Inverted Terminal Repeats (ITRs) are DNA sequences flanking the transgene of interest to signal incorporation into adeno-associated virus (AAV) or genome insertion by transposases. Despite sharing the ITR element name, viral vector and transposon ITRs differ in sequence and important properties that need to be considered in handling these vectors.
Commonly, when a person hears about Escherichia coli (E. coli), the news is negative. But it’s only a specific strain of E. coli detected on food that wasn’t cleaned or stored properly that’s a health hazard. When it comes to biotech, however, E. coli rocks! It’s been the workhorse for the creation of a multitude of products due to:
In efforts to bring the next-generation of plasmid technology to the cell and gene therapy space, Aldevron is offering a giveaway to customers developing AAV based therapies. Nanoplasmid benefits in the context of AAV include improved ITR stabilization from its proprietary host strain while increasing plasmid yields compared to conventional plasmid vectors.
For decades, the same plasmid technology has been used in vaccination, cell and gene therapy, and as a raw material in viral vector and RNA production, but that technology often isn’t a good fit for the processes where it’s being used. Now, with the growing availability of Nanoplasmid™ vectors, that is changing.
In my previous post, I brought up important questions that should be asked when beginning to design a scalable manufacturing process to meet specific use requirements. In this post, some of the difficulties encountered in process development are reviewed.
My last post gave a short introduction to the manufacture of in vitro transcribed (IVT) messenger RNA (mRNA) for vaccines and therapies, outlining the steps from preclinical to clinical stages of production. In this post, I’ll touch on manufacturing considerations, beginning with the upstream process for IVT mRNA.
Analytical innovation is often overlooked in discussions of biotechnology product development and manufacturing processes. For example, in the DNA area, most “state of the art” analytical methods in use were developed in the 1980s, or even earlier. Industrywide, there is a need to continuously innovate in the analytical space due to the tremendous advances in enabling technologies.
In cell and gene therapies, delivery is a critical factor. Regardless of your modality, optimizing payload, impact, and duration are common challenges. Countless programs, globally, are working on the delivery mechanism. However, many have overlooked a key component in improving therapeutic or manufacturing performance: the plasmid.
One of the many ways we can help you streamline your project is by offering free cloning backbones that have been tested in our production systems. We have recently expanded our portfolio to meet the increasing demands for backbones specifically for RNA production.
