Luana Ferrara, Head of R&D and Collaborations, Qkine
Interleukin-34 (IL-34) is a key growth factor involved in the development and regulation of monocytes and macrophages, cells that play essential roles in immunity, inflammation, and tissue repair. It’s also crucial for supporting microglia differentiation, making it especially important for researchers working in neuroscience, immunology, oncology, and drug development.
Staining of microglial markers after differentiation from iPSC with Qkine IL-34 PLUS™ (Qk091)
Despite its importance, scientists have long struggled to access a reliable, animal-free, and high-quality version of IL-34. Most available proteins on the market either don’t work well or vary too much from batch to batch. This makes experiments harder to reproduce and wastes both time and resources, something researchers simply can’t afford.
When we first started working on IL-34 at Qkine, we weren’t just trying to make another recombinant protein. We wanted to solve a real problem. We knew that if we could develop an IL-34 that was consistent, highly active, and free from animal-derived components, it could have a big impact on research.
To better understand the challenges, we tested several commercially available IL-34 proteins ourselves. The results weren’t great. Many showed very low activity, poor purity, or big differences between batches. In one case, a product that was advertised as “active” showed no detectable activity at all in our hands. That’s frustrating for any scientist who just wants their experiments to work.
It became clear that there was a real gap in the market and a real opportunity to raise the standard. So, we set out to develop an IL-34 that researchers could trust: one that delivers consistent performance, high purity, and strong biological activity every time.
We saw a clear opportunity and a challenge worth tackling.
Our R&D team invested significant time in engineering a version of IL-34 that meets the performance and consistency expectations needed. This included optimizing the expression, refining purification workflows, and performing extensive validation to ensure activity, purity, and stability across lots which would match Qkine’s high quality standards. That wasn’t an easy task, believe me! But as always happens at Qkine, the team raised to the challenge and delivered the first commercially available animal-free IL-34!
Along the way, we learned a lot! Aside from the scientific knowledge that we gained from working with such challenging protein, we also learned what it takes to protect and commercialize this kind of work. Patenting the product pushed us to think beyond the bench: how do we make something that’s not only scientifically sound, but also valuable and defensible in the market? It was a journey…one worth pursuing!
The development of IL-34 was guided by a simple belief: researchers deserve better tools. That means not settling for inconsistent or underperforming proteins, but instead committing to the quality, reliability, and scientific rigor that modern research demands. With our high-purity, animal-free IL-34, we’ve set a new benchmark, one that empowers researchers to generate more consistent data, accelerate discovery, and push the boundaries of what’s possible in immunology, neuroscience, and beyond.
Because when science moves forward, the tools should too.
For more information view our IL-34 PLUSTM and read the related application note Differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into microglia.