Recombinant Transferrin

Animal-free recombinant human transferrin for your biomanufacturing and R&D needs

Iron is a requisite component in the biology of life, playing essential roles in cellular metabolism, cell replication, and various specialized functions. Free ferrous iron (Fe2+), however, is readily oxidized in solution to its ferric form (Fe3+), which easily catalyzes the formation of toxic reactive oxygen species and free radicals. In the body, this undesirable process is controlled by the iron-binding glycoprotein transferrin, which scavenges extracellular ferric iron in the bloodstream and delivers it back to the cells through endocytosis.  Once it releases its payload, iron-free transferrin recirculates to repeat the cycle.

In routine cell culture, transferrin is customarily supplied as a natural component of fetal bovine serum (FBS). The growing use of serum-free, chemically defined media in the culture of cells destined for downstream clinical therapeutic applications, however, necessitates the use of a purified recombinant form of this essential component.

InVitria’s recombinant human transferrin, Optiferrin, is completely free of animal and human components and is produced in a scalable, non-mammalian expression system. It is fully human in primary sequence, is ⍺-glycosylated during expression, contributing to it’s stability and function in the host, and shares secondary and higher-order structural equivalence with naturally occurring human holo-transferrin. Its functional performance in cell culture matches that of human holo-transferrin in terms of reversible iron binding, transferrin-receptor binding, and promoting cell growth and productivity.

Optiferrin is naturally free of prion agents and carries a far lower potential risk of contamination with other human or mammalian adventitious agents compared to serum-derived components and recombinant proteins produced in other systems. Its purity makes it ideal for demanding research and commercial applications.

Optiferrin is suitable for a broad range of cell types and applications including:

  • Stem, primary, and bioproduction cells
  • Robust proliferation of human hematopoietic stem cells (HSC)
  • Sp2/0 hybridoma cells
  • Applicable to any use requiring chemically defined culture media

Related Resources

Resource Type Title Cell Lines Relevance
Application Note Safe, Consistent Iron Delivery in Serum-Free Systems with Optiferrin® Recombinant Transferrin Hybridoma Recombinant transferrin performance in hybridoma proliferation and iron delivery.
Application Note Transient Transfection Protocol – Enhancement of Transfection Efficiency Using Recombinant Transferrin with Serum-Free HEK293 Media HEK293 Recombinant transferrin in transient transfection workflows.
Application Note Using Recombinant Transferrin in the Expansion of Hematopoietic Stem Cells Application Note Hematopoetic Stem Cells Recombinant transferrin in HSC expansion protocols.
White Paper Optiferrin – Recombinant Transferrin an Iron Transport Protein in Cell Culture Media — Foundational overview of recombinant transferrin in cell culture.
Journal Articles (DOI Links) Defined Media Optimization for hiPSC-Derived Cardiomyocyte Maturation iPSC Peer-reviewed validation of recombinant transferrin in defined iPSC media.
Blog How Regulatory Bodies Are Driving the Shift to Animal-Origin-Free Solutions in Cell Therapy and Vaccine Development — Why regulators are pushing toward recombinant alternatives to plasma transferrin.