Merger of Vector Development Laboratory and Gene Vector Core
The VDL is currently restructuring and not providing services at this time. For all request of viral vectors, please visit the Gene Vector Core Website or send an email to genevector@bcm.edu.
Since 1999, the Vector Development Laboratory has developed and implemented novel cellular and gene-based treatments for a variety of diseases. Gene transfer vectors provide investigators important research tools in studies of gene function. They can make gene delivery easy and efficient in a number of models of disease. The Vector Development Laboratory is located within the Cell and Gene Therapy Center on the 10th floor of the Alkek Building at Baylor College of Medicine.
Services
The Vector Development Laboratory provides comprehensive service in the design, creation, production, and analysis of standard gene therapy. To help investigators chose the optimum vector system for their proposed application, the VDL has available many different "off the shelf" vectors containing a range of reporters, which will provide essential information about transduction.
Cost Savings
We also strive to produce vectors at the lowest possible cost. We operate as a non-profit core facility, so the price of the vectors and any associated testing are provided to you at cost, meaning we do not charge anything above and beyond what is costs us to produce the vectors or complete a service request.
Technical Information
VDL SOPs: As a service organization, we believe it will benefit you to have access to the Standard Operating Procedures we use to create, expand, purify, and evaluate your vectors. An SOP for each procedure has been published on this site.
Cloning Vectors: Cloning is an essential process in the production of vectors. In the creation of some vectors, we ask that you do the initial cloning. Since we require you to do some cloning, we felt we owe it to you to give you access to the cloning plasmids that are used in the production of your vectors. We have sequence, restriction site, and map data for nearly all cloning plasmids. See our list of Cloning Vectors and download information you need to making cloning easier.
(All files are in .pdf format and require Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader, download it from Adobe.com)
Vector Repository
Our Collection is Growing...
Since the inception of the Vector Development Laboratory, we have made a substantial number of vectors and have often had requests for vectors from the scientific community.
In support of the research community, we have generated a large database of all the vectors produced by the VDL along with information about the vector construction and transgene. All information is kept confidential and only shared with the individual owners of the vectors.
However, to help eliminate duplication of services and provide discounts to our customers, when we receive requests for creation of vectors we know exist, we will privately contact the owners and ask if we can provide other customers with their information. If agreement, we will provide the investigators contact information to the customer so that they can contact them directly and establish material transfer agreement. Once we have written consent from the investigator, we will then release or potentially expand the virus stock for the customer. This will avoid the time and cost of viral creation.
Benefits to Vector Depositors
We offer investigators the ability to store a tube of their virus in our repository.
By depositing vectors, customers are assured safe and reliable storage. Vector management and storage are done using a barcoding system. All vectors are barcoded to ensure identity. When a vector vial is barcoded, it is read by a computerized scanner and this information is transferred to the database tracking system. All vectors are stored in a specific location within a dedicated -80ºC freezer. The freezer is powered by the central Baylor power supply and in the case of a power failure the freezer will be powered by a series of back-up generators. The freezers are also equipped with multiple alarm systems one of which alerts the Baylor security of temperature fluctuations.