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Wang Y, Chen H, Zhao M, Feng L, Liu Z, Zeng Q, Shi W, Zhu W, Song L, Zhu J, Lu H. Oxidation and reduction analysis of therapeutic recombinant human interleukin-15 by HPLC and LC-MS. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2023; 107:3217-3227. [PMID: 37058229 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-023-12508-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2023] [Accepted: 03/29/2023] [Indexed: 04/15/2023]
Abstract
Being an important immune stimulant of T lymphocytes and NK cells, the recombinant human interleukin-15 (rhIL-15) has been extensively researched in tumor immunotherapy or as a vaccine adjuvant. However, the rhIL-15 manufacturing level lags far behind its growing clinical demand due to the lack of efficient and exact analysis methodologies to characterize the trace by-products, typically redox and deamidation. In order to improve the production and quality control of rhIL-15, here we developed an expanded resolution reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (ExRP-HPLC) approach to quickly and accurately analyze the oxidation and reduction by-products of rhIL-15, which may appear during the purification processes. Firstly, we developed RP-HPLC methods which can separate rhIL-15 fractions with different levels of oxidization or reduction, respectively, and the redox status of each peak was then determined by measuring the intact mass with a high-resolution mass spectrometer (UPLC-MS). To further clarify the complex pattern of oxidization of specific residues, the peaks with various oxidation levels were digested into pieces for peptide mapping to pinpoint the exact changes of oxygen and hydrogen atoms in the rhIL-15 by-products. In addition, we performed the ExRP-HPLC and UPLC-MS analysis of partially deamidated rhIL-15 to characterize their oxidation and reduction. Our work is the first in-depth characterization of the redox by-products of rhIL-15, even for deamidated impurities. The ExRP-HPLC method we reported can facilitate the rapid and accurate quality analysis of rhIL-15, which is substantially helpful for streamlining the industrial manufacturing of rhIL-15 to better meet the demands of clinical applications. KEYPOINTS: • The oxidization and reduction rhIL-15 by-products were characterized for the first time. • The changes of oxygen and hydrogen atoms in rhIL-15 redox by-products were accurately determined by UPLC-MS. • Oxidation and reduction by-products of deamidated rhIL-15 were further analyzed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yang Wang
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Huanhuan Chen
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Meiqi Zhao
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Lei Feng
- Instrumental Analysis Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zexin Liu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Qiongya Zeng
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Wenqiang Shi
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Wen Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Luyao Song
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Jianwei Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Huili Lu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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A homodimeric IL-15 superagonist F4RLI with easy preparation, improved half-life, and potent antitumor activities. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022; 106:7039-7050. [PMID: 36184689 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-12209-1] [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: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 08/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is a promising candidate for cancer immunotherapy due to its potent immune-activating effects. There are several IL-15 molecules currently in clinical trials but facing shortages of poor half-life, circulation instability, or complicated production and quality control processes. The aim of this study is to design a novel IL-15 superagonist to set out the above difficulties, and we constructed F4RLI consisting of the GS-linker spaced IgG4 Fc fragment, soluble IL-15 Rα (sIL-15Rα), and IL-15(N72D). Using a single plasmid transient transfection in HEK293E cells, the matured F4RLI was secreted in the form of homodimer and got purified by an easy step of protein A affinity chromatography. The F4RLI product can significantly stimulate the proliferation of human CD3+CD8+ T cells and NK cells in vitro. Meanwhile, F4RLI greatly extended the half-life and prolonged the exposure of IL-15 in mice nearly by 28- and 200-fold, respectively, in comparison with that of the IL-15 monomer. In vivo, F4RLI vastly expanded mouse splenic CD8+ T lymphocytes, illustrating its potential in tumor immunotherapy. Further studies showed that the combination of F4RLI with the immune checkpoint blocker atezolizumab played a synergistic effect in treating MC38 mouse tumor by increasing the percentage of CD8+ T cells in tumor tissue. Moreover, the combination therapy of F4RLI with the angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab resulted in significant tumor growth suppression in a xenograft human HT-29 mouse model. Overall, our results demonstrate a homodimeric IL-15 superagonist F4RLI with advances in manufacturing processes and biopharmaceutical applications for cancer immunotherapy. KEY POINTS: • The homodimeric structure of F4RLI facilitates its easy production processes and quality control. • The fusion with Fc and sIL-15Rα extends the plasma half-life of IL-15 by about 28-fold. • F4RLI can play synergistic antitumor activity with the PD-1/PD-L1 checkpoint inhibitor or angiogenesis inhibitor.
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Chen H, Li N, Xie Y, Jiang H, Yang X, Cagliero C, Shi S, Zhu C, Luo H, Chen J, Zhang L, Zhao M, Feng L, Lu H, Zhu J. Purification of inclusion bodies using PEG precipitation under denaturing conditions to produce recombinant therapeutic proteins from Escherichia coli. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2017; 101:5267-5278. [PMID: 28391504 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-017-8265-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2017] [Revised: 03/22/2017] [Accepted: 03/27/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
It has been documented that the purification of inclusion bodies from Escherichia coli by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) may benefit subsequent refolding and recovery of recombinant proteins. However, loading volume and the high cost of the column limits its application in large-scale manufacturing of biopharmaceutical proteins. We report a novel process using polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation under denaturing conditions to replace SEC for rapid purification of inclusion bodies containing recombinant therapeutic proteins. Using recombinant human interleukin 15 (rhIL-15) as an example, inclusion bodies of rhIL-15 were solubilized in 7 M guanidine hydrochloride, and rhIL-15 was precipitated by the addition of PEG 6000. A final concentration of 5% (w/v) PEG 6000 was found to be optimal to precipitate target proteins and enhance recovery and purity. Compared to the previously reported S-200 size exclusion purification method, PEG precipitation was easier to scale up and achieved the same protein yields and quality of the product. PEG precipitation also reduced manufacturing time by about 50 and 95% of material costs. After refolding and further purification, the rhIL-15 product was highly pure and demonstrated a comparable bioactivity with a rhIL-15 reference standard. Our studies demonstrated that PEG precipitation of inclusion bodies under denaturing conditions holds significant potential as a manufacturing process for biopharmaceuticals from E. coli protein expression systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huanhuan Chen
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Ninghuan Li
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Yueqing Xie
- Jecho Laboratories, Inc., Frederick, MD, 21704, USA
| | - Hua Jiang
- Jecho Laboratories, Inc., Frederick, MD, 21704, USA
| | - Xiaoyi Yang
- Biopharmaceutical Development Program, Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc., Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD, 21702, USA
| | | | - Siwei Shi
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Chencen Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Han Luo
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Junsheng Chen
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Menglin Zhao
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Lei Feng
- Instrumental Analysis Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Huili Lu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Jianwei Zhu
- Engineering Research Center of Cell and Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China. .,Jecho Laboratories, Inc., Frederick, MD, 21704, USA.
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