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Xu AY, Blanco MA, Castellanos MM, Meuse CW, Mattison K, Karageorgos I, Hatch HW, Shen VK, Curtis JE. Role of Domain-Domain Interactions on the Self-Association and Physical Stability of Monoclonal Antibodies: Effect of pH and Salt. J Phys Chem B 2023; 127:8344-8357. [PMID: 37751332 PMCID: PMC10561141 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c03928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2023] [Revised: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) make up a major class of biotherapeutics with a wide range of clinical applications. Their physical stability can be affected by various environmental factors. For instance, an acidic pH can be encountered during different stages of the mAb manufacturing process, including purification and storage. Therefore, understanding the behavior of flexible mAb molecules in acidic solution environments will benefit the development of stable mAb products. This study used small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and complementary biophysical characterization techniques to investigate the conformational flexibility and protein-protein interactions (PPI) of a model mAb molecule under near-neutral and acidic conditions. The study also characterized the interactions between Fab and Fc fragments under the same buffer conditions to identify domain-domain interactions. The results suggest that solution pH significantly influences mAb flexibility and thus could help mAbs remain physically stable by maximizing local electrostatic repulsions when mAbs become crowded in solution. Under acidic buffer conditions, both Fab and Fc contribute to the repulsive PPI observed among the full mAb at a low ionic strength. However, as ionic strength increases, hydrophobic interactions lead to the self-association of Fc fragments and, subsequently, could affect the aggregation state of the mAb.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy Y. Xu
- Department
of Chemistry, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803, United States
| | - Marco A. Blanco
- Discovery
Pharmaceutical Sciences, Merck Research
Laboratories, Merck & Co., Inc, West Point, Pennsylvania 19486, United States
| | - Maria Monica Castellanos
- Institute
for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, University of Maryland, Rockville, Maryland 20850, United States
- NIST
Center for Neutron Research, National Institute
of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
| | - Curtis W. Meuse
- Institute
for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, University of Maryland, Rockville, Maryland 20850, United States
- Biomolecular
Measurement Division, National Institute
of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
| | - Kevin Mattison
- Malvern
Panalytical, Westborough, Massachusetts 01581, United States
| | - Ioannis Karageorgos
- Institute
for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research, University of Maryland, Rockville, Maryland 20850, United States
- Biomolecular
Measurement Division, National Institute
of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
| | - Harold W. Hatch
- Chemical
Sciences Division, Material Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
| | - Vincent K. Shen
- Chemical
Sciences Division, Material Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
| | - Joseph E. Curtis
- NIST
Center for Neutron Research, National Institute
of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, United States
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Underwood DJ, Bettencourt J, Jawad Z. The manufacturing considerations of bispecific antibodies. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2022; 22:1043-1065. [PMID: 35771976 DOI: 10.1080/14712598.2022.2095900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Antibody therapies have made huge strides in providing safe and efficacious drugs for autoimmune, cancer and infectious disease. These bispecific antibodies can be assembled from the basic building blocks of IgGs, resulting in dozens of formats. AREAS COVERED It is important to consider the manufacturability of these formats early in the antibody discovery phases. Broadly categorizing bispecific antibodies into IgG-like, fragment-based, appended and hybrid formats can help in looking at early manufacturability considerations. EXPERT OPINION Ideally, bispecific antibody manufacturing should contain a minimal number of steps, with processes that give high yields of protein with no contaminants. Many of these have been determined for the fragment-based bispecific blinatumomab and the IgG-like bispecifics from hybridomas. However, for new formats, these need to be considered early in the research and development pipeline. The hybrid formats offer an unusual alternative in generating high pure yields of bispecific molecules if the engineering challenges can be deciphered.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Zahra Jawad
- Agenus inc., 3 Forbes Road, Lexington, MA, 02421-7305, United States.,Creasallis ltd, Babraham Research Campus, Babraham, Cambridgeshire, CB22 3AT, United Kingdom
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Effects of Monovalent Salt on Protein-Protein Interactions of Dilute and Concentrated Monoclonal Antibody Formulations. Antibodies (Basel) 2022; 11:antib11020024. [PMID: 35466277 PMCID: PMC9036246 DOI: 10.3390/antib11020024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2022] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/24/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, we used sodium chloride (NaCl) to extensively modulate non-specific protein-protein interactions (PPI) of a humanized anti-streptavidin monoclonal antibody class 2 molecule (ASA-IgG2). The changes in PPI with varying NaCl (CNaCl) and monoclonal antibody (mAb) concentration (CmAb) were assessed using the diffusion interaction parameter kD and second virial coefficient B22 measured from solutions with low to moderate CmAb. The effective structure factor S(q)eff measured from concentrated mAb solutions using small-angle X-ray and neutron scattering (SAXS/SANS) was also used to characterize the PPI. Our results found that the nature of net PPI changed not only with CNaCl, but also with increasing CmAb. As a result, parameters measured from dilute and concentrated mAb samples could lead to different predictions on the stability of mAb formulations. We also compared experimentally determined viscosity results with those predicted from interaction parameters, including kD and S(q)eff. The lack of a clear correlation between interaction parameters and measured viscosity values indicates that the relationship between viscosity and PPI is concentration-dependent. Collectively, the behavior of flexible mAb molecules in concentrated solutions may not be correctly predicted using models where proteins are considered to be uniform colloid particles defined by parameters derived from low CmAb.
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Blanco MA. Computational models for studying physical instabilities in high concentration biotherapeutic formulations. MAbs 2022; 14:2044744. [PMID: 35282775 PMCID: PMC8928847 DOI: 10.1080/19420862.2022.2044744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Computational prediction of the behavior of concentrated protein solutions is particularly advantageous in early development stages of biotherapeutics when material availability is limited and a large set of formulation conditions needs to be explored. This review provides an overview of the different computational paradigms that have been successfully used in modeling undesirable physical behaviors of protein solutions with a particular emphasis on high-concentration drug formulations. This includes models ranging from all-atom simulations, coarse-grained representations to macro-scale mathematical descriptions used to study physical instability phenomena of protein solutions such as aggregation, elevated viscosity, and phase separation. These models are compared and summarized in the context of the physical processes and their underlying assumptions and limitations. A detailed analysis is also given for identifying protein interaction processes that are explicitly or implicitly considered in the different modeling approaches and particularly their relations to various formulation parameters. Lastly, many of the shortcomings of existing computational models are discussed, providing perspectives and possible directions toward an efficient computational framework for designing effective protein formulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco A. Blanco
- Materials and Biophysical Characterization, Analytical R & D, Merck & Co., Inc, Kenilworth, NJ USA
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Chaturvedi SK, Parupudi A, Juul-Madsen K, Nguyen A, Vorup-Jensen T, Dragulin-Otto S, Zhao H, Esfandiary R, Schuck P. Measuring aggregates, self-association, and weak interactions in concentrated therapeutic antibody solutions. MAbs 2021; 12:1810488. [PMID: 32887536 PMCID: PMC7531506 DOI: 10.1080/19420862.2020.1810488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Monoclonal antibodies are a class of biotherapeutics used for an increasing variety of disorders, including cancer, autoimmune, neurodegenerative, and viral diseases. Besides their antigen specificity, therapeutic use also mandates control of their solution interactions and colloidal properties in order to achieve a stable, efficacious, non-immunogenic, and low viscosity antibody solution at concentrations in the range of 50–150 mg/mL. This requires characterization of their reversible self-association, aggregation, and weak attractive and repulsive interactions governing macromolecular distance distributions in solution. Simultaneous measurement of these properties, however, has been hampered by solution nonideality. Based on a recently introduced sedimentation velocity method for measuring macromolecular size distributions in a mean-field approximation for hydrodynamic interactions, we demonstrate simultaneous measurement of polydispersity and weak and strong solution interactions in a panel of antibodies with concentrations up to 45 mg/mL. By allowing approximately an order of magnitude higher concentrations than previously possible in sedimentation velocity size distribution analysis, this approach can substantially improve efficiency and sensitivity for characterizing polydispersity and interactions of therapeutic antibodies at or close to formulation conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sumit K Chaturvedi
- Dynamics of Macromolecular Assembly Section, Laboratory of Cellular Imaging and Macromolecular Biophysics, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Arun Parupudi
- Department of Dosage Form Design and Development, Biopharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca , Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Kristian Juul-Madsen
- Dynamics of Macromolecular Assembly Section, Laboratory of Cellular Imaging and Macromolecular Biophysics, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD, USA.,Biophysical Immunology Laboratory, Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University , Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Ai Nguyen
- Dynamics of Macromolecular Assembly Section, Laboratory of Cellular Imaging and Macromolecular Biophysics, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Thomas Vorup-Jensen
- Biophysical Immunology Laboratory, Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University , Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Sonia Dragulin-Otto
- Department of Dosage Form Design and Development, Biopharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca , Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Huaying Zhao
- Dynamics of Macromolecular Assembly Section, Laboratory of Cellular Imaging and Macromolecular Biophysics, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Reza Esfandiary
- Department of Dosage Form Design and Development, Biopharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca , Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Peter Schuck
- Dynamics of Macromolecular Assembly Section, Laboratory of Cellular Imaging and Macromolecular Biophysics, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD, USA
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Jakob LA, Beyer B, Janeiro Ferreira C, Lingg N, Jungbauer A, Tscheließnig R. Protein-protein interactions and reduced excluded volume increase dynamic binding capacity of dual salt systems in hydrophobic interaction chromatography. J Chromatogr A 2021; 1649:462231. [PMID: 34038776 DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2021.462231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2021] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Deploying two salts in hydrophobic interaction chromatography can significantly increase dynamic binding capacities. Nevertheless, the mechanistic understanding of this phenomenon is lacking. Here, we investigate whether surface tension or ionic strength govern dynamic binding capacities of the chromatographic resin Toyopearl Butyl-650 M in dual salt systems. Small-angle X-ray scattering was employed to analyze the model proteins and the protein-resin adduct in the respective dual salt systems. The dual salt systems incorporate sodium citrate and a secondary sodium salt (acetate, sulfate, or phosphate). As model proteins, we used lysozyme, GFP, and a monoclonal antibody (adalimumab). Moreover, for the protein-resin adduct, we determined the model parameters of a self-avoiding random walk model fitted into the pair density distribution function of the SAXS data. Ionic strength is more predictive for dynamic binding capacities in HIC dual salt systems than surface tension. However, dynamic binding capacities still differ by up to 30 % between the investigated dual salt systems. The proteins exhibit extensive protein-protein interactions in the studied dual salt HIC buffers. We found a correlation of protein-protein interactions with the well-known Hofmeister series. For systems with elevated protein-protein interactions, adsorption isotherms deviate from Langmuirian behavior. This highlights the importance of lateral protein-protein interactions in protein adsorption, where monomolecular protein layers are usually assumed. SAXS analysis of the protein-resin adduct indicates an inverse correlation of the binding capacity and the excluded volume parameter. This is indicative of the deposition of proteins in the cavities of the stationary phase. We hypothesize that increasing protein-protein interactions allow the formation of attractive clusters and multilayers in the cavities, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leo A Jakob
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190, Austria
| | - Beate Beyer
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190, Austria; Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, Vienna A-1190, Austria
| | | | - Nico Lingg
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190, Austria; Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, Vienna A-1190, Austria
| | - Alois Jungbauer
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190, Austria; Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, Vienna A-1190, Austria.
| | - Rupert Tscheließnig
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Muthgasse 18, A-1190, Austria
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7
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Shahfar H, Forder JK, Roberts CJ. Toward a Suite of Coarse-Grained Models for Molecular Simulation of Monoclonal Antibodies and Therapeutic Proteins. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:3574-3588. [PMID: 33821645 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c01903] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
A series of coarse-grained models for molecular simulation of proteins are considered, with emphasis on the application of predicting protein-protein self-interactions for monoclonal antibodies (MAbs). As an illustrative example and for quantitative comparison, the models are used to predict osmotic virial coefficients over a broad range of attractive and repulsive self-interactions and solution conditions for a series of MAbs where the second osmotic virial coefficient has been experimentally determined in prior work. The models are compared based on how well they can predict experimental behavior, their computational burdens, and scalability. An intermediate-resolution model is also introduced that can capture specific electrostatic interactions with improved efficiency and similar or improved accuracy when compared to the previously published models. Guidance is included for the selection of coarse-grained models more generally for capturing a balance of electrostatic, steric, and short-ranged nonelectrostatic interactions for proteins from low to high concentrations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hassan Shahfar
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - James K Forder
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Christopher J Roberts
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
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8
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Mahynski NA, Hatch HW, Witman M, Sheen DA, Errington JR, Shen VK. Flat-histogram extrapolation as a useful tool in the age of big data. MOLECULAR SIMULATION 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/08927022.2020.1747617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nathan A. Mahynski
- Chemical Sciences Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Harold W. Hatch
- Chemical Sciences Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | | | - David A. Sheen
- Chemical Sciences Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Jeffrey R. Errington
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA
| | - Vincent K. Shen
- Chemical Sciences Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA
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9
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Chowdhury A, Guruprasad G, Chen AT, Karouta CA, Blanco MA, Truskett TM, Johnston KP. Protein-Protein Interactions, Clustering, and Rheology for Bovine IgG up to High Concentrations Characterized by Small Angle X-Ray Scattering and Molecular Dynamics Simulations. J Pharm Sci 2020; 109:696-708. [DOI: 10.1016/j.xphs.2019.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2019] [Revised: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/01/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
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