Miroshnichenko S, Pykhtina M, Kotliarova A, Chepurnov A, Beklemishev A. Engineering a New IFN-ApoA-I Fusion Protein with Low Toxicity and Prolonged Action.
Molecules 2023;
28:8014. [PMID:
38138504 PMCID:
PMC10745500 DOI:
10.3390/molecules28248014]
[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] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Recombinant human interferon alpha-2b (rIFN) is widely used in antiviral and anticancer immunotherapy. However, the high efficiency of interferon therapy is accompanied by a number of side effects; this problem requires the design of a new class of interferon molecules with reduced cytotoxicity. In this work, IFN was modified via genetic engineering methods by merging it with the blood plasma protein apolipoprotein A-I in order to reduce acute toxicity and improve the pharmacokinetics of IFN. The chimeric protein was obtained via biosynthesis in the yeast P. pastoris. The yield of ryIFN-ApoA-I protein when cultivated on a shaker in flasks was 30 mg/L; protein purification was carried out using reverse-phase chromatography to a purity of 95-97%. The chimeric protein demonstrated complete preservation of the biological activity of IFN in the model of vesicular stomatitis virus and SARS-CoV-2. In addition, the chimeric form had reduced cytotoxicity towards Vero cells and increased cell viability under viral load conditions compared with commercial IFN-a2b preparations. Analysis of the pharmacokinetic profile of ryIFN-ApoA-I after a single subcutaneous injection in mice showed a 1.8-fold increased half-life of the chimeric protein compared with ryIFN.
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