GPE 86

GPE‑86 (sometimes written as GP+E‑86) is a retroviral packaging cell line originally constructed from NIH‑3T3 mouse embryonic fibroblasts stably transfected with Moloney murine leukemia virus (M‑MLV) gag, pol and ecotropic env. The ecotropic env is constitutively expressed, thereby restricting virus from GPE-86 cells to mouse and rat cell lines and primary cells expressing the mCAT1 receptor.

The predominant use of GPE‑86 is to generate high‑titer ecotropic retrovirus to transduce murine target cells. The line is routinely transfected with a retroviral vector (MSCV‑based GFP or puromycin‑resistance constructs, for example) and supernatants containing infectious particles are harvested for the purpose of integrating the transgene into murine cell lines, primary hematopoietic progenitors, or ES cells. GPE-86's ecotropic specificity is also exploited in T‑cell receptor (TCR) and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) studies in which GPE‑86 produced virus is used to create murine TCR-retrogenic mice or CAR-T cells for immunology studies. GPE-86 is a common positive control for packaging‑efficiency assays, envelope‑pseudotyping studies, and for safety screening of RCR formation.

GPE‑86 has also been put to other uses including modified for gene delivery in a non-traditional manner by RNAi‑mediated silencing of its env component, allowing the generation of pantropic retroviruses to transduce human CD34⁺ progenitors. GPE-86's stable nature, ease of culture, and well-studied safety profile make it a foundational tool for the production of murine retroviral vectors and functional genomics.