BOSTON– Tolerance Bio and ZipCode Bio said Monday they have entered into a strategic research and development partnership to advance targeted thymus-based therapeutics, aiming to address immune aging and autoimmune disease.
The collaboration will pair Tolerance Bio’s expertise in thymus biology with ZipCode Bio’s SHARP (Single-component Homogeneous Amphiphilic Routed Particles) RNA delivery technology. Together, the companies plan to develop precision therapies designed to preserve, restore, and manipulate thymic function, which plays a central role in regulating immune tolerance.
“This collaboration represents a convergence of two complementary scientific visions,” said Francisco Leon, M.D., Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Tolerance Bio. “By combining our approach to control thymic function with ZipCode Bio’s targeted delivery technologies, we aim to unlock new therapeutic possibilities for patients impacted by immune aging and dysregulation.”
Launched in 2024 by executives with backgrounds at Provention Bio and Semma, Tolerance Bio is building a multi-modality therapeutic platform centered on immune tolerance through the thymus.
ZipCode Bio, co-founded by Nobel Prize Laureate Dr. Drew Weissman, focuses on advancing RNA medicines with improved precision. “Each advance in nucleic acid therapeutics has been built on decades of careful science,” Weissman said. “By partnering with Tolerance Bio, we have the opportunity to extend this work into thymus biology, an area with profound implications for immune health.”
The companies said the initial phase of the partnership will focus on preclinical research. ZipCode Bio will lead the development of thymus-targeting SHARPs, while Tolerance Bio will advance translation into disease models.
Jason Zhang, co-founder of ZipCode Bio, said the collaboration reflects a shared ambition: “Together, we’re combining world-class RNA and delivery technology with deep biological insight to develop transformative therapies for immune health and aging.”
