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Bermejo IA, Guerreiro A, Eguskiza A, Martínez-Sáez N, Lazaris FS, Asín A, Somovilla VJ, Compañón I, Raju TK, Tadic S, Garrido P, García-Sanmartín J, Mangini V, Grosso AS, Marcelo F, Avenoza A, Busto JH, García-Martín F, Hurtado-Guerrero R, Peregrina JM, Bernardes GJL, Martínez A, Fiammengo R, Corzana F. Structure-Guided Approach for the Development of MUC1-Glycopeptide-Based Cancer Vaccines with Predictable Responses. JACS Au 2024; 4:150-163. [PMID: 38274250 PMCID: PMC10807005 DOI: 10.1021/jacsau.3c00587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2023] [Revised: 11/08/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
Mucin-1 (MUC1) glycopeptides are exceptional candidates for potential cancer vaccines. However, their autoantigenic nature often results in a weak immune response. To overcome this drawback, we carefully engineered synthetic antigens with precise chemical modifications. To be effective and stimulate an anti-MUC1 response, artificial antigens must mimic the conformational dynamics of natural antigens in solution and have an equivalent or higher binding affinity to anti-MUC1 antibodies than their natural counterparts. As a proof of concept, we have developed a glycopeptide that contains noncanonical amino acid (2S,3R)-3-hydroxynorvaline. The unnatural antigen fulfills these two properties and effectively mimics the threonine-derived antigen. On the one hand, conformational analysis in water shows that this surrogate explores a landscape similar to that of the natural variant. On the other hand, the presence of an additional methylene group in the side chain of this analog compared to the threonine residue enhances a CH/π interaction in the antigen/antibody complex. Despite an enthalpy-entropy balance, this synthetic glycopeptide has a binding affinity slightly higher than that of its natural counterpart. When conjugated with gold nanoparticles, the vaccine candidate stimulates the formation of specific anti-MUC1 IgG antibodies in mice and shows efficacy comparable to that of the natural derivative. The antibodies also exhibit cross-reactivity to selectively target, for example, human breast cancer cells. This investigation relied on numerous analytical (e.g., NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography) and biophysical techniques and molecular dynamics simulations to characterize the antigen-antibody interactions. This workflow streamlines the synthetic process, saves time, and reduces the need for extensive, animal-intensive immunization procedures. These advances underscore the promise of structure-based rational design in the advance of cancer vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris A. Bermejo
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Ana Guerreiro
- Instituto
de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa 1649-028, Portugal
| | - Ander Eguskiza
- Department
of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Verona 37134, Italy
| | - Nuria Martínez-Sáez
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
- Departamento
de Tecnología y Química Farmacéuticas, Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona 31008, Spain
| | - Foivos S. Lazaris
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Alicia Asín
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Víctor J. Somovilla
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Ismael Compañón
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Tom K. Raju
- Angiogenesis
Group, Oncology Area, Center for Biomedical
Research of La Rioja (CIBIR), Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Srdan Tadic
- Angiogenesis
Group, Oncology Area, Center for Biomedical
Research of La Rioja (CIBIR), Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Pablo Garrido
- Angiogenesis
Group, Oncology Area, Center for Biomedical
Research of La Rioja (CIBIR), Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Josune García-Sanmartín
- Angiogenesis
Group, Oncology Area, Center for Biomedical
Research of La Rioja (CIBIR), Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Vincenzo Mangini
- Center
for
Biomolecular Nanotechnologies@UniLe, Istituto
Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Arnesano, Lecce 73010, Italy
| | - Ana S. Grosso
- Applied
Molecular Biosciences Unit UCIBIO, Department of Chemistry, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Caparica 2829-516, Portugal
- Associate
Laboratory i4HB - Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Caparica 2829-516, Portugal
| | - Filipa Marcelo
- Applied
Molecular Biosciences Unit UCIBIO, Department of Chemistry, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Caparica 2829-516, Portugal
- Associate
Laboratory i4HB - Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Caparica 2829-516, Portugal
| | - Alberto Avenoza
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Jesús H. Busto
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Fayna García-Martín
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Ramón Hurtado-Guerrero
- Institute
of Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza 50018, Spain
- Copenhagen
Center for Glycomics, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine,
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of
Copenhagen, Copenhagen 2200, Denmark
- Fundación
ARAID, Zaragoza 50018, Spain
| | - Jesús M. Peregrina
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Gonçalo J. L. Bernardes
- Instituto
de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa 1649-028, Portugal
- Yusuf
Hamied Department of Chemistry, University
of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1EW, U.K.
| | - Alfredo Martínez
- Angiogenesis
Group, Oncology Area, Center for Biomedical
Research of La Rioja (CIBIR), Logroño 26006, Spain
| | - Roberto Fiammengo
- Department
of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Verona 37134, Italy
- Center
for
Biomolecular Nanotechnologies@UniLe, Istituto
Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Arnesano, Lecce 73010, Italy
| | - Francisco Corzana
- Department
of Chemistry and Instituto de Investigación en Química
de la Universidad de La Rioja (IQUR), Universidad
de La Rioja, Logroño 26006, Spain
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