In silico-aided design of a glycan ligand of sialoadhesin for in vivo targeting of macrophages

Glycosphingolipid-functionalized nanoparticles recapitulate CD169-dependent HIV-1 uptake and trafficking in dendritic cells

Ganglioside GM3, a host-derived glycosphingolipid incorporated in the membrane of human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) viral particles, mediates interactions between HIV-1 and Siglec1/CD169, a protein expressed on dendritic cells (DCs). Such interactions, which seem to be independent of viral envelope glycoprotein gp120, are poorly understood. Here we develop a model system consisting of self-assembled artificial virus nanoparticles (AVNs) that are free of viral glycoproteins or other host-derived glycolipids and glycoproteins. These plasmonic AVNs contain a membrane of defined composition wrapped around a solid metal core. GM3-containing AVNs are captured by CD169-expressing HeLa cells or mature DCs, and are sequestered within non-lysosomal tetraspanin-positive compartments. This distribution is reminiscent of CD169-dependent HIV-1 sequestration in mature DCs. Our results highlight GM3-CD169 binding as a gp120-independent signal for sequestration and preservation of HIV-1 infectivity. They also indicate that plasmonic AVNs offer improved features over liposome-based systems and represent a versatile tool for probing specific virus-cell interactions.

Glycotherapy: new advances inspire a reemergence of glycans in medicine

The beginning of the 20(th) century marked the dawn of modern medicine with glycan-based therapies at the forefront. However, glycans quickly became overshadowed as DNA- and protein-focused treatments became readily accessible. The recent development of new tools and techniques to study and produce structurally defined carbohydrates has spurred renewed interest in the therapeutic applications of glycans. This review focuses on advances within the past decade that are bringing glycan-based treatments back to the forefront of medicine and the technologies that are driving these efforts. These include the use of glycans themselves as therapeutic molecules as well as engineering protein and cell surface glycans to suit clinical applications. Glycan therapeutics offer a rich and promising frontier for developments in the academic, biopharmaceutical, and medical fields.

Disubstituted Sialic Acid Ligands Targeting Siglecs CD33 and CD22 Associated with Myeloid Leukaemias and B Cell Lymphomas

The siglec family of sialic acid-binding proteins are endocytic immune cell receptors that are recognized as potential targets for cell directed therapies. CD33 and CD22 are prototypical members and are validated candidates for targeting acute myeloid leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphomas due to their restricted expression on myeloid cells and B-cells, respectively. While nanoparticles decorated with high affinity siglec ligands represent an attractive platform for delivery of therapeutic agents to these cells, a lack of ligands with suitable affinity and/or selectivity has hampered progress. Herein we describe selective ligands for both of these siglecs, which when displayed on liposomal nanoparticles, can efficiently target the cells expressing them in peripheral human blood. Key to their identification was the development of a facile method for chemo-enzymatic synthesis of disubstituted sialic acid analogues, combined with iterative rounds of synthesis and rapid functional analysis using glycan microarrays.

Copresentation of antigen and ligands of Siglec-G induces B cell tolerance independent of CD22

Differentiation of self from nonself is indispensable for maintaining B cell tolerance in peripheral tissues. CD22 and Siglec-G (sialic acid-binding Ig-like lectin G) are two inhibitory coreceptors of the BCR that are implicated in maintenance of tolerance to self Ags. Enforced ligation of CD22 and the BCR by a nanoparticle displaying both Ag and CD22 ligands induces a tolerogenic circuit resulting in apoptosis of the Ag-reactive B cell. Whether Siglec-G also has this property has not been investigated in large part owing to the lack of a selective Siglec-G ligand. In this article, we report the development of a selective high-affinity ligand for Siglec-G and its application as a chemical tool to investigate the tolerogenic potential of Siglec-G. We find that liposomal nanoparticles decorated with Ag and Siglec-G ligand inhibit BCR signaling in both B1 and B2 B cells compared with liposomes displaying Ag alone. Not only is inhibition of B cell activation observed by ligating the BCR with Siglec-G, but robust tolerance toward T-independent and T-dependent Ags is also induced in mice. The ability of Siglec-G to inhibit B cell activation equally in both B1 and B2 subsets is consistent with our observation that Siglec-G is expressed at a relatively constant level throughout numerous B cell subsets. These results suggest that Siglec-G may contribute to maintenance of B cell tolerance toward self Ags in various B cell compartments.

Multi-shell structured fluorescent-magnetic nanoprobe for target cell imaging and on-chip sorting

In this paper, we have developed a core-triple-shell structured multi-functional nanoprobe Fe3O4/SiO2/CdSeTe@ZnS-SiO2/polydopamine with strong fluorescence and a fast magnetic response for specifically recognizing, fluorescently labeling, and magnetically sorting target tumor cells on a microfluidic chip. The outer polydopamine layer not only effectively alleviated the quenching effect of the interlayer quantum dots but also provided a convenient and versatile functional interface to readily conjugate with the recognizing model molecules of aptamer KH1C12 with amine, thiol, or carboxyl groups. Moreover, the polydopamine isolation and PEG decoration equipped the as-fabricated nanoprobes with little cytotoxicity and nonspecific affinity, leading to the effective and specific profiling of the protein epitopes expressed on the target tumor cells. Taking advantage of the magnetic property and specific recognition, the modified nanoprobe was utilized to label and isolate HL-60 cells from a homogeneous cell mixture of HL-60 and K562 cells on a microfluidic chip. Combining with the high throughput of the microfluidic chip, 1.0 × 10(4) HL-60 cells were readily separated from 2.0 × 10(4) cells in only 10 min with 98% separation efficiency, markedly improved in comparison with conventional strategies. This study presents an innovative strategy for developing highly integrated nanoprobes of strong fluorescence and magnetic controllability, opening up a promising probe-based avenue for biological imaging and separation.

Reports from the award symposia hosted by the American Chemical Society, Division of Carbohydrate Chemistry at the 245th American Chemical Society National Meeting

We would like to congratulate all of the award winners for the well deserved honor. The award symposia provided a snapshot of some of the state-of-the-art research at the interface between chemistry and biology in the glycoscience field. The presentations serve as prime examples of the increasing integration of chemical and biological research in the area of glycoscience and how tools of chemistry can be applied to answer interesting, important, and fundamental biological questions. We look forward to many more years of exciting developments in the chemistry and chemical biology of glycoscience and anticipate improved tools and approaches will drive major advances while also spurring interests in the wider field.

On-chip synthesis and screening of a sialoside library yields a high affinity ligand for Siglec-7

The Siglec family of sialic acid-binding proteins are differentially expressed on white blood cells of the immune system and represent an attractive class of targets for cell-directed therapy. Nanoparticles decorated with high-affinity Siglec ligands show promise for delivering cargo to Siglec-bearing cells, but this approach has been limited by a lack of ligands with suitable affinity and selectivity. Building on previous work employing solution-phase sialoside library synthesis and subsequent microarray screening, we herein report a more streamlined 'on-chip' synthetic approach. By printing a small library of alkyne sialosides and subjecting these to 'on-chip' click reactions, the largest sialoside analogue library to date was generated. Siglec-screening identified a selective Siglec-7 ligand, which when displayed on liposomal nanoparticles, allows for targeting of Siglec-7(+) cells in peripheral human blood. In silico docking to the crystal structure of Siglec-7 provides a rationale for the affinity gains observed for this novel sialic acid analogue.

Targeted delivery of lipid antigen to macrophages via the CD169/sialoadhesin endocytic pathway induces robust invariant natural killer T cell activation

Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells induce a protective immune response triggered by foreign glycolipid antigens bound to CD1d on antigen-presenting cells (APCs). A limitation of using glycolipid antigens to stimulate immune responses in human patients has been the inability to target them to the most effective APCs. Recent studies have implicated phagocytic CD169(+) macrophages as major APCs in lymph nodes for priming iNKT cells in mice immunized with glycolipid antigen in particulate form. CD169 is known as sialoadhesin (Sn), a macrophage-specific adhesion and endocytic receptor of the siglec family that recognizes sialic acid containing glycans as ligands. We have recently developed liposomes decorated with glycan ligands for CD169/Sn suitable for targeted delivery to macrophages via CD169/Sn-mediated endocytosis. Here we show that targeted delivery of a lipid antigen to CD169(+) macrophages in vivo results in robust iNKT cell activation in liver and spleen using nanogram amounts of antigen. Activation of iNKT cells is abrogated in Cd169(-/-) mice and is macrophage-dependent, demonstrating that targeting CD169(+) macrophages is sufficient for systemic activation of iNKT cells. When pulsed with targeted liposomes, human monocyte-derived dendritic cells expressing CD169/Sn activated human iNKT cells, demonstrating the conservation of the CD169/Sn endocytic pathway capable of presenting lipid antigens to iNKT cells.

Development of a recombinant antibody to target peptides and proteins to sialoadhesin-expressing macrophages

Background

Sialoadhesin (Sn)-expressing monocytes/macrophages have been associated with several diseases like inflammatory and autoimmune disorders as well as viral infections, and they also appear to play a role in the initiation of an adaptive immune response. This makes Sn-expressing cells not only attractive targets for cell-directed therapies, but also an appealing target for vaccination. Furthermore, since Sn was shown to be an endocytic receptor, the conjugation of effector molecules to an Sn-specific ligand should allow intracellular delivery of these conjugates. Previously, we developed functional Sn-specific immunoconjugates that were generated via chemical coupling. Although successful, the system requires significant optimization for each immunoconjugate to be made. To generate a more flexible and controlled system, we developed a recombinant antibody vector allowing the creation of genetic antibody fusion constructs. This paper reports on the characterization of the recombinant antibody and the evaluation of its use for Sn-directed targeting.

Results

The variable domains of the porcine Sn-specific monoclonal antibody 41D3 were sequenced and cloned in frame with a mouse IgG1 backbone. Transfection of HEK293T cells with the resulting plasmid led to the secretion of fully assembled IgG into the culture medium. This recombinant antibody rec41D3 was shown to specifically bind to porcine Sn with a comparable affinity as the native monoclonal antibody. In addition, rec41D3 also induced Sn endocytosis in primary macrophages and resided for prolonged times in early/late endosomes. To allow the generation of antibody fusion constructs, a multiple cloning site was introduced at the C-terminus of the heavy chain. Two fusion constructs were generated, one containing a V5 peptide tag and one containing an eGFP molecule. Both constructs were shown to be efficiently produced in HEK293T cells and easily purified using standard protein G chromatography. In addition, both V5 and eGFP were shown to be co-internalized together with rec41D3 into Sn-expressing primary macrophages.

Conclusions

A recombinant antibody allowing targeted delivery of peptides and proteins to Sn-expressing macrophages was developed. Production and purification of antibody fusion constructs was possible without major optimization and with batch to batch consistency, confirming the development of a versatile antibody vector to evaluate Sn-directed targeting strategies in a porcine animal model.