Multidose Transient Transfection of HEK293 Cells Modulates rAAV2/5 Rep
Protein Expression and Influences the Enrichment Fraction of Filled
Capsids
Abstract
Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) is a commonly used in
vivo gene therapy vector because of its non-pathogenicity, long-term
transgene expression, broad tropism, and ability to transduce both
dividing and non-dividing cells. However, rAAV vector production via
transient transfection of mammalian cells typically yields a low
fraction of filled-to-total capsids (~1–30% of total
capsids produced). Analysis of our previously developed mechanistic
model for rAAV2/5 production attributed these low fill fractions to a
poorly coordinated timeline between capsid synthesis and viral DNA
replication and the repression of later phase capsid formation by Rep
proteins. Here, we extend the model by quantifying the expression
dynamics of total Rep proteins and their influence on the key steps of
rAAV2/5 production using a multiple dosing transfection of human
embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells. We report that the availability of
pre-formed empty capsids and viral DNA copies per cell are not limiting
to the capsid filling reaction. However, optimal expression of Rep
proteins (< 240 ± 13 ag per cell) enables enrichment of the
filled capsid population (> 12% of total capsids/cell)
upstream. Our analysis suggests increased enrichment of filled capsids
via regulating the expression of Rep proteins is possible but at the
expense of per cell capsid titer in a triple plasmid transfection. Our
study reveals an intrinsic limitation of scaling rAAV2/5 vector genome
(vg) production and underscores the need for approaches that allow for
regulating the expression of Rep proteins to maximize vg titer per cell
upstream.