AAV production and purification require efficient sample analysis
Despite a growing interest in adeno-associated viruses (AAVs) as vectors for DNA delivery in gene therapies, AAV production is hampered by a lack of efficient methods to assess sample quality and purity. AAV production and purification require frequent testing of several key analytical attributes such as the proportions of empty and full AAV capsids and the presence of capsids aggregates and other contaminants.
Although a range of analytical techniques can provide this information, many have important drawbacks such as having long analysis times, requiring protocol adjustments for different AAV serotypes, or needing large and complex equipment and highly trained staff. These drawbacks are an obstacle to efficiently incorporating these techniques within AAV production and purification pipelines.
How to efficiently analyze samples from any AAV serotype?
Mass photometry is a powerful technique that uses light to quantify the mass of single particles. Mass photometers bring several advantages to sample analysis in AAV production workflows:
· They can readily analyze samples from any AAV serotype
· Measurements take only minutes and consume little sample
They are benchtop instruments with low running costs
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Moreover, mass photometry provides a detailed overview of all the populations in the sample including rare (<1%) species. This makes mass photometry ideal to determine the empty, full and partially filled proportions of AAVs in a sample during AAV production, as well as detect aggregates and other contaminants during AAV purification.
Additional resources​
BLOG
Everything you need to know about analyzing AAVs with mass photometry
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In this blog post, Refeyn’s expert talks about the SamuxMP, a mass photometer tailored for the analysis of AAV samples. Find out what mass photometry can do for AAV production and purification and details of the characteristics of the instrument.
WEBINAR
Are Your AAVs Filled? Determine Rapidly with Mass Photometry
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In this webinar, a product expert provides insight into a novel mass photometry instrument tailored to address the challenges of AAV production and purification. Moreover, we will see data proving its ability to reliably quantify the empty-full particle ratio for different AAV serotypes and at different purification levels, including benchmark data comparing the mass photometry solution with cryoTEM and analytical ultra-centrifugation.
More Application Notes
Browse through our catalogue of application notes highlighting some recent case studies featuring mass photometry.