The purification of a DNA vaccine against rabies by hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) using a Sepharose gel derivatised with 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether was scaled up 60 times. The purification profile was not affected by increased loadings (up to 15 mg DNA) and a product with a consistent quality was obtained. Fourteen mg of plasmid with an HPLC purity of 100% were obtained in one run, corresponding to a 95% yield.