Rotavirus A infection is a global leading cause of severe acute gastroenteritis associated with life-threatening diarrheal episodes in infants and young children. The disease burden is being reduced, namely due to a wider access to rotavirus vaccines. However, there is a demand to expand rotavirus vaccination programs, and to achieve this, it is critical to improve high-throughput in-process product quality control and vaccine manufacturing monitoring. Here, we present the development of an analytical method for the quantification of rotavirus particles contained in a licensed vaccine. The binding of rotavirus proteins to distinct glycoconjugate receptors and monoclonal antibodies was evaluated using biolayer interferometry analysis, applied on an Octet platform. The antibody strategy presented the best results with a linear response range within 2.5 × 107-1.0 × 108 particles·mL-1 and limits of detection and quantification of 2.5 × 106 and 7.5 × 106 particles·mL-1, respectively. Method suitability for the quantification of in-process samples was shown using samples from different manufacturing stages and their titers were comparable with the approved CCID(50) method. This cell-free method enables a fast and high-throughput analysis, compatible with time constraints during bioprocess development and it is suitable to be adapted to other viral particle-based drug products.
Keywords: Octet; bioanalytics; in-process samples; quantification; rotavirus vaccine.