The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) is one method utilized for the production of recombinant proteins, and typically works without significant difficulties. However, some proteins are produced in insoluble forms, and degradation can occur. This article will focus on this degradation issue, and present a method to stabilize a protease-sensitive protein that has been produced at the 40-liter scale…
Category: <span>Baculovirus Expression Technology</span>
Serine-threonine kinases of the Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) pathway represent potential drug targets for a wide range of diseases. As part of an effort to understand the biology of the pathways, several human serine-threonine MAPKs were produced. Optimization and modification of current methodologies used in the baculovirus expression system resulted in the generation of large amounts of active MAPKs. Compounds found to inhibit the MAPKs in vitro, subsequently showed activity in cell-based assays and animal models. The processes to be discussed were developed to yield large quantities of three active human serine-threonine MAPKs by the baculovirus expression system…
The baculovirus expression system promises to revolutionize the production of recombinant proteins for use as clinical products. The technology is robust, efficient, and low-cost when compared to other cell based systems. The technique may also present an advantage in producing safer products versus the equivalent materials made with mammalian cells. Proteins can be produced in insect cells without animal supplements such as fetal calf serum. In the current climate of concerns over Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathies, and bovine viral risks, this method offers a significant safety, as well as cost advantage, over other production methods…
Globally, an estimated 36 million people are living with HIV, and some 20 million people have already died of AIDS. Today, there is still no HIV vaccine available. HIV virus-like particles are an attractive vaccine candidate due to their ability to induce both antibody and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte responses. In this article, we describe the development of a production process for an HIV particle vaccine, HIV-1 p55 (gag). The gag precursor protein (p55) is sufficient for assembly and cellular release of retrovirus-like particles. We expressed the p55 gag protein using the BEVS technology in Spodoptera frugiperda expresSF+ cells…
Baculovirus expression technology, or BEVS, gained its first broad industry exposure in the early 1980s, primarily through the many papers published by students and post-doctoral fellows in Dr. Max Summers’ laboratory at Texas A&M University (College Station, Texas). This technology fostered popular appeal because of its simplicity and high protein expression capabilities. As more work was done, it became even more evident that this was a very rapid, and relatively inexpensive method for producing proteins. It was also postulated that BEVS would offer a valuable means of producing recombinant proteins for use in human therapy, especially since baculovirus was considered non-infectious to human cells. It was thought that any problems with post-translational modifications of the manufactured proteins could be worked out, and fully functional glycoproteins could be manufactured…