BAN) fosters the growth of health security innovation ecosystems globally and accelerates the development and commercialization of next-generation health security solutions. The BARDA VITAL Prize Challenge awards innovative startups and their groundbreaking solutions to potentially make a significant impact on public health.

Cutanos is dedicated to developing next-generation vaccines incorporating its proprietary Langerhans Cell Targeting (LC-TDS) Technology. Looking ahead, the company will increase its efforts towards infectious diseases, capitalizing on the advantages of its technology to boost the efficacy and stability of mRNA vaccines as well as high patient compliance due to pain-free skin administration.

„We are incredibly honored to receive this recognition from BARDA,“ said Robert Wawrzinek, CEO of Cutanos. „This award validates our commitment to develop innovative vaccine technologies that can make a real difference in the fight against infectious diseases. We believe that minimally invasive vaccination will improve vaccine acceptance and accessibility worldwide.“

More information:

BARDA Vital Prize: https://vitalhubhealth.com/prize-challenge/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/vital-hub_healthtech-startups-globalhealth-activity-7212488384965988352-F7Gz?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Photo above by VITALHub 

New Team Member

Welcome Ramona Rîca and Litty Johnson, the latest additions to Cutanos‘ science Team!

 

With pleasure we welcome Ramona and Litty and are excited to add even more expertise in immunology and material science to our projects!

New Team Member

We welcome our new

Scientist and Project Lead

Klara Klein

 

We are proud to welcome Klara to our team. With her vast expertise in immunology she is going to lead her own research project and will give valuable impacts in all of Cutanos‘ scientific endeavours!

New Team Member

We welcome our new CFO/CBO Ulrich Platte

The whole team is thrilled to announce Ulrich as our new CFO & CBO. We are beyond confident he will be a major asset to Cutanos and our next business development steps.

Welcome, Ulrich!

Cutanos and Pfizer team up

Cutanos and Pfizer team up to apply LC-TDS technology to autoimmune diseases

 

Thanks to Pfizer’s Emerging Science Fund, Cutanos will explore its immune cell-specific drug delivery system as a potential therapy platform for autoimmune disorders. In the next two years, this joint project aims to show induction of tolerance against self-antigens. Innovative therapeutic solutions in autoimmunity are one of the biggest unmet medical needs worldwide.

New Team Members!

We Welcome our Newest Team Members!

We are very happy to announce our latest additions to the team: Alexandra Sykora (Office Manager), Mirza Sarcevic and Gabriele Carta (Technical Assistants)! Welcome aboard!

Green Labs Austria

Cutanos joins Green Labs Austria Initiative 

As a biotechnology lab Cutanos feels responsible to not only contribute to science but also carrying out experiments in a more sustainable fashion. Hence, we want to participate in Green Labs Austria vision to reduce plastic waste and our carbon footprint. 


www.greenlabsaustria.at

ABA Podcast

ABA Podcast „𝗪𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗳𝘁 𝗶𝗺 ¾ 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝘁“

 

Doris Dobida talks with Cutanos‘ Co-Founder Robert Wawrzinek about starting a biotech company in Austria.

Webinar Series

Precision NanoSystems Teatime Webinar Series

Robert Wawrzinek talks about: „Small Molecule-Based Targeted Delivery of Nanoparticles to Langerhans Cells in Human Skin“

Publication – ACS central science

A Specific, Glycomimetic Langerin Ligand for Human Langerhans Cell Targeting

Eike-Christian Wamhoff, Jessica Schulze, Lydia Bellmann, Mareike Rentzsch, Gunnar Bachem, Felix F. Fuchsberger, Juliane Rademacher, Martin Hermann, Barbara Del Frari, Rob van Dalen, David Hartmann, Nina van Sorge, Oliver Seitz, Patrizia Stoitzner, Christoph Rademacher

 ACS Central Science (2019), doi.org/10.1021/acscentsci.9b00093

Publication – Biochemistry

A Liposomal Platform for Delivery of a Protein Antigen to Langerin-Expressing Cells

Jessica Schulze, Mareike Rentzsch, Donyoon Kim, Lydia Bellmann, Patrizia Stoitzner, Christoph Rademacher

Biochemistry (2019), doi.org/10.1021/acs.biochem.9b0040

Press Coverage

what the media says about Cutanos (selection)