Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual
reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.
On April 8, 2026, ProQR
Therapeutics N.V. (“ProQR”) issued a press release entitled “ProQR Announces Partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks and Formation
of AI Advisory Board.” A copy of the press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.
ProQR hereby incorporates by reference the information
contained herein into ProQR’s registration statements on Form F-3 (File No. 333-282419, File No. 333-270943, File No. 333-263166 and File No. 333-285767).
Pursuant to the requirements
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto
duly authorized.
Exhibit 99.1
ProQR Announces Partnership with Ginkgo
Bioworks and Formation of AI Advisory Board
| · | ProQR
and Ginkgo Bioworks to collaborate on autonomous lab high throughput data generation to support
ProQR’s AI-enabled drug discovery for Axiomer™ |
| · | ProQR
establishes AI Advisory Board with leaders from industry and academia |
| · | ProQR’s
first AI-discovered Development Candidate expected to enter the clinic in 2026 |
LEIDEN, Netherlands & CAMBRIDGE,
Mass., April 8, 2026 – ProQR Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: PRQR) (ProQR), a company dedicated to changing lives through transformative
RNA therapies based on its proprietary Axiomer™ RNA editing technology platform, today announced its AI strategy to enhance discovery
on the Axiomer platform, including a partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks and the formation of an AI Advisory Board.
The company will host a virtual Investor
and Analyst event on April 8, 2026 at 10am EDT where it will further discuss these developments as part of a broader update on its
pipeline and platform.
“Over the last 18 months we have
developed an AI model that leads to significant acceleration and improvement of editing oligonucleotides in drug discovery,” said
Daniel A. de Boer, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ProQR. “We welcome the distinguished members of our AI advisory board
who are helping us to maximize the impact of AI-enabled drug discovery for patients.”
De Boer continued, “We’re
pleased to have announced the partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks, providing us access to their state-of-the-art autonomous lab enabling
high throughput data generation to further scale up our AI-enabled drug discovery.”
Strategic Partnership with Ginkgo
Bioworks
ProQR’s partnership with Ginkgo
Bioworks provides ProQR access to Ginkgo’s 50+ instrument autonomous lab, Nebula. Ginkgo’s autonomous lab removes a
main bottleneck in AI-enabled drug discovery by increasing data generation throughput and speed. This capability is expected to increase
the scale and speed of experimental data generation, enabling more efficient discovery timelines and improving the ability of ProQR’s
discovery AI models to predict drug candidates. Ginkgo made a strategic equity investment in ProQR in connection with the partnership.
AI-enabled Programs
ProQR expects to advance its first programs
generated using its AI-enabled discovery approach into the clinic, with a clinical trial application (CTA) anticipated in mid-2026 and
initial clinical data anticipated by year-end 2026. The company will provide further details on its AI-enabled drug discovery, the AI-generated
Development Candidates and the plans for clinical trials thereof at its Investor and Analyst event later today (details below).
AI Advisory Board
ProQR has established an AI Advisory
Board comprising leaders from the AI and techbio fields to support the development of the Company’s AI strategy for Axiomer. The
Advisory Board will provide guidance on how ProQR applies AI in its discovery efforts, including best practices, emerging approaches,
and insights from the field helping to accelerate drug discovery and optimization of Axiomer editing oligonucleotides.
Members of the ProQR AI Advisory Board
include:
| · | Eric
Durand, PhD, Chief Data Science Officer, Owkin |
| · | David
Ruau, PhD, Head of BD EMEA, Healthcare & Life Sciences, NVIDIA |
| · | Thomas
Wolf, Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer of Hugging Face |
| · | Gerard
van Westen, Full Professor AI and Medicinal Chemistry at Leiden University |
| · | Romain
Lacombe, Venture Partner, HCVC |
| · | Imran
Haque, PhD, Chief Technology Officer, Kimia Therapeutics |
Virtual Investor and Analyst
Event on April 8, 2026
ProQR will host an Investor and Analyst
Event today. At this event, ProQR will showcase its broader RNA editing pipeline and platform, announce new programs that will
have clinical data readouts in the runway, and unveil the primary indication for AX-0810.
Event Details and Registration
| · | Title: Expanding
the Axiomer™ RNA Editing Opportunity Beyond AX-0810 |
| · | Date &
Time: April 8, 2026 beginning at 10:00 am ET until
approximately 11:30 am ET |
| · | Virtual
format: Webcast presentations and Q&A with covering analysts and Management |
| · | Registration: https://lifescievents.com/event/g09gufqylu/ |
About Axiomer™
ProQR is pioneering a next-generation
RNA base editing technology called Axiomer™, which could potentially yield a new class of medicines for diverse types
of diseases. Axiomer™ “Editing Oligonucleotides”, or EONs, mediate single nucleotide changes to RNA in a
highly specific and targeted way using molecular machinery that is present in human cells called ADAR (Adenosine Deaminase Acting on
RNA). Axiomer™ EONs are designed to recruit and direct endogenously expressed ADARs to change an Adenosine (A) to
an Inosine (I) in the RNA – an Inosine is translated as a Guanosine (G) – correcting an RNA with a disease-causing
mutation back to a normal (wild type) RNA, modulating protein expression, or altering a protein so that it will have a new function that
helps prevent or treat disease.
About ProQR
ProQR Therapeutics is dedicated to changing
lives through the creation of transformative RNA therapies. ProQR is pioneering a next-generation RNA technology called Axiomer™,
which uses a cell’s own editing machinery called ADAR to make specific single nucleotide edits in RNA to reverse a mutation or
modulate protein expression and could potentially yield a new class of medicines for both rare and prevalent diseases with unmet need.
Based on our unique proprietary RNA repair platform technologies we are growing our pipeline with patients and loved ones in mind.
Learn more about ProQR at www.proqr.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This
press release contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements,
which are often indicated by terms such as “continue,” "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate,"
"expect," "goal," "intend," "look forward to", "may," "plan," "potential,"
"predict," "project," "should," "will," "would" and similar expressions. Such forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our business, technology, strategy, preclinical and clinical model data;
our pipeline targets and the upcoming strategic priorities and milestones related thereto; the continued advancement of our lead development
pipeline programs, including ongoing and planned clinical trials; our partnership with Ginkgo and
the intended benefits thereof; expectations regarding AI’s ability to accelerate Axiomer™ discovery; expectations
and timing regarding an anticipated CTA filing and release of initial clinical data for our new program; expectations regarding the role
of the AI Advisory Board and the intended benefits thereof; the ongoing Phase 1 clinical study of AX-0810 in NTCP for cholestatic diseases,
including the primary indication for AX-0810; the continued development and advancement of our Axiomer platform; the therapeutic potential
of our Axiomer RNA editing oligonucleotides and product candidates; the timing, progress and results of our preclinical studies and other
development and pipeline activities, including the release of data related thereto; and the potential of our technologies and product
candidates. Forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs and assumptions and on information available to management only
as of the date of this press release. Our actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements for many reasons, including, without limitation, the risks, uncertainties and other factors in our filings made with the Securities
and Exchange Commission, including certain sections of our most recent annual report filed on Form 20-F. These risks and uncertainties
include, among others, the cost, timing and results of preclinical studies and clinical trials and other development activities by us
and our collaborative partners whose operations and activities may be slowed or halted shortage and pressure on supply and logistics
on the global market, economic sanctions and international tariffs; the likelihood of our preclinical and clinical programs being initiated
and executed on timelines provided and reliance on our contract research organizations and predictability of timely enrollment of subjects
and patients to advance our clinical trials and maintain their own operations; our reliance on contract manufacturers to supply materials
for research and development and the risk of supply interruption from a contract manufacturer; the potential for future data to alter
initial and preliminary results of early-stage clinical trials; the unpredictability of the duration and results of the regulatory review
of applications or clearances that are necessary to initiate and continue to advance and progress our clinical programs; the ability
to secure, maintain and realize the intended benefits of collaborations with partners, including the collaboration with Lilly; the possible
impairment of, inability to obtain, and costs to obtain intellectual property rights; possible safety or efficacy concerns that could
emerge as new data are generated in research and development; general business, operational, financial and accounting risks, and risks
related to litigation and disputes with third parties; and risks related to macroeconomic conditions and market volatility resulting
from global economic developments, geopolitical events and conflicts, high inflation, rising interest rates, tariffs and potential for
significant changes in U.S. policies and regulatory environment. Given these risks, uncertainties and other factors, you should not place
undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, even if new
information becomes available in the future, except as required by law.
ProQR Therapeutics N.V.
Investor
and media contact:
Sarah Kiely
ProQR Therapeutics N.V.
T: +1 617 599 6228
skiely@proqr.com
or
Investor contact:
Peter Kelleher
LifeSci Advisors
T: +1 617 430 7579
pkelleher@lifesciadvisors.com
