AAV resources

AAV Serotype Selection Guide

Recombinant AAV vectors differ mainly in their capsid, and the capsid determines which tissues transduce efficiently. This guide summarizes the tissue tropism of the serotypes in the FuBio catalog so you can shortlist a capsid before requesting a quote.

No single AAV serotype is exclusive to one tissue or cell type. Some serotypes transduce certain tissues more effectively than others, and strain, age, dose and route of administration all shift the outcome. Treat the recommendations below as starting points and confirm them in your own model.

Select a serotype by tissue tropism

Starting points for the tissues most often requested by our customers.

  • Brain — neurons

    AAV2 AAV9 AAV-PHP.eB

    AAV2 works well after stereotactic injection; AAV9 reaches the CNS after systemic dosing; AAV-PHP.eB transduces the CNS after intravenous injection in C57BL/6 mice.

  • Brain — glia and non-neuronal cells

    AAV5 AAV9

    Astrocyte and other non-neuronal populations are commonly targeted with AAV5 or AAV9, with tropism depending heavily on the promoter used alongside the capsid.

  • Spinal cord

    AAV9 AAV2

    AAV9 is the usual choice for systemic spinal cord delivery; AAV2 by direct injection remains an option for focal targets.

  • Retina and ocular tissue

    AAV2 AAV8 AAV5

    Subretinal delivery with AAV2 or AAV8 is the standard route for photoreceptors and retinal pigment epithelium; AAV5 is also widely used for ocular work.

  • Lung and airway

    AAV5 AAV6

    Airway epithelium is most often targeted with AAV5 or AAV6, the serotypes with the longest record in respiratory models.

  • Heart

    AAV9 AAV1

    AAV9 is the reference capsid for systemic cardiac delivery; AAV1 is a common alternative in muscle-focused studies.

  • Liver

    AAV8 AAV9

    AAV8 shows strong hepatotropism after systemic dosing and is the default capsid for liver-directed studies, with AAV9 as a frequent alternative.

  • Skeletal muscle

    AAV1 AAV6 AAV8 AAV9

    AAV1 and AAV6 transduce muscle efficiently; AAV8 and AAV9 extend coverage when systemic dosing or combined muscle and cardiac readouts are needed.

  • Kidney

    AAV9

    AAV9 is the most commonly reported capsid for renal transduction in mouse models.

  • Pancreas

    AAV8

    AAV8 is the usual starting capsid for pancreatic targets in rodent studies.

Commonly used serotypes in the FuBio catalog

The capsids available for AAV packaging, each summarized with its main tropism profile.

  • AAV1 Skeletal muscle and cardiac tissue, and central nervous system delivery by stereotactic injection.
  • AAV2 The best-characterized capsid and the usual reference point for retinal and central nervous system studies in rodents.
  • AAV6 Skeletal muscle and airway epithelium, with efficient transduction of primary cell types.
  • AAV8 Strong hepatotropism and the common choice for liver-directed studies after systemic dosing.
  • AAV9 Broad systemic delivery to the central nervous system, heart and skeletal muscle, with efficient crossing of the blood-brain barrier.
  • AAV-DJ Engineered hybrid capsid with broad tropism across cultured cells, including lines that are hard to transduce.
  • AAV-PHP.eB Systemic central nervous system delivery in mice; efficiency depends on the Ly6a allele and therefore varies with mouse strain.

Modified and synthetic capsids

Beyond the naturally occurring capsids above, engineered variants such as AAV-DJ and AAV-PHP.eB extend the reachable tissue range. Additional engineered capsids and promoter combinations can be discussed with our technical team when your target tissue is not covered by the standard catalog.

Not sure which capsid fits your model?

Share your target tissue, species and route of administration, and our technical team will recommend a starting serotype and promoter for your project.

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