While the field of gene therapy continues to see success in the form of commercial approvals, the yields needed to meet the demands of these approvals has lagged. Newer, scalable production systems are needed to ensure that the production of products such as AAV can keep up with the clinical and commercial demand.
The TESSA platform provides a promising alternative to traditional AAV production, typically accomplished through triple transfection, which has the potential to alleviate the production bottleneck for AAV vector. Through the introduction of an easy-to-use viral-based transduction system, this platform enables significantly improved AAV yields while overcoming some of the traditional obstacles associated with triple transfection.
This webinar will provide an introduction to the TESSA system, followed by a walkthrough of a client’s approach to initial tests of the novel production system and the subsequent development of the platform.
- Hurdles posed by current AAV manufacturing techniques
- Introduction to an alternative, scalable AAV production approach
- Case study of BridgeBio’s experience with the TESSA platform for AAV production
Weiheng Su
Head of AAV at OXGENE
Weiheng holds a First-Class MSc degree in Cancer Immunology and a PhD in Oncology from the University of Oxford. Weiheng joined Oxford Genetics (trading as OXGENE) in 2013. Initially responsible for DNA design, he was soon promoted to lead all commercial activities around contract DNA engineering. Weiheng has been central to developing OXGENE’s viral vector systems including recombinant Adenovirus, AAVs, and Lentiviral vectors. Under the supervision of Dr. Ryan Cawood and Prof. Len Seymour, the founders of OXGENE, Weiheng developed OXGENE’s proprietary TESSA platform for scalable manufacture of AAVs and biologics during his doctoral research at Oxford. Weiheng leads the TESSA research team at OXGENE for vector improvements and innovations.
Matt Roach
Associate Director of AAV Production at BridgeBio
Matt is the Associate Director of AAV Production at BridgeBio, where he is focused on designing and implementing new strategies for the production and purification of adeno-associated virus. Matt completed his Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences at North Carolina State University and his Master’s degree in Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida. Prior to BridgeBio, Matt spent time at Precision BioSciences leading the AAV Process Development group, Pfizer working on the purification of AAV, and the Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center training industry professionals on downstream bioprocessing operations.