h/m FASN shRNA Lentivirus

Background

FASN encodes fatty acid synthase, a large multifunctional enzyme that catalyzes the de novo synthesis of long-chain fatty acids, primarily palmitate, from acetyl-CoA and malonyl-CoA. As the central enzyme of lipogenesis, FASN supplies fatty acids for membrane biogenesis, energy storage, and lipid signaling. Its expression is typically low in normal adult tissues, which rely largely on dietary lipids, but it is upregulated in lipogenic tissues and is markedly elevated in many cancers. In tumors, FASN-driven de novo lipogenesis supports rapid membrane synthesis and proliferation, and elevated FASN expression correlates with aggressive disease. FASN is therefore studied as a metabolic vulnerability and potential therapeutic target in cancer and metabolic disease.

Product Description & Applications

The h/m FASN shRNA Lentivirus delivers validated short hairpin RNA targeting human and mouse FASN for stable gene knockdown. Each shRNA is validated to achieve at least 70% reduction of FASN using a fluorescence-based assay that provides a direct functional readout rather than transcript-level qPCR. The particles are ultra-purified and concentrated to high titer by PEG precipitation and sucrose gradient centrifugation, and efficiently transduce difficult-to-transfect cells, including primary and thawed cultures. A co-expressed fluorescent reporter (GFP or RFP, optionally with luciferase) and antibiotic selection marker (puromycin or blasticidin) enable stable line generation. A shRNA set option supplies a mix of two independent validated shRNAs plus matched scrambled-control lentivirus for loss-of-function studies of lipogenesis and lipid metabolism.

About This Product

This validated shRNA lentivirus targeting FASN (NCBI Accession: NM_004104) delivers a 19–20 bp shRNA from a third-generation, self-inactivating lentiviral backbone. Expression is driven from a U6 Pol III promoter, with a constitutively expressed fluorescent reporter (GFP, GFP/Luc, RFP, RFP/Luc) and antibiotic selection marker (Blasticidin, Puromycin) co-expressed from the same vector. VSV-G pseudotyping enables broad cell tropism, including primary, suspension, and cryopreserved cell types.

Knockdown is validated using a proprietary bicistronic fluorescence assay in which the target mRNA is co-expressed fused to RFP alongside the shRNA-GFP construct. At least 70% reduction in RFP signal in GFP-positive cells confirms on-target activity — a more direct functional readout than transcript-level qPCR. Polyclonal stable lines can be generated by antibiotic selection within 10 days, preserving parental cell heterogeneity compared to single-clone CRISPR approaches.