Several small‐scale Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) suspension cultures were grown in perfusion mode using a new acoustic filtration system. The separation performance was evaluated at different cell concentrations and perfusion rates for two different CHO cell lines. It was found that the separation performance depends inversely on the cell concentration and perfusion rate. High media flow rates as well as high cell concentrations resulted in a significant drop in the separation performance, which limited the maximal cell concentration achievable. However, packed cell volumes of 10% to 16% (corresponding to 3 to 6 · 107 cells/mL) could be reached and were maintained without additional bleeding after shifting the temperature to 33°C. Perfusion, up to 50 days, did not harm the cells and did not result in a loss of performance of the acoustic filter as often seen with other perfusion systems. Volumetric productivities in perfusion mode were 2‐ to 12‐fold higher for two cell lines producing two different glycoproteins when compared to fed‐batch or batch processes using the same cell lines. Product concentrations were in the range of 20% to 80% of batch or fed‐batch culture, respectively. In addition, using the protease‐sensitive product rhesus thrombopoietin, we could show that cultivation in perfusion mode drastically reduced proteolysis when compared to a batch culture without addition of protease inhibitors such as leupeptin. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 69: 440–449, 2000.

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Under some cell culture conditions, recombinant glycoprotein therapeutics expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells lose sialic acid during the course of the culture (Sliwkowski et al., 1992; Munzert et al., 1996). A soluble sialidase of CHO cell origin degrades the expressed recombinant protein and has been shown to be released into the culture fluid as the viability of the cells decreases. To reduce the levels of the sialidase and to prevent desialylation of recombinant protein, a CHO cell line has been developed that constitutively expresses sialidase antisense RNA. Several antisense expression vectors were prepared using different regions of the sialidase gene. Co‐transfection of the antisense constructs with a vector conferring puromycin resistance gave rise to over 40 puromycin resistant clones that were screened for sialidase activity. A 5′ 474 bp coding segment of the sialidase cDNA, in the inverted orientation in an SV 40‐based expression vector, gave maximal reduction of the sialidase activity to about 40% wild‐type values. To test if this level of sialidase would lead to increased sialic acid content of an expressed recombinant protein, the 474 antisense clone was employed as a host for expression of human DNase as a model glycoprotein. The sialic acid content of the DNase produced in the antisense cultures was compared with material made in the wild‐type parental cell line. About 20–37% increase in sialic acid content, or 0.6–1.1 mole of additional sialic acid out of a total of 3.0 mole on the product, was found on the DNase made in the antisense cell lines. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 60: 589–595, 1998.

Under some cell culture conditions, recombinant glycoprotein therapeutics expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells lose sialic acid during the course of the culture (Sliwkowski et al., 1992; Munzert et al., 1996). A soluble sialidase of CHO cell origin degrades the expressed recombinant protein and has been shown to be released into the culture fluid as the viability of the cells decreases. To reduce the levels of the sialidase and to prevent desialylation of recombinant protein, a CHO cell line has been developed that constitutively expresses sialidase antisense RNA. Several antisense expression vectors were prepared using different regions of the sialidase gene. Co-transfection of the antisense constructs with a vector conferring puromycin resistance gave rise to over 40 puromycin resistant clones that were screened for sialidase activity. A 5' 474 bp coding segment of the sialidase cDNA, in the inverted orientation in an SV 40-based expression vector, gave maximal reduction of the sialidase activity to about 40% wild-type values. To test if this level of sialidase would lead to increased sialic acid content of an expressed recombinant protein, the 474 antisense clone was employed as a host for expression of human DNase as a model glycoprotein. The sialic acid content of the DNase produced in the antisense cultures was compared with material made in the wild-type parental cell line. About 20-37% increase in sialic acid content, or 0.6-1.1 mole of additional sialic acid out of a total of 3.0 mole on the product, was found on the DNase made in the antisense cell lines.