Long single-stranded RNA oligonucleotides are increasingly necessary for a variety of genomic pathway research and drug discovery studies. However synthesizing and purifying long RNAs can pose unique challenges due to their sequence composition, secondary structure, and applied modifications. Here we explore how Horizon Discovery is leveraging Dharmacon’s 20+ years of RNA synthesis experience to solve the challenges of long RNA oligo synthesis to address unmet research needs.
Recent approvals of oligonucleotide therapeutics are a clear signal for optimism for this product class. This is supported by the strength of the current pipeline which has over 180 active oligonucleotide clinical programs in various phases of development. Improvements in analytical technology and know-how have played a key role in enabling suitable characterization and quality control strategies to overcome the difficulties associated with testing these complex molecules. Despite the lack of dedicated regulatory guidelines related to characterization or quality control,…
Human plasma is a complex mixture of biomolecules such as serum albumin, immunoglobulins, coagulation factors, and others (1). These important protein biomolecules often are present at low levels or lacking in affected patients with certain life-threatening conditions. To extract those valuable proteins, a number of purification methods have been developed over time. Plasma fractionation can be traced back to the middle of the 20th century, when Edwin Cohn of Harvard University developed the first industrial process to purify proteins from…
In earlier issues of BPI we published a few “Elucidation†closers that we called “Defining Moments.†Since then, we have tried to distinguish key confusable terms from one another. Those presented (and sometimes “elucidatedâ€) have been analytical and bioanalytical, spectroscopy and spectrometry, and biosimilars and biobetters. They are just a few of the many confusable terms in the biopharmaceutical industry. For example, when someone says “drug delivery,†a formulator will think of a syringe or transdermal patch, but a logistics…
Among the emerging targeted therapies in biotechnology, antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) hold a unique position. An ADC consists of a monoclonal antibody (MAb) with affinity to tumor cells, a cytotoxic small-molecule payload, and a linker connecting the two. Together the MAb, conjugation chemistry, and cytotoxin increase the complexity of ADCs several-fold relative to unmodified MAbs — and exponentially relative to chemotherapies. Viewing ADCs as hybrids of antibody- and chemotherapy-based cancer therapies is tempting. That description applies chemically and structurally, but ADCs’…
Bacteriophages are viruses (consisting of a genome contained within a protein coat) that specifically infect bacteria. They are the most abundant living entities on earth — the estimates range from 1030 to 1032 in total — and play key roles in regulating the microbial balance in every ecosystem where that has been explored (1). Bacteriophages are genotypic and phenotypically different from viruses that infect Archaea (Archaeovirus) and Eukarya (Eukaryovirus). The name bacteriovirus has been proposed as scientifically more accurate (2).…