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Vaz TA, Rodrigues AF, Coroadinha AS. Exploring nutrient supplementation and bioprocess optimization to improve the production of lentiviral vectors in serum-free medium suspension cultures. Biotechnol J 2024; 19:e2300212. [PMID: 37903159 DOI: 10.1002/biot.202300212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Revised: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
The use of lentiviral vectors (LV) in gene therapy has been growing in recent years. To meet the increasing clinical demand, LV production platforms will benefit from improved productivity and scalability to enable cost-effective manufacture of LV-based therapies. Here we report the adaptation of 293T cells to serum-free suspension cultures and the improvement of LV yields through transfection parameters optimization, process intensification and medium supplementation with nutrient boosters. Cells were sequentially adapted to different serum-free culture media, transfection parameters were optimized and the two best-performing conditions were selected to explore process intensification by increasing cell density at the time of transfection. LV production at higher cell densities increased volumetric titers up to 12-fold and lipid supplementation was the most efficient metabolic optimization strategy further enhancing LV productivity by 3-fold. Furthermore, cell concentration was identified and validated as an important source of transfection variability impairing cellular uptake of DNA polyplexes, impacting transfection efficiency and reducing LV titers down to 6-fold. This work contributes to improving LV-based gene therapy by establishing new scalable manufacturing platforms and providing key metabolic insights, unveiling important bioreaction parameters to improve vector yields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiago A Vaz
- iBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Ana F Rodrigues
- iBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
- LASIGE, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Ana S Coroadinha
- iBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
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2
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McColman S, Shkalla K, Sidhu P, Liang J, Osman S, Kovacs N, Bokhari Z, Forjaz Marques AC, Li Y, Lin Q, Zhang H, Cramb DT. SARS-CoV-2 virus-like-particles via liposomal reconstitution of spike glycoproteins. NANOSCALE ADVANCES 2023; 5:4167-4181. [PMID: 37560413 PMCID: PMC10408587 DOI: 10.1039/d3na00190c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 virus, implicated in the COVID-19 pandemic, recognizes and binds host cells using its spike glycoprotein through an angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptor-mediated pathway. Recent research suggests that spatial distributions of the spike protein may influence viral interactions with target cells and immune systems. The goal of this study has been to develop a liposome-based virus-like particle (VLP) by reconstituting the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein within a synthetic nanoparticle membrane, aiming to eventually establish tunability in spike protein presentation on the nanoparticle surface. Here we report on first steps to this goal, wherein liposomal SARS-CoV-2 VLPs were successfully produced via detergent mediated spike protein reconstitution. The resultant VLPs are shown to successfully co-localize in vitro with the ACE-2 receptor on lung epithelial cell surfaces, followed by internalization into these cells. These VLPs are the first step toward the overall goal of this research which is to form an understanding of the relationship between spike protein surface density and cell-level immune response, eventually toward creating better vaccines and anti-viral therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah McColman
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Klaidi Shkalla
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Pavleen Sidhu
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Jady Liang
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Selena Osman
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Norbert Kovacs
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Zainab Bokhari
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - Ana Carolina Forjaz Marques
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Seção Técnica de Graduação, Universidade Estadual Paulista Araraquara SP Brazil
| | - Yuchong Li
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- The State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University Guangzhou Guangdong China
| | - Qiwen Lin
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- The State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University Guangzhou Guangdong China
| | - Haibo Zhang
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- The State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University Guangzhou Guangdong China
- Departments of Anaesthesia and Physiology, Interdepartmental Division of Critical Care Medicine, University of Toronto Toronto ON Canada
| | - David T Cramb
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto ON Canada
- Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science, St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto Toronto ON Canada
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Calgary Calgary AB Canada
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3
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Silvano M, Correia R, Virgolini N, Clarke C, Alves PM, Isidro IA, Roldão A. Gene Expression Analysis of Adapted Insect Cells during Influenza VLP Production Using RNA-Sequencing. Viruses 2022; 14:v14102238. [PMID: 36298794 PMCID: PMC9609815 DOI: 10.3390/v14102238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Revised: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive laboratory evolution has been used to improve production of influenza hemagglutinin (HA)-displaying virus-like particles (VLPs) in insect cells. However, little is known about the underlying biological mechanisms promoting higher HA-VLP expression in such adapted cell lines. In this article, we present a study of gene expression patterns associated with high-producer insect High Five cells adapted to neutral pH, in comparison to non-adapted cells, during expression of influenza HA-VLPs. RNA-seq shows a decrease in the amount of reads mapping to host cell genomes along infection, and an increase in those mapping to baculovirus and transgenes. A total of 1742 host cell genes were found differentially expressed between adapted and non-adapted cells throughout infection, 474 of those being either up- or down-regulated at both time points evaluated (12 and 24 h post-infection). Interestingly, while host cell genes were found up- and down-regulated in an approximately 1:1 ratio, all differentially expressed baculovirus genes were found to be down-regulated in infected adapted cells. Pathway analysis of differentially expressed genes revealed enrichment of ribosome biosynthesis and carbohydrate, amino acid, and lipid metabolism. In addition, oxidative phosphorylation and protein folding, sorting and degradation pathways were also found to be overrepresented. These findings contribute to our knowledge of biological mechanisms of insect cells during baculovirus-mediated transient expression and will assist the identification of potential engineering targets to increase recombinant protein production in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Silvano
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Ricardo Correia
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Nikolaus Virgolini
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Colin Clarke
- NIBRT, National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training, Fosters Avenue, Blackrock, Co., A94 X099 Dublin, Ireland
- School of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering, University College Dublin, D04 V1W8 Dublin, Ireland
| | - Paula M. Alves
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Inês A. Isidro
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
| | - António Roldão
- IBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal
- Correspondence:
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Zhou X, Lu H, Wu Z, Zhang X, Zhang Q, Zhu S, Zhu H, Sun H. Comparison of mucosal immune responses to African swine fever virus antigens intranasally delivered with two different viral vectors. Res Vet Sci 2022; 150:204-212. [DOI: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2022.06.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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5
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Fernandes B, Sousa M, Castro R, Schäfer A, Hauser J, Schulze K, Amacker M, Tamborrini M, Pluschke G, Alves PM, Fleury S, Roldão A. Scalable Process for High-Yield Production of PfCyRPA Using Insect Cells for Inclusion in a Malaria Virosome-Based Vaccine Candidate. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:879078. [PMID: 35669054 PMCID: PMC9163744 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.879078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium falciparum cysteine-rich protective antigen (PfCyRPA) has been identified as a promising blood-stage candidate antigen to include in a broadly cross-reactive malaria vaccine. In the last couple of decades, substantial effort has been committed to the development of scalable cost-effective, robust, and high-yield PfCyRPA production processes. Despite insect cells being a suitable expression system due to their track record for protein production (including vaccine antigens), these are yet to be explored to produce this antigen. In this study, different insect cell lines, culture conditions (baculovirus infection strategy, supplementation schemes, culture temperature modulation), and purification strategies (affinity tags) were explored aiming to develop a scalable, high-yield, and high-quality PfCyRPA for inclusion in a virosome-based malaria vaccine candidate. Supplements with antioxidants improved PfCyRPA volumetric titers by 50% when added at the time of infection. In addition, from three different affinity tags (6x-His, 4x-His, and C-tag) evaluated, the 4x-His affinity tag was the one leading to the highest PfCyRPA purification recovery yields (61%) and production yield (26 mg/L vs. 21 mg/L and 13 mg/L for 6x-His and C-tag, respectively). Noteworthy, PfCyRPA expressed using High Five cells did not show differences in protein quality or stability when compared to its human HEK293 cell counterpart. When formulated in a lipid-based virosome nanoparticle, immunized rabbits developed functional anti-PfCyRPA antibodies that impeded the multiplication of P. falciparum in vitro. This work demonstrates the potential of using IC-BEVS as a qualified platform to produce functional recombinant PfCyRPA protein with the added benefit of being a non-human expression system with short bioprocessing times and high expression levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bárbara Fernandes
- iBET-Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA-Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Marcos Sousa
- iBET-Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA-Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Rute Castro
- iBET-Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Anja Schäfer
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Julia Hauser
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Kai Schulze
- Helmhotz Center for Infecion Research, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Mario Amacker
- Mymetics SA, Épalinges, Switzerland
- Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Marco Tamborrini
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Gerd Pluschke
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Paula M Alves
- iBET-Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA-Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
| | | | - António Roldão
- iBET-Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica, Oeiras, Portugal
- ITQB NOVA-Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, Portugal
- *Correspondence: António Roldão,
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6
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Secreted Trimeric Chikungunya Virus Spikes from Insect Cells: Production, Purification, and Glycosylation Status. Processes (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/pr10010162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a rapidly emerging mosquito-borne virus that causes a severe febrile illness with long-lasting arthralgia in humans. As there is no vaccine to protect humans and limit CHIKV epidemics, the virus continues to be a global public health concern. The CHIKV envelope glycoproteins E1 and E2 are important immunogens; therefore, the aim of this study is to produce trimeric CHIKV spikes in insect cells using the baculovirus expression system. The CHIKV E1 and E2 ectodomains were covalently coupled by a flexible linker that replaces the 6K transmembrane protein. The C-terminal E1 transmembrane was replaced by a Strep-tag II for the purification of secreted spikes from the culture fluid. After production in Sf9 suspension cells (product yields of 5.8–7.6 mg/L), the CHIKV spikes were purified by Strep-Tactin affinity chromatography, which successfully cleared the co-produced baculoviruses. Bis(sulfosuccinimidyl)suberate cross-linking demonstrated that the spikes are secreted as trimers. PNGase F treatment showed that the spikes are glycosylated. LC–MS/MS-based glycoproteomic analysis confirmed the glycosylation and revealed that the majority are of the mannose- or hybrid-type N-glycans and <2% have complex-type N-glycans. The LC –MS/MS analysis also revealed three O-glycosylation sites in E1. In conclusion, the trimeric, glycosylated CHIKV spikes have been successfully produced in insect cells and are now available for vaccination studies.
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7
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Ferrer-Miralles N, Saccardo P, Corchero JL, Garcia-Fruitós E. Recombinant Protein Production and Purification of Insoluble Proteins. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2406:1-31. [PMID: 35089548 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1859-2_1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Proteins are synthesized in heterologous systems because of the impossibility to obtain satisfactory yields from natural sources. The efficient production of soluble and functional recombinant proteins is among the main goals in the biotechnological field. In this context, it is important to point out that under stress conditions, protein folding machinery is saturated and this promotes protein misfolding and, consequently, protein aggregation. Thus, the selection of the optimal expression organism and its growth conditions to minimize the formation of insoluble protein aggregates should be done according to the protein characteristics and downstream requirements. Escherichia coli is the most popular recombinant protein expression system despite the great development achieved so far by eukaryotic expression systems. Besides, other prokaryotic expression systems, such as lactic acid bacteria and psychrophilic bacteria, are gaining interest in this field. However, it is worth mentioning that prokaryotic expression system poses, in many cases, severe restrictions for a successful heterologous protein production. Thus, eukaryotic systems such as mammalian cells, insect cells, yeast, filamentous fungus, and microalgae are an interesting alternative for the production of these difficult-to-express proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neus Ferrer-Miralles
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- Departament de Genètica i de Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- CIBER de Bioingeniería, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBER-BBN), Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
| | - Paolo Saccardo
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- Departament de Genètica i de Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- CIBER de Bioingeniería, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBER-BBN), Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
| | - José Luis Corchero
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- Departament de Genètica i de Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
- CIBER de Bioingeniería, Biomateriales y Nanomedicina (CIBER-BBN), Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain
| | - Elena Garcia-Fruitós
- Department of Ruminant Production, Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries (IRTA), Caldes de Montbui, Spain.
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Schaly S, Ghebretatios M, Prakash S. Baculoviruses in Gene Therapy and Personalized Medicine. Biologics 2021; 15:115-132. [PMID: 33953541 PMCID: PMC8088983 DOI: 10.2147/btt.s292692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
This review will outline the role of baculoviruses in gene therapy and future potential in personalized medicine. Baculoviruses are a safe, non-toxic, non-integrative vector with a large cloning capacity. Baculoviruses are also a highly adaptable, low-cost vector with a broad tissue and host tropism due to their ability to infect both quiescent and proliferating cells. Moreover, they only replicate in insect cells, not mammalian cells, improving their biosafety. The beneficial properties of baculoviruses make it an attractive option for gene delivery. The use of baculoviruses in gene therapy has advanced significantly, contributing to vaccine production, anti-cancer therapies and regenerative medicine. Currently, baculoviruses are primarily used for recombinant protein production and vaccines. This review will also discuss methods to optimize baculoviruses protein production and mammalian cell entry, limitations and potential for gene therapy and personalized medicine. Limitations such as transient gene expression, complement activation and virus fragility are discussed in details as they can be overcome through further genetic modifications and other methods. This review concludes that baculoviruses are an excllent candidate for gene therapy, personalized medicine and other biotherapeutic applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina Schaly
- Biomedical Technology and Cell Therapy Research Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Merry Ghebretatios
- Biomedical Technology and Cell Therapy Research Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Satya Prakash
- Biomedical Technology and Cell Therapy Research Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2B4, Canada
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9
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Sari‐Ak D, Bufton J, Gupta K, Garzoni F, Fitzgerald D, Schaffitzel C, Berger I. VLP-factory™ and ADDomer © : Self-assembling Virus-Like Particle (VLP) Technologies for Multiple Protein and Peptide Epitope Display. Curr Protoc 2021; 1:e55. [PMID: 33729713 PMCID: PMC9733710 DOI: 10.1002/cpz1.55] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Virus-like particles (VLPs) play a prominent role in vaccination as safe and highly versatile alternatives to attenuated or inactivated viruses or subunit vaccines. We present here two innovations, VLP-factory™ and ADDomer© , for creating VLPs displaying entire proteins or peptide epitopes as antigens, respectively, to enable efficient vaccination. For producing these VLPs, we use MultiBac, a baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) that we developed for producing complex protein biologics in insect cells transfected with an engineered baculovirus. VLPs are protein assemblies that share features with viruses but are devoid of genetic material, and thus considered safe. VLP-factory™ represents a customized MultiBac baculovirus tailored to produce enveloped VLPs based on the M1 capsid protein of influenza virus. We apply VLP-factory™ to create an array of influenza-derived VLPs presenting functional mutant influenza hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein variants. Moreover, we describe MultiBac-based production of ADDomer© , a synthetic self-assembling adenovirus-derived protein-based VLP platform designed to display multiple copies of pathogenic epitopes at the same time on one particle for highly efficient vaccination. © 2021 The Authors. Basic Protocol 1: VLP-factory™ baculoviral genome generation Basic Protocol 2: Influenza VLP array generation using VLP-factory™ Basic Protocol 3: Influenza VLP purification Basic Protocol 4: ADDomer© BioBrick design, expression, and purification Basic Protocol 5: ADDomer© candidate vaccines against infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duygu Sari‐Ak
- Department of Medical Biology, School of MedicineUniversity of Health SciencesIstanbulTurkey
| | - Joshua Bufton
- Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBioUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,School of Biochemistry, Biomedical SciencesUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
| | - Kapil Gupta
- Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBioUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,School of Biochemistry, Biomedical SciencesUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
| | - Frederic Garzoni
- Imophoron Ltd, St. Philips CentralSt. PhilipsBristolUnited Kingdom
| | | | - Christiane Schaffitzel
- Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBioUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,School of Biochemistry, Biomedical SciencesUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
| | - Imre Berger
- Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBioUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,School of Biochemistry, Biomedical SciencesUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,School of ChemistryUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom,Max Planck Bristol Centre for Minimal BiologyUniversity of BristolBristolUnited Kingdom
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10
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Puente-Massaguer E, Grau-Garcia P, Strobl F, Grabherr R, Striedner G, Lecina M, Gòdia F. Accelerating HIV-1 VLP production using stable High Five insect cell pools. Biotechnol J 2020; 16:e2000391. [PMID: 33247883 DOI: 10.1002/biot.202000391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2020] [Revised: 10/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Stable cell pools are receiving a renewed interest as a potential alternative system to clonal cell lines. The shorter development timelines and the capacity to achieve high product yields make them an interesting approach for recombinant protein production. In this study, stable High Five cell pools are assessed for the production of a simple protein, mCherry, and the more complex HIV-1 Gag-eGFP virus-like particles (VLPs). Random integration coupled to fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) in suspension conditions is applied to accelerate the stable cell pool generation process and enrich it with high producer cells. This methodology is successfully transferred to a bioreactor for VLP production, resulting in a 2-fold increase in VLP yields with respect to shake flask cultures. In these conditions, maximum viable cell concentration improves by 1.5-fold, and by-product formation is significantly reduced. Remarkably, a global increase in the uptake of amino acids in the Gag-eGFP stable cell pool is observed when compared with parental High Five cells, reflecting the additional metabolic burden associated with VLP production. These results suggest that stable High Five cell pools are a robust and powerful approach to produce VLPs and other recombinant proteins, and put the basis for future studies aiming to scale up this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduard Puente-Massaguer
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Paula Grau-Garcia
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Florian Strobl
- Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (acib GmbH), Vienna, 1010, Austria.,Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Reingard Grabherr
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Gerald Striedner
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Martí Lecina
- IQS School of Engineering, Universitat Ramón Llull, Barcelona, 08017, Spain
| | - Francesc Gòdia
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
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11
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Zhang Y, Enden G, Wei W, Zhou F, Chen J, Merchuk JC. Baculovirus transit through insect cell membranes: A mechanistic approach. Chem Eng Sci 2020; 223:115727. [PMID: 32362678 PMCID: PMC7195021 DOI: 10.1016/j.ces.2020.115727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2020] [Revised: 03/15/2020] [Accepted: 04/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
A novel mechanistic model of the early stages of viral infection. Excellent fit to experimental evidence. The maximum number of virions that Sf9 cells can carry: 55 viruses/cell, is reported. Cells that carry virions on their surface, in their interior, or both are distinguished. Analytical mathematical solution renders satisfactory results.
Baculovirus systems are used for various purposes, but the kinetics of the infection process is not fully understood yet. We investigated the dynamics of virion movement from a medium toward the interior of insect cells and established a mechanistic model that shows an excellent fit to experimental results. It also makes possible a description of the viral dynamics on the cell surface. A novel measurement method was used to distinguish between infected cells that carry virions on their surfaces, cells that carry virions in their interior, and those carrying virions both inside and on their surface. The maximum number of virions carried by a cell: 55 viruses/cell, and the time required for viral internalization, 0.8h, are reported. This information is particularly useful for assessing the infection efficacy and the required number of virions needed to infect a given cell population. Although our model specifically concerns the infection process of Sf9 insect cells by baculovirus, it describes general features of viral infection. Some of the model features may eventually be applicable in the studies towards palliation of the COVID-19 outbreak.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youhong Zhang
- School of Environmental Ecology and Biological Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, LiuFang Campus, Guanggu 1st Road, Wuhan 430205 China.,Key Laboratory for Green Chemical Process of Ministry of Education, Wuhan Institute of Technology, LiuFang Campus, Guanggu 1st Road, Wuhan 430205 China
| | - Giora Enden
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Wei Wei
- Institute of Marine Microbes and Ecospheres, Xiamen University (Xiang'an), Xiamen 361102, China
| | - Feng Zhou
- School of Environmental Ecology and Biological Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, LiuFang Campus, Guanggu 1st Road, Wuhan 430205 China
| | - Jie Chen
- School of Environmental Ecology and Biological Engineering, Wuhan Institute of Technology, LiuFang Campus, Guanggu 1st Road, Wuhan 430205 China
| | - Jose C Merchuk
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
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12
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SARS-CoV-2 vaccine research and development: Conventional vaccines and biomimetic nanotechnology strategies. Asian J Pharm Sci 2020; 16:136-146. [PMID: 32905011 PMCID: PMC7462629 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajps.2020.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Revised: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 08/12/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The development of a massively producible vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel coronavirus, is essential for stopping the current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. A vaccine must stimulate effective antibody and T cell responses in vivo to induce long-term protection. Scientific researchers have been developing vaccine candidates for the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) since the outbreaks of these diseases. The prevalence of new biotechnologies such as genetic engineering has shed light on the generation of vaccines against novel viruses. In this review, we present the status of the development of coronavirus vaccines, focusing particularly on the biomimetic nanoparticle technology platform, which is likely to have a major role in future developments of personalized medicine.
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13
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Enhanced Production of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Amplicon Vectors by Gene Modification and Optimization of Packaging Cell Growth Medium. MOLECULAR THERAPY-METHODS & CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT 2020; 17:491-496. [PMID: 32258212 PMCID: PMC7114837 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2020.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/10/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1)-derived amplicon vectors are unique in their ability to accommodate large DNA molecules allowing whole genomic loci to be included with all of their regulatory elements. Additional advantages of these amplicons include their minimal toxicity and ability to persist as episomes, with negligible risk of insertional mutagenesis, being particularly well-suited for gene therapy of neurological disorders due to their outstanding ability to deliver genes into neurons and other neural cells. However, extensive gene therapy application has been hindered by difficulties in vector production. This work improved HSV-1 amplicons production by genetic modification of the packaging cell line and optimization of the culture medium. A stably-transfected Vero 2-2 cell line overexpressing the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 protein was generated, exhibiting an increased resistance to apoptosis, prolonged culture duration, and a significant improvement in viral vector production. Additionally, supplementation of the growth medium with antioxidants, polyamines, amino acids, and reduced glutathione further increased the yield of packaged amplicon vectors. With these modifications, HSV-1 amplicons could be isolated from culture supernatants instead of cell lysates, leading to vector preparations with higher titer and purity and paving the way for generation of stable cell lines that are capable of continuous herpesviral vector production.
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14
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Puente-Massaguer E, Lecina M, Gòdia F. Integrating nanoparticle quantification and statistical design of experiments for efficient HIV-1 virus-like particle production in High Five cells. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2020; 104:1569-1582. [PMID: 31907573 PMCID: PMC7224031 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-019-10319-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Revised: 12/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/13/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The nature of enveloped virus-like particles (VLPs) has triggered high interest in their application to different research fields, including vaccine development. The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) has been used as an efficient platform for obtaining large amounts of these complex nanoparticles. To date, most of the studies dealing with VLP production by recombinant baculovirus infection utilize indirect detection or quantification techniques that hinder the appropriate characterization of the process and product. Here, we propose the application of cutting-edge quantification methodologies in combination with advanced statistical designs to exploit the full potential of the High Five/BEVS as a platform to produce HIV-1 Gag VLPs. The synergies between CCI, MOI, and TOH were studied using a response surface methodology approach on four different response functions: baculovirus infection, VLP production, VLP assembly, and VLP productivity. TOH and MOI proved to be the major influencing factors in contrast with previous reported data. Interestingly, a remarkable competition between Gag VLP production and non-assembled Gag was detected. Also, the use of nanoparticle tracking analysis and flow virometry revealed the existence of remarkable quantities of extracellular vesicles. The different responses of the study were combined to determine two global optimum conditions, one aiming to maximize the VLP titer (quantity) and the second aiming to find a compromise between VLP yield and the ratio of assembled VLPs (quality). This study provides a valuable approach to optimize VLP production and demonstrates that the High Five/BEVS can support mass production of Gag VLPs and potentially other complex nanoparticles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduard Puente-Massaguer
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Martí Lecina
- IQS School of Engineering, Universitat Ramón Llull, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Francesc Gòdia
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain
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15
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Durous L, Rosa-Calatrava M, Petiot E. Advances in influenza virus-like particles bioprocesses. Expert Rev Vaccines 2019; 18:1285-1300. [DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2019.1704262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Durous
- Virologie et Pathologie Humaine - VirPath team - Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), INSERM U1111, CNRS UMR5308, ENS Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Manuel Rosa-Calatrava
- Virologie et Pathologie Humaine - VirPath team - Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), INSERM U1111, CNRS UMR5308, ENS Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
- VirNext, Faculté de Médecine RTH Laennec, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Emma Petiot
- Virologie et Pathologie Humaine - VirPath team - Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), INSERM U1111, CNRS UMR5308, ENS Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
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16
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Sari-Ak D, Bahrami S, Laska MJ, Drncova P, Fitzgerald DJ, Schaffitzel C, Garzoni F, Berger I. High-Throughput Production of Influenza Virus-Like Particle (VLP) Array by Using VLP-factory ™, a MultiBac Baculoviral Genome Customized for Enveloped VLP Expression. Methods Mol Biol 2019; 2025:213-226. [PMID: 31267455 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9624-7_10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Baculovirus-based expression of proteins in insect cell cultures has emerged as a powerful technology to produce complex protein biologics for many applications ranging from multiprotein complex structural biology to manufacturing of therapeutic proteins including virus-like particles (VLPs). VLPs are protein assemblies that mimic live viruses but typically do not contain any genetic material, and therefore are safe and attractive alternatives to life attenuated or inactivated viruses for vaccination purposes. MultiBac is an advanced baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) which consists of an engineered viral genome that can be customized for tailored applications. Here we describe the creation of a MultiBac-based VLP-factory™, based on the M1 capsid protein from influenza, and its application to produce in a parallelized fashion an array of influenza-derived VLPs containing functional mutations in influenza hemagglutinin (HA) thought to modulate the immune response elicited by the VLP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duygu Sari-Ak
- The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | | | - Magdalena J Laska
- Department of Biomedicine, Bartholins Allé 6, University of Aarhus, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Petra Drncova
- The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | | | - Christiane Schaffitzel
- School of Biochemistry and Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBio, University Walk, University of Bristol, Clifton, UK
| | | | - Imre Berger
- School of Biochemistry and Bristol Synthetic Biology Centre BrisSynBio, University Walk, University of Bristol, Clifton, UK.
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17
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Nutritional demands and metabolic characteristics of the DSIR-HA-1179 insect cell line during growth and infection with the Oryctes nudivirus. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Anim 2017; 53:908-921. [PMID: 29197034 DOI: 10.1007/s11626-017-0206-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2017] [Accepted: 10/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The DSIR-HA-1179 coleopteran cell line has been identified as a susceptible and permissive host for the in vitro replication of the Oryctes nudivirus, which can be used as a biopesticide against the coconut rhinoceros beetle, pest of palms. The major challenge to in vitro large-scale Oryctes nudivirus production is ensuring process economy. This rests, among other requisites, on the use of low-cost culture media tailored to the nutritional and metabolic needs of the cell line, both in uninfected and infected cultures. The aim of the present study was to characterize the nutritional demands and the metabolic characteristics of the DSIR-HA-1179 cell line during growth and subsequent infection with Oryctes nudivirus in the TC-100 culture medium. Serum-supplementation of the culture medium was found to be critical for cell growth, and addition of 10% fetal bovine serum v/v led to a maximum viable cell density (16.8 × 105 cells ml-1) with a population doubling time of 4.2 d. Nutritional and metabolic characterization of the cell line revealed a trend of glucose and glutamine consumption but minimal uptake of other amino acids, negligible production of lactate and ammonia, and the accumulation of alanine, both before and after infection. The monitoring of virus production kinetics showed that the TC-100 culture medium was nutritionally sufficient to give a peak yield of 7.38 × 107 TCID50 ml-1 of OrNV at the 6th day post-infection in attached cultures of DSIR-HA-1179 cells in 25 cm2 T-flasks. Knowledge of the cell line's nutritional demands and virus production kinetics will aid in the formulation of a low-cost culture medium and better process design for large-scale OrNV production in future.
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18
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Monteiro F, Bernal V, Alves PM. The role of host cell physiology in the productivity of the baculovirus-insect cell system: Fluxome analysis of Trichoplusia ni
and Spodoptera frugiperda
cell lines. Biotechnol Bioeng 2016; 114:674-684. [DOI: 10.1002/bit.26089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2016] [Revised: 06/30/2016] [Accepted: 08/25/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Francisca Monteiro
- iBET; Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica; Oeiras Portugal
- Instituto; de Tecnologia Química e Biológica; Universidade Nova de Lisboa; Oeiras Portugal
| | - Vicente Bernal
- Departamento de Biología Molecular B e Inmunología, Facultad de Química, Campus Internacional de Excelencia “Mare Nostrum”; Universidad de Murcia; Murcia Spain
| | - Paula M. Alves
- iBET; Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica; Oeiras Portugal
- Instituto; de Tecnologia Química e Biológica; Universidade Nova de Lisboa; Oeiras Portugal
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