- Ronald Plasterk holds several DNA patents, including WO2023068931A1 (Cancer neoantigens) and WO2021172990A1 (Hidden frame neoantigens), which describe methods for identifying cancer-specific peptide antigens from DNA mutations.
- Human cells contain about 750 MB of unique DNA code, which is used to produce proteins via RNA transcription and ribosomal translation, with only 21 MB directly coding for proteins.
- The immune system identifies foreign cells by monitoring protein fragments (antigens) presented on cell surfaces; cancer cells often produce abnormal proteins due to DNA mutations, which can serve as targets.
- A frameshift mutation (e.g., a single lost DNA letter) alters the reading frame, producing entirely different proteins that can be recognized as neoantigens by the immune system.
- The patented process involves sequencing tumor DNA to find mutations, predicting resulting neoantigens, and using them to train immune cells or create vaccines to attack cancer cells.
- Patents also include methods to analyze RNA for higher efficiency, and to search for known faulty proteins in tumor DNA using a database, as described in WO2020022897A1.