Resolution Therapeutics Expands Macrophage Therapy Pipeline to Fight Fibrosis and Inflammation

Fibrosis and chronic inflammation are central drivers of age-related organ decline, making advances in therapies that target these processes directly relevant to longevity and healthspan. Resolution Therapeutics, a UK-based biotech, is pushing forward on two fronts to address these conditions using a novel immune cell engineering approach.

The company is currently running a Phase 1/2 clinical trial called EMERALD, testing RTX001 — an autologous therapy that removes a patient's own macrophages, engineers them in a lab to promote tissue regeneration, and reinfuses them — in people with end-stage liver disease. Interim data from this trial are expected later in 2026. Macrophages are key immune cells that can either drive inflammation and scarring or support healing, depending on their activation state.

In parallel, Resolution has signed material transfer agreements with lipid nanoparticle providers to explore delivering mRNA directly into the body to reprogram macrophages in vivo. This approach, if validated, would eliminate the need to extract and engineer cells outside the body, potentially making treatment far more scalable and accessible. The company is running these tests in a fast-fail design to quickly identify the best delivery and payload combinations.

A successful LNP-mRNA platform would mark a significant expansion, extending the reach of Regenerative Macrophage Therapy beyond liver disease into oncology, lung fibrosis, and graft versus host disease — all conditions with limited treatment options and high disease burden in aging populations.

Caveats apply: this is early-stage pipeline work with no clinical data yet on the LNP programme. The EMERALD trial is still ongoing, and neither platform has demonstrated efficacy in large human trials. Investors and patients should await peer-reviewed data before drawing conclusions about clinical utility.