1
|
Crook ZR, Girard EJ, Sevilla GP, Brusniak MY, Rupert PB, Friend DJ, Gewe MM, Clarke M, Lin I, Ruff R, Phi D, Bandaranayake A, Correnti CE, Mhyre AJ, Nairn NW, Strong RK, Olson JM. Abstract 1043: Advances in cystine-dense peptide (CDP) screening and therapeutic applications. Cancer Res 2022. [DOI: 10.1158/1538-7445.am2022-1043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Cystine-dense peptides (CDPs) are a class of drug-like miniproteins that marry many of the advantages of biologics (high affinity and specificity) and small molecule therapeutics (high tissue permeability and low immunogenicity). The beneficial properties of CDPs, and miniproteins in general, have driven interest in therapeutic applications. However, CDP diversity is vast from every clade of life, and properly interrogating “CDP space” requires specialized screening and modeling tools.
With this in mind, we have created an optimized mammalian surface display platform to screen for CDPs of clinical interest using libraries of structurally-diverse native scaffolds optimized for stability. These native CDPs can be structurally modeled, which we did in determining the structures of over 4200 native CDPs. This modeling permits further selection in silico as well as targeted mutagenesis for favorable target-binding capabilities. Hits from these screens are routinely matured to sub-nM affinity. These CDPs can play numerous roles in a drug design pipeline, from an independent drug candidate to a delivery agent for tissue-targeting to a module in a polyspecific biologic. Recent novel CDP candidates have shown promise in immune-oncology space as part of a bispecific T-cell engager targeting PD-L1, where a single 2-week treatment was capable of eliminating subcutaneous PC3 prostate cancer xenograft tumors in 27/30 mice.
Besides bispecifics, future directions for the platform include exploring targeted protein degradation. Additionally, we are expanding upon our previous work on CDPs to explore CNS or tumor delivery of therapeutic cargo. The versatility of CDPs and novel screening tools to rapidly identify and mature candidates of interest can facilitate rapid advancement of CDP therapeutics to address difficult targets in oncology.
Citation Format: Zachary R. Crook, Emily J. Girard, Gregory P. Sevilla, Mi-Youn Brusniak, Peter B. Rupert, Della J. Friend, Mesfin M. Gewe, Midori Clarke, Ida Lin, Raymond Ruff, Doan Phi, Ashok Bandaranayake, Colin E. Correnti, Andrew J. Mhyre, Natalie W. Nairn, Roland K. Strong, James M. Olson. Advances in cystine-dense peptide (CDP) screening and therapeutic applications [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 1043.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Midori Clarke
- 2Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA
| | - Ida Lin
- 2Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA
| | - Raymond Ruff
- 2Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
2
|
Crook ZR, Girard EJ, Sevilla GP, Brusniak MY, Rupert PB, Friend DJ, Gewe MM, Clarke M, Lin I, Ruff R, Pakiam F, Phi TD, Bandaranayake A, Correnti CE, Mhyre AJ, Nairn NW, Strong RK, Olson JM. Ex silico engineering of cystine-dense peptides yielding a potent bispecific T cell engager. Sci Transl Med 2022; 14:eabn0402. [PMID: 35584229 PMCID: PMC10118748 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abn0402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Cystine-dense peptides (CDPs) are a miniprotein class that can drug difficult targets with high affinity and low immunogenicity. Tools for their design, however, are not as developed as those for small-molecule and antibody drugs. CDPs have diverse taxonomic origins, but structural characterization is lacking. Here, we adapted Iterative Threading ASSEmbly Refinement (I-TASSER) and Rosetta protein modeling software for structural prediction of 4298 CDP scaffolds and performed in silico prescreening for CDP binders to targets of interest. Mammalian display screening of a library of docking-enriched, methionine and tyrosine scanned (DEMYS) CDPs against PD-L1 yielded binders from four distinct CDP scaffolds. One was affinity-matured, and cocrystallography yielded a high-affinity (KD = 202 pM) PD-L1-binding CDP that competes with PD-1 for PD-L1 binding. Its subsequent incorporation into a CD3-binding bispecific T cell engager produced a molecule with pM-range in vitro T cell killing potency and which substantially extends survival in two different xenograft tumor-bearing mouse models. Both in vitro and in vivo, the CDP-incorporating bispecific molecule outperformed a comparator antibody-based molecule. This CDP modeling and DEMYS technique can accelerate CDP therapeutic development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary R Crook
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.,Blaze Bioscience Inc., Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Emily J Girard
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Gregory P Sevilla
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.,Blaze Bioscience Inc., Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Mi-Youn Brusniak
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Peter B Rupert
- Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Della J Friend
- Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Mesfin M Gewe
- Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Midori Clarke
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Ida Lin
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Raymond Ruff
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Fiona Pakiam
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | | | - Ashok Bandaranayake
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Colin E Correnti
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Andrew J Mhyre
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | | | - Roland K Strong
- Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - James M Olson
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| |
Collapse
|