Humanization of a murine monoclonal antibody by simultaneous optimization of framework and CDR residues

Advancing Antibody Engineering through Synthetic Evolution and Machine Learning

Abs are versatile molecules with the potential to achieve exceptional binding to target Ags, while also possessing biophysical properties suitable for therapeutic drug development. Protein display and directed evolution systems have transformed synthetic Ab discovery, engineering, and optimization, vastly expanding the number of Ab clones able to be experimentally screened for binding. Moreover, the burgeoning integration of high-throughput screening, deep sequencing, and machine learning has further augmented in vitro Ab optimization, promising to accelerate the design process and massively expand the Ab sequence space interrogated. In this Brief Review, we discuss the experimental and computational tools employed in synthetic Ab engineering and optimization. We also explore the therapeutic challenges posed by developing Abs for infectious diseases, and the prospects for leveraging machine learning-guided protein engineering to prospectively design Abs resistant to viral escape.

Engineering of conserved residues near antibody heavy chain complementary determining region 3 (HCDR3) improves both affinity and stability

Affinity and stability are crucial parameters in antibody development and engineering approaches. Although improvement in both metrics is desirable, trade-offs are almost unavoidable. Heavy chain complementarity determining region 3 (HCDR3) is the best-known region for antibody affinity but its impact on stability is often neglected. Here, we present a mutagenesis study of conserved residues near HCDR3 to elicit the role of this region in the affinity-stability trade-off. These key residues are positioned around the conserved salt bridge between VH-K94 and VH-D101 which is crucial for HCDR3 integrity. We show that the additional salt bridge at the stem of HCDR3 (VH-K94:VH-D101:VH-D102) has an extensive impact on this loop's conformation, therefore simultaneous improvement in both affinity and stability. We find that the disruption of π-π stacking near HCDR3 (VH-Y100E:VL-Y49) at the VH-VL interface cause an irrecoverable loss in stability even if it improves the affinity. Molecular simulations of putative rescue mutants exhibit complex and often non-additive effects. We confirm that our experimental measurements agree with the molecular dynamic simulations providing detailed insights for the spatial orientation of HCDR3. VH-V102 right next to HCDR3 salt bridge might be an ideal candidate to overcome affinity-stability trade-off.

Antibody engineering and its therapeutic applications

As a natural function, antibodies defend the host from infected cells and pathogens by recognizing their pathogenic determinants. Antibodies (Abs) gained wide acceptance with an enormous impact on human health and have predominantly captured the arena of bio-therapeutics and bio-diagnostics. The scope of Ab-based biologics is vast, and it is likely to solve many unmet clinical needs in future. The majority of attention is now devoted to developing innovative technologies for manufacturing and engineering Abs, better suited to satisfy human needs. The advent of Ab engineering technologies (AET) led to phenomenal developments leading to the generation of Abs-/Ab-derived molecules with desirable functional properties proportional to their expanding requirements. Evolution brought by AET, from the naturally occurring Ab forms to several advanced Ab formats and derivatives, was much needed as it is of great interest to the pharmaceutical industry. Thus, numerous advancements in AET have propelled success in therapeutic Ab development, along with the potential for ever-increasing improvements. Unique characteristics of Abs, such as its diversity, specificity, structural integrity and an array of possible applications, together inspire continuous innovation in the field. Overall, the AET could assist in conquer of several limitations of Abs in terms of their applicability in the field of therapeutics, diagnostics and research; AET has so far led to the production of next-generation Abs, which have revolutionized these arenas. Here in this review, we discuss the various distinguished engineering platforms for Ab development and the progress in modern therapeutics by the so-called "next-generation Abs."

Linkers: An Assurance for Controlled Delivery of Antibody-Drug Conjugate

As one of the major therapeutic options for cancer treatment, chemotherapy has limited selectivity against cancer cells. Consequently, this therapeutic strategy offers a small therapeutic window with potentially high toxicity and thus limited efficacy of doses that can be tolerated by patients. Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are an emerging class of anti-cancer therapeutic drugs that can deliver highly cytotoxic molecules directly to cancer cells. To date, twelve ADCs have received market approval, with several others in clinical stages. ADCs have become a powerful class of therapeutic agents in oncology and hematology. ADCs consist of recombinant monoclonal antibodies that are covalently bound to cytotoxic chemicals via synthetic linkers. The linker has a key role in ADC outcomes because its characteristics substantially impact the therapeutic index efficacy and pharmacokinetics of these drugs. Stable linkers and ADCs can maintain antibody concentration in blood circulation, and they do not release the cytotoxic drug before it reaches its target, thus resulting in minimum off-target effects. The linkers used in ADC development can be classified as cleavable and non-cleavable. The former, in turn, can be grouped into three types: hydrazone, disulfide, or peptide linkers. In this review, we highlight the various linkers used in ADC development and their design strategy, release mechanisms, and future perspectives.

Conformational changes in a Vernier zone region: Implications for antibody dual specificity

Understanding the determinants of antibody specificity is one of the challenging tasks in antibody development. Monospecific antibodies are still dominant in approved antibody therapeutics but there is a significant body of work to show that multispecific antibodies can increase the overall therapeutic effect. Dual-specific or "Two-in-One" antibodies can bind to two different antigens separately with the same antigen-binding site as opposed to bispecifics, which simultaneously bind to two different antigens through separate antigen-binding units. These nonstandard dual-specific antibodies were recently shown to be promising for new antibody-based therapeutics. Here, we physicochemically and structurally analyzed six different antibodies of which two are monospecific and four are dual-specific antibodies derived from monospecific templates to gain insight about dual-specificity determinants. These dual-specific antibodies can target both human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 and vascular endothelial growth factor at different binding affinities. We showed that a particular region of clustered Vernier zone residues might play key roles in gaining dual specificity. While there are minimal intramolecular interactions between a certain Vernier zone region, namely LV4 and LCDR1 of monospecific template, there is a significant structural change and consequently close contact formation between LV4-LCDR1 loops of derived dual-specific antibodies. Although Vernier zone residues were previously shown to be important for humanization applications, they are mostly underestimated in the literature. Here, we also aim to resurrect Vernier zone residues for antibody engineering efforts.

Macromolecules and Antibody-Based Drugs

Macromolecule drugs particularly antibody drugs are very powerful therapies developing rapidly in the recent 20 years, providing hopes for many patients diagnosed with "incurable" diseases in the past. They also provide more effective and less side effects for many afflicting diseases, and greatly improve the survival rate and life quality of patients. In the last two decades, the proportion of US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved macromolecules and antibody drugs are increasing quickly, especially after the discovery of immune checkpoints. To crown all, the 2017 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine was given to immunotherapy. In this chapter, we would like to summarize the current situation of macromolecule and antibody drugs, and what effort scientists and pharmaceutical industry have made to discover and manufacture better antibody drugs.

Guide to Selecting a Biorecognition Element for Biosensors

Biosensors are powerful diagnostic tools defined as having a biorecognition element for analyte specificity and a transducer for a quantifiable signal. There are a variety of different biorecognition elements, each with unique characteristics. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of each biorecognition element and their influence on overall biosensor performance is crucial in the planning stages to promote the success of novel biosensor development. Therefore, this review will focus on selecting the optimal biorecognition element in the preliminary design phase for novel biosensors. Included is a review of the typical characteristics and binding mechanisms of various biorecognition elements, and how they relate to biosensor performance characteristics, specifically sensitivity, selectivity, reproducibility, and reusability. The goal is to point toward language needed to improve the design and development of biosensors toward clinical success.

The Use of Somatic Hypermutation for the Affinity Maturation of Therapeutic Antibodies

The engineering of antibodies and antibody fragments for affinity maturation, stability, and other biophysical characteristics is a common aspect of therapeutic development. Maturation of antibodies in B cells during the adaptive immune response is the result of a process called somatic hypermutation (SHM), in which the activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) acts to introduce mutations into immunoglobulin (Ig) genes. Iterative selection and clonal expansion of B cells containing affinity-enhancing mutations drive an increase in the overall affinity of antibodies. Here we describe the use of SHM coupled with mammalian cell surface display for the maturation of antibodies in vitro and the complementarity of these methods with the mining of immune lineages using next-generation sequencing (NGS).

Generation and characterization of ixekizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody that neutralizes interleukin-17A

Interleukin (IL)-17A exists as a homodimer (A/A) or as a heterodimer (A/F) with IL-17F. IL-17A is expressed by a subset of T-cells, called Th17 cells, at inflammatory sites. Most cell types can respond to the local production of IL-17A because of the near ubiquitous expression of IL-17A receptors, IL-17RA and IL-17RC. IL-17A stimulates the release of cytokines and chemokines designed to recruit and activate both neutrophils and memory T-cells to the site of injury or inflammation and maintain a proinflammatory state. IL-17A-producing pathogenic T-cells contribute to the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, including psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis. This study describes the generation and characterization of ixekizumab, a humanized IgG4 variant IL-17A-neutralizing antibody. Ixekizumab binds human and cynomolgus monkey IL-17A with high affinity and binds rabbit IL-17A weakly but does not bind to rodent IL-17A or other IL-17 family members. Ixekizumab effectively inhibits the interaction between IL-17A and its receptor in binding assays and potently blocks IL-17A-induced GRO or KC secretion in cell-based assays. In an in vivo mouse pharmcodynamic model, ixekizumab blocks human IL-17A-induced mouse KC secretion. These data provide a comprehensive preclinical characterization of ixekizumab, for which the efficacy and safety have been demonstrated in human clinical trials in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

Linkers Having a Crucial Role in Antibody-Drug Conjugates

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) comprised of a desirable monoclonal antibody, an active cytotoxic drug and an appropriate linker are considered to be an innovative therapeutic approach for targeted treatment of various types of tumors and cancers, enhancing the therapeutic parameter of the cytotoxic drug and reducing the possibility of systemic cytotoxicity. An appropriate linker between the antibody and the cytotoxic drug provides a specific bridge, and thus helps the antibody to selectively deliver the cytotoxic drug to tumor cells and accurately releases the cytotoxic drug at tumor sites. In addition to conjugation, the linkers maintain ADCs' stability during the preparation and storage stages of the ADCs and during the systemic circulation period. The design of linkers for ADCs is a challenge in terms of extracellular stability and intracellular release, and intracellular circumstances, such as the acid environment, the reducing environment and cathepsin, are considered as the catalysts to activate the triggers for initiating the cleavage of ADCs. This review discusses the linkers used in the clinical and marketing stages for ADCs and details the fracture modes of the linkers for the further development of ADCs.

Humanization of a phosphothreonine peptide-specific chicken antibody by combinatorial library optimization of the phosphoepitope-binding motif

Detection of protein phosphorylation at a specific residue has been achieved by using antibodies, which have usually been raised by animal immunization. However, there have been no reports of the humanization of phosphospecific non-human antibodies. Here, we report the humanization of a chicken pT231 antibody specific to a tau protein-derived peptide carrying the phosphorylated threonine at residue 231 (pT231 peptide) as a model for better understanding the phosphoepitope recognition mechanism. In the chicken antibody, the phosphate group of the pT231-peptide antigen is exclusively recognized by complementarity determining region 2 of the heavy chain variable domain (VH-CDR2). Simple grafting of six CDRs of the chicken antibody into a homologous human framework (FR) template resulted in the complete loss of pT231-peptide binding. Using a yeast surface-displayed combinatorial library with permutations of 11 FR residues potentially affecting CDR loop conformations, we identified 5 critical FR residues. The back mutation of these residues to the corresponding chicken residues completely recovered the pT231-peptide binding affinity and specificity of the humanized antibody. Importantly, the back mutation of the FR 76 residue of VH (H76) (Asn to Ser) was critical in preserving the pT231-binding motif conformation via allosteric regulation of ArgH71, which closely interacts with ThrH52 and SerH52a residues on VH-CDR2 to induce the unique phosphate-binding bowl-like conformation. Our humanization approach of CDR grafting plus permutations of FR residues by combinatorial library screening can be applied to other animal antibodies containing unique binding motifs on CDRs specific to posttranslationally modified epitopes.

Development of a novel antibody to calcitonin gene-related peptide for the treatment of osteoarthritis-related pain

OBJECTIVE

Investigate a role for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in osteoarthritis (OA)-related pain.

DESIGN

Neutralizing antibodies to CGRP were generated de novo. One of these antibodies, LY2951742, was characterized in vitro and tested in pre-clinical in vivo models of OA pain.

RESULTS

LY2951742 exhibited high affinity to both human and rat CGRP (KD of 31 and 246 pM, respectively). The antibody neutralized CGRP-mediated induction of cAMP in SK-N-MC cells in vitro and capsaicin-induced dermal blood flow in the rat. Neutralization of CGRP significantly reduced pain behavior as measured by weight bearing differential in the rat monoiodoacetate model of OA pain in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, pain reduction with neutralization of CGRP occurred independently of prostaglandins, since LY2951742 and NSAIDs worked additively in the NSAID-responsive version of the model and CGRP neutralization remained effective in the NSAID non-responsive version of the model. Neutralization of CGRP also provided dose-dependent and prolonged (>60 days) pain reduction in the rat meniscal tear model of OA after only a single injection of LY2951742.

CONCLUSIONS

LY2951742 is a high affinity, neutralizing antibody to CGRP. Neutralization of CGRP is efficacious in several OA pain models and works independently of NSAID mechanisms of action. LY2951742 holds promise for the treatment of pain in OA patients.

Generation of monoclonal antibody MS17-57 targeting secreted alkaline phosphatase ectopically expressed on the surface of gastrointestinal cancer cells

Background

Therapeutic antibody development is one of the fastest growing areas of the pharmaceutical industry. Generating high-quality monoclonal antibodies against a given therapeutic target is crucial for successful drug development. However, due to immune tolerance, making it difficult to generate antibodies using conventional approaches.

Methodology/Findings

Mixed four human gastric cancer (GC) cell lines were used as the immunogen in A/J mice; sixteen highly positive hybridoma colonies were selected via fluorescence-activated cell sorting-high throughput screening (FACS-HTS) using a total of 20,000 colonies in sixty-seven 96-well plates against live cells (mixed human GC cells versus human PBMC controls). MS17-57 and control commercial Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) mAbs were used to confirm the target antigens (Ags), which were identified as ALPs expressed on the GC cell surface through a combination of western blot, immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry (MS).

MS identified the Ags recognized by MS17-57 to be two variants of a secreted ALP, PALP and IALP (Placental and intestinal ALP). These proteins belong to a hydrolase enzyme family responsible for removing phosphate groups from many types of molecules. Immunofluorescence staining using MS17-57 demonstrated higher staining of gastrointestinal (GI) cancer tissues compared to normal GI tissues (P<0.03), and confirmed binding of MS17-57 to be restricted to a functional epitope expressed on the cancer cell surface. Proliferation assays using the PALP/IALP-expressing GC cell lines demonstrated that MS17-57 inhibited cell growth by 32±8%. Transwell cell migration assays documented that MS17-57 can inhibit PALP/IALP-expressing GI cancer cell migration by 25±5%. MS17-57 mAb inhibited tumor growth in nude mice.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that PALP and IALP can be ectopically expressed on extracellular matrix of GI cancers, and that MS17-57 directed against PALP/IALP can inhibit GI cancer cells growth and migration invitro and invivo. This investigation provides an example of identification of cancer biomarkers representing promising therapeutic targets using mAb generated through a novel HTS technology.

Affinity maturation and fine functional mapping of an antibody fragment against a novel neutralizing epitope on human vascular endothelial growth factor

We have previously reported the isolation of a novel single-chain variable fragment (scFv) against vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), from a phage-displayed human antibody repertoire. This scFv, denominated 2H1, was shown to block the binding of VEGF to its receptor but exhibited a moderate binding affinity. Here, we describe the affinity maturation of the 2H1 scFv. Two phage-displayed libraries were constructed by diversification of the third complementarity-determining regions (CDRs) of the light (VL) and heavy (VH) chain variable domains of 2H1 using parsimonious mutagenesis. A competitive phage-selection strategy in the presence of the parental scFv as a competitor was used to eliminate low affinity binders. High affinity variants were retrieved from both libraries. An optimized VL variant was designed and constructed by combining recurrent replacements found among selected variants in a single molecule, resulting in an additional affinity increase. Further affinity improvements were achieved by combining this optimized VL with the best VH variants. The final variant obtained here, L3H6, showed an overall affinity improvement of 18-fold over the parental scFv and exhibited an enhanced potency to block the binding of VEGF to its receptor. Using phage display and extensive mutagenesis of VEGF, we determined the fine specificity of L3H6. This functional mapping revealed a novel neutralizing epitope on human VEGF defined by the residues Y25, T71, E72, N100, K101, E103 and R105. The conformational epitope recognized by L3H6 was recapitulated by grafting human VEGF residues into the mouse molecule, providing further confirmation of the nature of the identified epitope.

Characterization of a humanized anti-CD20 antibody with potent antitumor activity against B-cell lymphoma

Despite the effectiveness of the anti-CD20 chimeric antibody (mAb), rituximab, in treating B-cell lymphomas, its efficacy remains variable and often modest. In this study, a humanized anti-CD20 antibody, hu8E4, was generated by complementarity-determining region grafting method. Hu8E4 was as effective as rituximab in mediating antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity and inducing apoptosis in B-lymphoma cells, but it exhibited much more potent complement-dependent cytotoxicity than rituximab. Immunotherapeutic studies showed that hu8E4 was significantly more effective than rituximab in prolonging the survival of severe combined immunodeficient mice bearing human B-cell lymphomas, suggesting that it might be a promising therapeutic agent for B-cell lymphomas.

Humanization of an anti-CD34 monoclonal antibody by complementarity-determining region grafting based on computer-assisted molecular modelling

4C8 is a new mouse anti-human CD34 monoclonal antibody (mAb), which recognizes class II CD34 epitopes and can be used for clinical hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell selection. In an attempt to improve its safety profiles, we have developed a humanized antibody of 4C8 by complementarity-determining region (CDR) grafting method in this study. Using a molecular model of 4C8 built by computer-assisted homology modelling, framework region (FR) residues of potential importance to the antigen binding were identified. A humanized version of 4C8, denoted as h4C8, was generated by transferring these key murine FR residues onto a human antibody framework that was selected based on homology to the mouse antibody framework, together with the mouse CDR residues. The resultant humanized antibody was shown to possess antigen-binding affinity and specificity similar to that of the original murine antibody, suggesting that it might be an alternative to mouse anti-CD34 antibodies routinely used clinically.

Construction and characterization of a high-affinity humanized SM5-1 monoclonal antibody

SM5-1 is a mouse monoclonal antibody which has a high specificity for melanoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and breast cancer, making it a promising candidate for cancer targeting therapy. We have therefore attempted to construct a humanized antibody of SM5-1 to minimize its immunogenicity for potential clinical use. Using a molecular model of SM5-1 built by computer-assisted homology modeling, framework region (FR) residues of potential importance to the antigen binding were identified. Then, a humanized version of SM5-1 was generated by transferring these mouse key FR residues onto a human framework that was selected based on homology to the mouse framework, together with the mouse complementarity-determining region (CDR) residues. This humanized antibody retained only six murine residues outside of the CDRs but was shown to possess affinity and specificity comparable to that of the parental antibody, suggesting that it might have the potential to be developed for future clinical use.

Humanization of chicken monoclonal antibody using phage-display system

We describe a simple method for humanizing chicken monoclonal antibody (mAb). Humanization of mAbs by simple CDR-grafting often results in loss of affinity because certain framework residues of the antibody variable regions can participate in antigen-antibody interaction. In this study, humanization of chicken mAbs was achieved by CDR-grafting, followed by framework fine-tuning using a chicken phage-displayed mAb, phAb4-31, as a model antibody. In order to fine-tune the framework, we used the phage-displayed combinatorial library with permutation of important framework residues. After panning the humanized library, the "most humanized" variants were selected and analyzed for antigen-binding activity. All of these clones retained affinity comparable to the parental chicken mAb. These results suggest that chicken mAbs can easily be humanized, and thus humanized chicken mAbs may be practically applied as therapeutic agents.

Selecting and screening recombinant antibody libraries

During the past decade several display methods and other library screening techniques have been developed for isolating monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) from large collections of recombinant antibody fragments. These technologies are now widely exploited to build human antibodies with high affinity and specificity. Clever antibody library designs and selection concepts are now able to identify mAb leads with virtually any specificity. Innovative strategies enable directed evolution of binding sites with ultra-high affinity, high stability and increased potency, sometimes to a level that cannot be achieved by immunization. Automation of the technology is making it possible to identify hundreds of different antibody leads to a single therapeutic target. With the first antibody of this new generation, adalimumab (Humira, a human IgG1 specific for human tumor necrosis factor (TNF)), already approved for therapy and with many more in clinical trials, these recombinant antibody technologies will provide a solid basis for the discovery of antibody-based biopharmaceuticals, diagnostics and research reagents for decades to come.

Ultra-potent Antibodies Against Respiratory Syncytial Virus: Effects of Binding Kinetics and Binding Valence on Viral Neutralization

We describe here the selection of ultra-potent anti-respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) antibodies for preventing RSV infection. A large number of antibody variants derived from Synagis (palivizumab), an anti-RSV monoclonal antibody that targets RSV F protein, were generated by a directed evolution approach that allowed convenient manipulation of the binding kinetics. Palivizumab variants with about 100-fold slower dissociation rates or with fivefold faster association rates were identified and tested for their ability to neutralize virus in a microneutralization assay. Our data reveal a major differential effect of the association and dissociation rates on the RSV neutralization, particularly for intact antibodies wherein the association rate plays the predominant role. Furthermore, we found that antibody binding valence also plays a critical role in mediating the viral neutralization through a mechanism that is likely unrelated to antibody size or binding avidity. We applied an iterative mutagenesis approach, and thereafter were able to identify palivizumab Fab variants with up to 1500-fold improvement and palivizumab IgG variants with up to 44-fold improvement in the ability to neutralize RSV. These anti-RSV antibodies likely will offer great clinical potential for RSV immunoprophylaxis. In addition, our findings provide insights into engineering potent antibody therapeutics for other disease targets.

A general method for greatly improving the affinity of antibodies by using combinatorial libraries

Look-through mutagenesis (LTM) is a multidimensional mutagenesis method that simultaneously assesses and optimizes combinatorial mutations of selected amino acids. The process focuses on a precise distribution within one or more complementarity determining region (CDR) domains and explores the synergistic contribution of amino acid side-chain chemistry. LTM was applied to an anti-TNF-alpha antibody, D2E7, which is a challenging test case, because D2E7 was highly optimized (K(d) = 1 nM) by others. We selected and incorporated nine amino acids, representative of the major chemical functionalities, individually at every position in each CDR and across all six CDRs (57 aa). Synthetic oligonucleotides, each introducing one amino acid mutation throughout the six CDRs, were pooled to generate segregated libraries containing single mutations in one, two, and/or three CDRs for each V(H) and V(L) domain. Corresponding antibody libraries were displayed on the cell surface of yeast. After positive binding selection, 38 substitutions in 21 CDR positions were identified that resulted in higher affinity binding to TNF-alpha. These beneficial mutations in both V(H) and V(L) were represented in two combinatorial beneficial mutagenesis libraries and selected by FACS to produce a convergence of variants that exhibit between 500- and 870-fold higher affinities. Importantly, these enhanced affinities translate to a 15- to 30-fold improvement in in vitro TNF-alpha neutralization in an L929 bioassay. Thus, this LTM/combinatorial beneficial mutagenesis strategy generates a comprehensive energetic map of the antibody-binding site in a facile and rapid manner and should be broadly applicable to the affinity maturation of antibodies and other proteins.

Tailor-made antibody therapeutics

Therapeutic antibodies represent one of the fastest growing areas of the pharmaceutical industry. There are currently 18 monoclonal antibodies in the market that have been approved by the FDA and over 150 in clinical developments. Driven by innovation and technological developments, scientists have gone beyond the traditional antibody molecules. Antibodies have been engineered in a variety of ways to meet the challenges posed by different biological settings. Described in this review is an abridged account of the different ways antibodies have been tailored to make them efficient drug molecules.

Minimizing the Immunogenicity of Antibodies for Clinical Application

The clinical utility of murine monoclonal antibodies has been greatly limited by the human anti-murine antibody responses they effect in patients. To make them less immunogenic, murine antibodies have been genetically engineered to progressively replace their murine content with that of their human counterparts. This review describes the genetic approaches that have been used to humanize murine antibodies, including the generation of mouse-human chimeric antibodies, veneering of the mouse variable regions, and the grafting of murine complementarity-determining regions (CDRs) onto the variable light (VL) and variable heavy (VH) frameworks of human immunoglobulin molecules, while retaining only those murine framework residues deemed essential for the integrity of the antigen-binding site. To minimize the anti-idiotypic responses that could still be evoked by the murine CDRs in humanized antibodies, two approaches have also been described. These are based on grafting onto the human frameworks the 'abbreviated' CDRs or only the specificity-determining residues (SDRs), the CDR residues that are involved in antigen interaction. The SDRs are identified through the help of the database of three-dimensional structures of antibody:antigen complexes or by mutational analysis of the antibody-combining site. In addition, we also describe the use of in vitro affinity maturation to enhance the binding affinity of humanized antibodies, as well as the manipulation of framework residues to maximize their human content and minimize their immunogenic potential.

Cassette vectors for conversion of Fab fragments into full-length human IgG1 monoclonal antibodies by expression in stably transformed insect cells

Phage display technology allows for the production and rapid selection of antigen-specific, Fab antibody fragments. For purposes of immune therapy, though, complete antibodies that retain the Fc domain are often required. In this regard, we designed cassette vectors for converting human Fab fragments selected from combinatorial phage display libraries into full-length IgG(1) monoclonal antibodies (MAbs). Two expression vectors, pIEI-Light and pIEI-Heavy, were engineered to contain respective light- and heavy-chain human signal sequences downstream of the baculovirus immediate early gene promoter, IEI. Vector pIEI-Heavy also contains the coding region for each of the human IgG(1) constant domains. To generate complete antibody genes, the cassette vectors possess convenient restriction enzyme sites for rapid in-frame cloning of coding regions for full-length light chains in pIEI-Light and for the heavy-chain variable domains in pIEI-Heavy of Fab fragments. Using these constructs and a method that allows for stable transformation of insect cells, complete light- and heavy-chain genes can be inserted into the insect cell genome and subsequently expressed under the control of the baculovirus IEI promoter. This cassette vector system was used to generate stably transformed insect cells that continuously secreted functional full-length, IgG(1) MAbs. The expressed antibodies exhibited light and heavy chains of the appropriate molecular sizes and retained the ability to bind antigen. We conclude that our cassette vectors could serve as valuable tools for generating human IgG(1) antibodies.

Optimization of protein therapeutics by directed evolution

Directed evolution is a broadly applicable technology platform that is ideally suited to address the need for protein optimization and to fully exploit the therapeutic potential of biologics. The approach takes advantage of the remarkable structural and functional plasticity of proteins and permits the rapid remodeling of biologics into new entities with improved functions. The ability to ameliorate virtually any characteristic of a protein can translate into significant clinical benefits, including decreased immunogenicity, higher potency, greater efficacy and improved safety profile, and can considerably increase the probability of successfully developing and commercializing biotherapeutics.

In vitro affinity maturation of human IgM antibodies reactive with tumor-associated antigens

Human lymphocytes secreting tumor cell-specific IgM antibodies were enriched in vitro following the stimulation of allogeneic human splenocytes from nontumor-bearing donors with cytostatic tumor cells or tumor cell plasma membrane fractions. The antibodies were generally of the IgM class and displayed low intrinsic affinity (K(d) > 100 nM). Nonetheless, the avidity arising from multivalent binding sites permitted the identification of multiple monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) displaying specificity for cultured tumor cells. Five antibodies were cloned from the B cells and two of these were expressed as human Fabs with IgG(1) constant regions. Although the avidity of the human IgM antibodies was sufficient to permit detection in the original screening, the monovalent Fabs displayed low binding activities, consistent with their low intrinsic affinity. Thus, in vitro affinity maturation was used to rapidly generate multiple variants of both antibodies displaying greater than 100-fold higher affinity. Two of the antibodies were characterized further and shown to have distinct specificities. One of the targets, LH11238, is associated both with the plasma membrane and with lysosomes and is rapidly internalized following incubation of the antibody with intact live cell monolayers. The second antigen, designated LH13, is a secreted antigen that has been enriched 200-fold from conditioned media and consists of two reactive bands at 42 and 45 kDa on denaturing Western blots. The stimulation and enrichment of human lymphocytes in culture coupled with rapid in vitro affinity maturation of low affinity antibodies potentially enables the discovery of human antibodies to a broader range of epitopes, including those that might be of greater therapeutic relevance.

Antibody engineering

Antibodies are unique in their high affinity and specificity for a binding partner, a quality that has made them one of the most useful molecules for biotechnology and biomedical applications. The field of antibody engineering has changed rapidly in the past 10 years, fueled by novel technologies for the in vitro isolation of antibodies from combinatorial libraries and their functional expression in bacteria. This review presents an overview of the methods available for the de novo generation of human antibodies, for engineering antibodies with increased antigen affinity, and for the production of antibody fragments. Select applications of recombinant antibodies are also presented.

A humanized monoclonal antibody constructed from intronless expression vectors targets human hepatocellular carcinoma cells

An anti-human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) monoclonal antibody, hHP-1, was genetically humanized from a murine monoclonal antibody. In this study, a concept of positional template approach was applied to design the amino acid sequence of hHP-1's variable region, and synthetic DNA fragments for protein expression were produced through overlapping PCR from single strand oligonucleotides. Synthetic DNA fragments and human antibody constant region cDNA were used to construct two CMV promotor-based expression vectors for the antibody light and heavy chains, in which the variable region was connected directly to the constant region without an intron sequence. Completely assembled humanized antibody was successfully expressed in mammalian cells as IgG1 kappa molecules and purified using protein A affinity column. The immunogenicity of the hHP1 was estimated by the amino acid sequence and determined through a HAMA (human anti-murine antibody) serum reaction assay. Results indicated that the immunogenicity of hHP-1 was significantly reduced. In vitro binding activity assay showed that the hHP-1 had retained its binding function to a human HCC SMMC-7721 cell-line, without cross binding to other human normal tissues. Immunofluorescence staining showed that hHP-1 had a strong binding activity to SMMC cells. A competitive binding assay showed that the relative binding activity of hHP-1 was approximately 25% binding activity of the original murine antibody. Our results indicate that a humanized antibody could be produced using intronless vectors and expressed as a complete IgG1 kappa antibody. Hence we believe that hHP-1 could be a potential candidate for HCC treatment.

Antibody libraries in drug and target discovery

Antibody libraries have come of age in the generation and evolution of monoclonal antibodies for therapeutic applications. Here, with an emphasis on cancer therapy, several examples are presented that illustrate the ability to design, engineer and select antibody libraries for different rationales in drug and target discovery.