CCA researcher Waleed Kholosy (dep. Of Hematology) has been awarded an Off Road 2026 grant of € 98.229,- from ZonMw for his research project MIDNIGHT Factory. The project addresses one of the biggest bottlenecks in gene therapy: the expensive and inefficient manufacturing of viral vectors, which limits patient access to these potentially life-saving treatments.
Innovative concepts
Off Road supports curiosity-driven fundamental research at an early stage of scientific discovery. The programme aims to explore and develop promising but high-risk, high-reward ideas in biomedical and health research, helping researchers turn innovative concepts into proof of concept.
A new production system for viral vectors
With MIDNIGHT Factory, Waleed aims to develop a new production system that uses melatonin to control viral vector production, while at the same time protecting the mitochondria of the producer cells. By keeping the cellular "factory" healthier for longer, the project aims to increase production yields and reduce manufacturing costs, ultimately helping to make advanced therapies more accessible to patients. The grant committee praised the proposal as a conceptually highly innovative, out-of-the-box idea that clearly deviates from previous research in this field.
