micro-RNA Engineering

microRNAs with their ability to regulate complex pathways that control cellular behavior and phenotype have been proposed as potential targets for cell engineering in the context of optimization of biopharmaceutical production cell lines, specifically of Chinese Hamster Ovary cells. However, until recently, research was limited by a lack of genomic sequence information on this industrially important cell line. With the publication of the genomic sequence and other relevant data sets for CHO cells since 2011, the doors have been opened for an improved understanding of CHO cell physiology and for the development of the necessary tools for novel engineering strategies. We have been researching the regulatory mechanisms of microRNAs obtained from other biological models and proof of concepts already performed on CHO cells, thus providing an outlook of potential applications of microRNA engineering in production cell lines.

References

Jadhav, Vaibhav, Matthias Hackl, Aliaksandr Druz, Smriti Shridhar, Cheng-Yu Chung, Kelley M. Heffner, David P. Kreil, et al. "CHO microRNA Engineering is Growing Up: Recent Successes and Future Challenges." Biotechnology Advances 31, no. 8 (12, 2013): 1501-1513.

Druz, Aliaksandr, Chia Chu, Brian Majors, Rodell Santuary, Michael Betenbaugh, and Joseph Shiloach. "A Novel microRNA Mmu-miR-466h Affects Apoptosis Regulation in Mammalian Cells." Biotechnology and Bioengineering 108, no. 7 (2011): 1651-1661.