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Zeh N, Schmidt M, Schulz P, Fischer S. The new frontier in CHO cell line development: From random to targeted transgene integration technologies. Biotechnol Adv 2024; 75:108402. [PMID: 38950872 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2024.108402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Revised: 06/21/2024] [Accepted: 06/27/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024]
Abstract
Cell line development represents a crucial step in the development process of a therapeutic glycoprotein. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are the most frequently employed mammalian host cell system for the industrial manufacturing of biologics. The predominant application of CHO cells for heterologous recombinant protein expression lies in the relative simplicity of stably introducing ectopic DNA into the CHO host cell genome. Since CHO cells were first used as expression host for the industrial production of biologics in the late 1980s, stable genomic transgene integration has been achieved almost exclusively by random integration. Since then, random transgene integration had become the gold standard for generating stable CHO production cell lines due to a lack of viable alternatives. However, it was eventually demonstrated that this approach poses significant challenges on the cell line development process such as an increased risk of inducing cell line instability. In recent years, significant discoveries of new and highly potent (semi)-targeted transgene integration systems have paved the way for a technological revolution in the cell line development sector. These advanced methodologies comprise the application of transposase-, recombinase- or Cas9 nuclease-mediated site-specific genomic integration techniques, which enable a scarless transfer of the transgene expression cassette into transcriptionally active loci within the host cell genome. This review summarizes recent advancements in the field of transgene integration technologies for CHO cell line development and compare them to the established random integration approach. Moreover, advantages and limitations of (semi)-targeted integration techniques are discussed, and benefits and opportunities for the biopharmaceutical industry are outlined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolas Zeh
- Cell Line Development, Bioprocess Development Biologicals, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co.KG, Biberach an der Riss, Germany
| | - Moritz Schmidt
- Cell Line Development, Bioprocess Development Biologicals, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co.KG, Biberach an der Riss, Germany
| | - Patrick Schulz
- Cell Line Development, Bioprocess Development Biologicals, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co.KG, Biberach an der Riss, Germany
| | - Simon Fischer
- Cell Line Development, Bioprocess Development Biologicals, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co.KG, Biberach an der Riss, Germany.
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Chakrabarti L, Savery J, Mpindi JP, Klover J, Li L, Zhu J. Simplifying stable CHO cell line generation with high probability of monoclonality by using microfluidic dispensing as an alternative to fluorescence activated cell sorting. Biotechnol Prog 2024; 40:e3441. [PMID: 38462762 DOI: 10.1002/btpr.3441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2023] [Revised: 01/27/2024] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 03/12/2024]
Abstract
Single cell cloning is a critical step for cell line development (CLD) for therapeutic protein production, with proof of monoclonality being compulsorily sought in regulatory filings. Among the different single cell deposition technologies, we found that fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) offers high probability of monoclonality and can allow selective enrichment of the producer cells. However, FACS instruments are expensive and resource-intensive, have a large footprint, require highly skilled operators and take hours for setup, thereby complicating the cell line generation process. With the aim of finding an easy-to-use alternative to FACS, we identified a flow cytometry-based microfluidic cell dispenser, which presents a single cell sorting solution for biopharmaceutical CLD. The microfluidic cell dispenser is small, budget-friendly, easy-to-use, requires lower-cost consumables, permits flow cytometry-enabled multiparametric target cell enrichment and offers fast and gentle single cell dispensing into multiwell plates. Following comprehensive evaluation, we found that single cell deposition by the microfluidic cell dispenser resulted in >99% probability of monoclonality for production cell lines. Moreover, the clonally derived producer cell lines generated from the microfluidic cell dispenser demonstrated comparable or improved growth profiles and production capability compared to the FACS derived cell lines. Taken together, microfluidic cell dispensing can serve as a cost-effective, efficient and convenient alternative to FACS, simplifying the biopharmaceutical CLD platform with significant reductions in both scientist time and running costs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lina Chakrabarti
- Cell Culture & Fermentation Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, USA
| | - James Savery
- Machine Learning & AI, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK
| | - John Patrick Mpindi
- Biostatistics, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge, UK
| | - Judith Klover
- Cell Culture & Fermentation Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, USA
| | - Lina Li
- Cell Culture & Fermentation Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, USA
| | - Jie Zhu
- Cell Culture & Fermentation Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals Development, R&D, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, USA
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Park JH, Lee HM, Jin EJ, Lee EJ, Kang YJ, Kim S, Yoo SS, Lee GM, Kim YG. Development of an in vitro screening system for synthetic signal peptide in mammalian cell-based protein production. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022; 106:3571-3582. [PMID: 35581431 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-11955-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Revised: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Optimizing appropriate signal peptides in mammalian cell-based protein production is crucial given that most recombinant proteins produced in mammalian cells are thought to be secreted proteins. Until now, most studies on signal peptide in mammalian cells have replaced native signal peptides with well-known heterologous signal peptides and bioinformatics-based signal peptides. In the present study, we successfully established an in vitro screening system for synthetic signal peptide in CHO cells by combining a degenerate codon-based oligonucleotides library, a site-specific integration system, and a FACS-based antibody detection assay. Three new signal peptides were screened using this new screening system, confirming to have structural properties as signal peptides by the SignalP web server, a neural network-based algorithm that quantifies the signal peptide-ness of amino acid sequences. The novel signal peptides selected in this study increased Fc-fusion protein production in CHO cells by increasing specific protein productivity, whereas they did not negatively affect cell growth. Particularly, the SP-#149 clone showed the highest qp, 0.73 ± 0.01 pg/cell/day from day 1 to day 4, representing a 1.47-fold increase over the native signal peptide in a serum-free suspension culture mode. In addition, replacing native signal peptide with the novel signal peptides did not significantly affect sialylated N-glycan formation, N-terminal cleavage pattern, and biological function of Fc-fusion protein produced in CHO cells. The overall results indicate the utility of a novel in vitro screening system for synthetic signal peptide for mammalian cell-based protein production. KEY POINTS: • An in vitro screening system for synthetic signal peptide in mammalian cells was established • This system combined a degenerate codon-based library, site-specific integration, and a FACS-based detection assay • The novel signal peptides selected in this study could increase Fc-fusion protein production in mammalian cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jong-Ho Park
- Department of Biological Sciences, KAIST, 335 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Hoon-Min Lee
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, KRIBB School of Biotechnology, Korea University of Science and Technology (UST), 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Eun-Ju Jin
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, KRIBB School of Biotechnology, Korea University of Science and Technology (UST), 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Eun-Ji Lee
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, KRIBB School of Biotechnology, Korea University of Science and Technology (UST), 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Yeon-Ju Kang
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, KRIBB School of Biotechnology, Korea University of Science and Technology (UST), 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Sungkyun Kim
- Choong Ang Vaccine Laboratory Co., Ltd. (CAVAC), 1476-37 Yuseong-daero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Sung-Sick Yoo
- Choong Ang Vaccine Laboratory Co., Ltd. (CAVAC), 1476-37 Yuseong-daero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Gyun Min Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, KAIST, 335 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea.
| | - Yeon-Gu Kim
- Biotherapeutics Translational Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), 125 Gwahak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea.
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, KRIBB School of Biotechnology, Korea University of Science and Technology (UST), 217 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, Korea.
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Valldorf B, Hinz SC, Russo G, Pekar L, Mohr L, Klemm J, Doerner A, Krah S, Hust M, Zielonka S. Antibody display technologies: selecting the cream of the crop. Biol Chem 2021; 403:455-477. [PMID: 33759431 DOI: 10.1515/hsz-2020-0377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Antibody display technologies enable the successful isolation of antigen-specific antibodies with therapeutic potential. The key feature that facilitates the selection of an antibody with prescribed properties is the coupling of the protein variant to its genetic information and is referred to as genotype phenotype coupling. There are several different platform technologies based on prokaryotic organisms as well as strategies employing higher eukaryotes. Among those, phage display is the most established system with more than a dozen of therapeutic antibodies approved for therapy that have been discovered or engineered using this approach. In recent years several other technologies gained a certain level of maturity, most strikingly mammalian display. In this review, we delineate the most important selection systems with respect to antibody generation with an emphasis on recent developments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernhard Valldorf
- Chemical and Pharmaceutical Development, Merck KGaA, Frankfurter Strasse 250, D-64293Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Steffen C Hinz
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Alarich-Weiss-Strasse 4, D-64287Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Giulio Russo
- Abcalis GmbH, Inhoffenstrasse 7, D-38124Braunschweig, Germany.,Institut für Biochemie, Biotechnologie und Bioinformatik, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Spielmannstrasse 7, D-38106Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Lukas Pekar
- Protein Engineering and Antibody Technologies, Merck KGaA, Frankfurter Strasse 250, D-64293Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Laura Mohr
- Institute of Cell Biology and Neuroscience and Buchmann Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, University of Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Strasse 13, D-60438Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Janina Klemm
- Institute for Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Alarich-Weiss-Strasse 4, D-64287Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Achim Doerner
- Protein Engineering and Antibody Technologies, Merck KGaA, Frankfurter Strasse 250, D-64293Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Simon Krah
- Protein Engineering and Antibody Technologies, Merck KGaA, Frankfurter Strasse 250, D-64293Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Michael Hust
- Institut für Biochemie, Biotechnologie und Bioinformatik, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Spielmannstrasse 7, D-38106Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Stefan Zielonka
- Protein Engineering and Antibody Technologies, Merck KGaA, Frankfurter Strasse 250, D-64293Darmstadt, Germany
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Aebischer-Gumy C, Moretti P, Ollier R, Ries Fecourt C, Rousseau F, Bertschinger M. SPLICELECT™: an adaptable cell surface display technology based on alternative splicing allowing the qualitative and quantitative prediction of secreted product at a single-cell level. MAbs 2021; 12:1709333. [PMID: 31955651 PMCID: PMC6973322 DOI: 10.1080/19420862.2019.1709333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
We describe a mammalian expression construct (SPLICELECT™) that allows the redirection of a proportion of a secreted protein onto the cell surface using alternative splicing: whereas the majority of the RNA is spliced into a transcript encoding a secreted protein, a weak splice donor site yields a secondary transcript encoding, in addition, a C-terminal transmembrane domain. The different sequence elements can be modified in order to modulate the level of cell surface display and of secretion in an independent manner. In this work, we demonstrated that the cell surface display of stable cell lines is correlated with the level of the secreted protein of interest, but also with the level of heterodimerization in the case of a bispecific antibody. It was also shown that this construct may be useful for rapid screening of multiple antibody candidates in binding assays following transient transfection. Thus, the correlation of product quantity and quality of the secreted and of membrane-displayed product in combination with the flexibility of the construct with regards to cell surface display/secretion levels make SPLICELECT™ a valuable tool with many potential applications, not limited to industrial cell line development or antibody engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christel Aebischer-Gumy
- Cell Sciences, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
| | - Pierre Moretti
- Cell Sciences, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
| | - Romain Ollier
- Antibody Engineering, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
| | - Christelle Ries Fecourt
- Antibody Engineering, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
| | - François Rousseau
- Antibody Engineering, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
| | - Martin Bertschinger
- Cell Sciences, Ichnos Sciences SA (formerly Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA), La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
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Roy G, Reier J, Garcia A, Martin T, Rice M, Wang J, Prophet M, Christie R, Dall’Acqua W, Ahuja S, Bowen MA, Marelli M. Development of a high yielding expression platform for the introduction of non-natural amino acids in protein sequences. MAbs 2020; 12:1684749. [PMID: 31775561 PMCID: PMC6927762 DOI: 10.1080/19420862.2019.1684749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2019] [Revised: 10/14/2019] [Accepted: 10/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to genetically encode non-natural amino acids (nnAAs) into proteins offers an expanded tool set for protein engineering. nnAAs containing unique functional moieties have enabled the study of post-translational modifications, protein interactions, and protein folding. In addition, nnAAs have been developed that enable a variety of biorthogonal conjugation chemistries that allow precise and efficient protein conjugations. These are being studied to create the next generation of antibody-drug conjugates with improved efficacy, potency, and stability for the treatment of cancer. However, the efficiency of nnAA incorporation, and the productive yields of cell-based expression systems, have limited the utility and widespread use of this technology. We developed a process to isolate stable cell lines expressing a pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNApyl pair capable of efficient nnAA incorporation. Two different platform cell lines generated by these methods were used to produce IgG-expressing cell lines with normalized antibody titers of 3 g/L using continuous perfusion. We show that the antibodies produced by these platform cells contain the nnAA functionality that enables facile conjugations. Characterization of these highly active and robust platform hosts identified key parameters that affect nnAA incorporation efficiency. These highly efficient host platforms may help overcome the expression challenges that have impeded the developability of this technology for manufacturing proteins with nnAAs and represents an important step in expanding its utility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gargi Roy
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Jason Reier
- Cell Culture and Fermentation Sciences, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Andrew Garcia
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Tom Martin
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Megan Rice
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Jihong Wang
- Analytical Sciences, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Meagan Prophet
- Analytical Sciences, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Ronald Christie
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - William Dall’Acqua
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Sanjeev Ahuja
- Cell Culture and Fermentation Sciences, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Michael A Bowen
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
| | - Marcello Marelli
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA
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Chakrabarti L, Zhuang L, Roy G, Bowen MA, Dall’Acqua WF, Hawley‐Nelson P, Marelli M. Amber suppression coupled with inducible surface display identifies cells with high recombinant protein productivity. Biotechnol Bioeng 2019; 116:793-804. [PMID: 30536645 PMCID: PMC6590230 DOI: 10.1002/bit.26892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2018] [Accepted: 12/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Cell line development (CLD) for biotherapeutics is a time- and resource-intensive process requiring the isolation and screening of large numbers of clones to identify high producers. Novel methods aimed at enhancing cell line screening efficiency using markers predictive of productivity early in the CLD process are needed to reliably generate high-yielding cell lines. To enable efficient and selective isolation of antibody expressing Chinese hamster ovary cells by fluorescence-activated cell sorting, we developed a strategy for the expression of antibodies containing a switchable membrane-associated domain to anchor an antibody to the membrane of the expressing cell. The switchable nature of the membrane domain is governed by the function of an orthogonal aminoacyl transfer RNA synthetase/tRNApyl pair, which directs a nonnatural amino acid (nnAA) to an amber codon encoded between the antibody and the membrane anchor. The process is "switchable" in response to nnAA in the medium, enabling a rapid transition between the surface display and secretion. We demonstrate that the level of cell surface display correlates with productivity and provides a method for enriching phenotypically stable high-producer cells. The strategy provides a means for selecting high-producing cells with potential applications to multiple biotherapeutic protein formats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lina Chakrabarti
- Cell Culture and Fermentation Science, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
| | - Li Zhuang
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
| | - Gargi Roy
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
| | - Michael A. Bowen
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
| | | | - Pam Hawley‐Nelson
- Cell Culture and Fermentation Science, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
| | - Marcello Marelli
- Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering, MedImmuneGaithersburgMaryland
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