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Enhanced Viral Vector Yield & Quality ~ Market Analyst @ Virica | Curated Cell & Gene Therapy Insights| Business Development | Biotechnology|

The AAV capsid plays a pivotal role for gene therapy since it determines properties such as tropism and immunogenicity. Although there are numerous AAV naturally occurring capsid variants, AAV is amenable to directed molecular evolution unlocking the potential for novel capsids with enhanced properties. The last two decades have been marked by significant improvements in vector technology. Let’s simplify and breakdown prominent molecular strategies for AAV evolution: 1.      DNA Family Shuffling: Involves combining genetic elements from different parental AAV variants and creating diverse libraries for selection of optimal AAV properties. 2.      Peptide display: Involves introduction of designed short peptides with specific functions to hypervariable regions on the capsid protein to create diverse libraries of chimeric capsids for subsequent screening of optimal properties. 3.      Ancestral Reconstruction: Involves recreating or “resurrecting” hypothetical ancestral capsid sequences that may have existed in the past. The technique leverages computational and synthetic biology to bridge the gap between natural AAV diversity and engineering optimized AAVs. Ultimately, the goal is AAV with improved target tissue tropism, higher transduction efficiency, lower immunogenicity, and ability to evade pre-existing humoral immunity. The transition to novel capsids & decline in favor of traditional serotypes is reflective of advancements in vector technologies. However, challenges remain, such as the need to analyze large number of capsids on a single-cell level and the issue of competition effects between similar capsids within the same cell. Excellent paper by the authors Dr. Joanna Szumska and Dirk Grimm highlighting technologies capable of accelerating AAV capsid evolution! What are your thoughts? Drop it in the comments below. #biotechnology #innovation #cgtjournalclub #genetherapy 

Arinjay Sarma

Enhanced Viral Vector Yield & Quality ~ Market Analyst @ Virica | Curated Cell & Gene Therapy Insights| Business Development | Biotechnology|

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