The VirusTech Core Facility - Our offer
The VirusTech Core Facility specializes in the production and concentration of Lentiviruses, gammaretroviruses and adeno-associated viruses.
Our viruses
Lentiviruses (LV)
The capacity to efficiently transduce dividing and non-dividing cells, shuttle large genetic payloads and maintain long-lasting transgene expression are attributes that bring lentiviral vectors to the forefront of gene delivery vehicles for research.
Gammaretroviruses (γRV)
The gammaretrovirus is a sister genus to the lentivirus clade. Like lentivirus, it is a member of the Orthoretroviridae subfamily of the retroviridae family. They share common properties but the main difference between these two viruses is that gammaretroviruses only infect dividing cells.
Adeno-associated viruses (AAV)
AAV pseudotypes show different tissue tropisms in vivo, improved performance in terms of transduction efficiency, and fewer challenges associated with humoral and/or cellular immunity.
Overview, production and ordering of viruses
Our main services
| Vector | Lentiviruses | Gammaretrovirus | Adeno-associated viruses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family | Retroviridae | Retroviridae | Parvoviridae |
| Cargo | ssRNA (+) | ssRNA (+) | ssDNA |
| Packaging capacity (kB) | 7-9 | 10 | 4,5 |
| Chromosomal Integration | Yes | Yes | No |
| Transduction Post-mitotic cells | Yes | No | Yes |
| Oncogene activation risk | High | Very High | Neglectable |
| Applications in research | Gene therapy, generation of stable cell lines, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, development of gene vaccines, in vivo animal studies, induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, fluorescent marker studies | Gene therapy, gene delivery, gene expression or knockdown, development of gene vaccines | Gene therapy, optogenetics experiments, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, in vivo animal studies, disease treatment |
Other services
The core has worked with other research institutes, companies, and associations to achieve the rights for the usage of different empty expression vectors for LVs, AAVs and (γRVs) so our customers do only have to worry about which vector they want to use to produce their virus particles.
- Cloning of your inserts in our catalogue of different expression vectors.
- Consultation to help researchers to decide which type fits their need for a specific project.
The core facility has also begun to offer DNA plasmid preparation services (mini, midi, maxi and giga) to save our precious customer's time and help them to acquire their desired viral particles in the shortest time.
| Services | Prices (SEK per plasmid) | Prices (SEK per plasmid) |
|---|---|---|
| Internal KI users | External non-KI users | |
| DNA Miniprep: 1 ug - 10 ug and up to 100 ug | 600 | 800 |
| DNA Midiprep (endo-free): 25 ug – 400 ug and up to 1.2 mg | 950 | 1200 |
| DNA Maxiprep (endo-free): 75 ug – 1200 ug and up to 3 mg | 1200 | 1500 |
| DNA Gigaprep (endo-free): 500 ug – 8000 ug and up to 25 mg | 2700 | 3100 |
Endo free: ≤ 0.025 EU/ug of plasmid DNA, suitable for in vivo studies
Equipment
The Virustech Core facility has acquired new equipment to boost its production. Since we moved to Biomedicum we use two Class II Biological Safety Cabinets (BSCs-2) and two CO2 incubators which will efficiently increase our workload and most demanding orders.
The core facility is also equipped with all the necessary instruments to perform the most advanced and trustworthy techniques for analysis and titration of our products.
We have purchased the newest model from the Optima X Series, the Optima XE-90, and several rotors to fit different volumes and sample amounts. Thus, the core will ensure the rapid and efficient production, purification, and concentration of our viruses. This Ultracentrifuge will also allow us to increase volumes and/or number of samples that may be processed at a given time and speed up the delivery or our services.
