Why Cell-Free DNA Is Replacing Plasmids in Next-Gen Genetic Medicine
In the fast-moving world of genetic medicine, cell-free DNA production has the potential to significantly advance the industry by making DNA faster, safer, and with greater purity. That was the message at the recent Outsourced Pharma webinar, “From Plasmids to Cell-Free DNA Using Megabulb DNA: How Touchlight and ElevateBio Are Enabling Safer and More Effective Cell and Gene Therapies.”
The session brought together two innovators reshaping the foundation of advanced therapies: Touchlight, the London-based CDMO pioneering enzymatic, cell-free DNA manufacture, and ElevateBio, a leading US company driving process and technology innovation in cell and gene therapy.
Moving Beyond Plasmids
For decades, plasmid DNA has been the workhorse of genetic medicine, but it comes with challenges in consistency, scalability, and regulatory complexity. Touchlight’s cell-free DNA platform takes a different approach, replacing bacterial fermentation with a fully enzymatic process that produces high-purity DNA at scale.
As Dr Elena Stoyanova, Principal Scientist at Touchlight, explained, our technology isn’t just an incremental improvement; it’s a reinvention. Touchlight’s portfolio includes dbDNA™, a linear, double-stranded DNA vector used across therapeutic modalities, and its newest innovation, mbDNA™ + Custom Circles, a suite of novel circular DNA architectures designed to unlock new levels of precision and safety in genome editing.
The Power of mbDNATM
mbDNA offers a compelling alternative to plasmids and even viral vectors, providing higher homology-directed repair (HDR) efficiency and lower toxicity. This means that not only are cells engineered more effectively, but that they recover faster and expand more robustly, crucial advantages for therapeutic development.
Dr. Stoyanova showcased how mbDNA’s circular, single-stranded design is enabling new frontiers in non-viral gene editing, while remaining scalable and GMP-ready, two qualities essential for real-world therapeutic manufacturing.
ElevateBio’s Next-Generation Engineering
Taking the innovation from concept to process, Dr Chesney Michaels, Director of Emerging Technology for Cell and Gene Therapy at ElevateBio, demonstrated how mbDNA is being integrated into non-viral T cell engineering workflows.
Through detailed case studies, he highlighted how ElevateBio’s ecosystem, from its BaseCamp™ manufacturing hub to its Life Edit™ gene editing platform, is developing the next generation of cell therapies. The collaboration with Touchlight shows how mbDNA performs across multiple delivery systems, including electroporation and lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), offering flexibility for both research and clinical production.
A Glimpse of What’s Next
As both speakers emphasised, the partnership between Touchlight and ElevateBio reflects an industry shift from complex, often virus-dependent systems toward simpler and safer DNA technologies. With innovations like mbDNA, the path from design to clinic is becoming faster, more efficient, and ultimately more accessible for patients in need.
The full webinar dives deeper into the data, process optimisation, and the regulatory implications of this paradigm shift.
Watch the full webinar on demand to see how Touchlight and ElevateBio are transforming the future of DNA manufacturing and gene therapy innovation.
