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Conti S, Kaczorowski KJ, Song G, Porter K, Andrabi R, Burton DR, Chakraborty AK, Karplus M. Design of immunogens to elicit broadly neutralizing antibodies against HIV targeting the CD4 binding site. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2018338118. [PMID: 33637649 PMCID: PMC7936365 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2018338118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [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] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
A vaccine which is effective against the HIV virus is considered to be the best solution to the ongoing global HIV/AIDS epidemic. In the past thirty years, numerous attempts to develop an effective vaccine have been made with little or no success, due, in large part, to the high mutability of the virus. More recent studies showed that a vaccine able to elicit broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs), that is, antibodies that can neutralize a high fraction of global virus variants, has promise to protect against HIV. Such a vaccine has been proposed to involve at least three separate stages: First, activate the appropriate precursor B cells; second, shepherd affinity maturation along pathways toward bnAbs; and, third, polish the Ab response to bind with high affinity to diverse HIV envelopes (Env). This final stage may require immunization with a mixture of Envs. In this paper, we set up a framework based on theory and modeling to design optimal panels of antigens to use in such a mixture. The designed antigens are characterized experimentally and are shown to be stable and to be recognized by known HIV antibodies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Conti
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Kevin J Kaczorowski
- Institute for Medical Engineering & Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Ge Song
- Scripps Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
| | - Katelyn Porter
- Scripps Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
| | - Raiees Andrabi
- Scripps Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
| | - Dennis R Burton
- Scripps Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037
- Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Arup K Chakraborty
- Institute for Medical Engineering & Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139;
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
- Department of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Martin Karplus
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138;
- Laboratoire de Chimie Biophysique, Institut de Science et d'Ingénierie Supramoléculaires, Université de Strasbourg, 67000 Strasbourg, France
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Miller MA, Khan TA, Kaczorowski KJ, Wilson BK, Dinin AK, Borwankar AU, Rodrigues MA, Truskett TM, Johnston KP, Maynard JA. Antibody nanoparticle dispersions formed with mixtures of crowding molecules retain activity and in vivo bioavailability. J Pharm Sci 2012; 101:3763-78. [PMID: 22777686 DOI: 10.1002/jps.23256] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2012] [Revised: 06/01/2012] [Accepted: 06/14/2012] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Monoclonal antibodies continue to command a large market for treatment of a variety of diseases. In many cases, the doses required for therapeutic efficacy are large, limiting options for antibody delivery and administration. We report a novel formulation strategy based on dispersions of antibody nanoclusters that allows for subcutaneous injection of highly concentrated antibody (≈ 190 mg/mL). A solution of monoclonal antibody 1B7 was rapidly frozen and lyophilized using a novel spiral-wound in-situ freezing technology to generate amorphous particles. Upon gentle stirring, a translucent dispersion of approximately 430 nm protein clusters with low apparent viscosity (≈ 24 cp) formed rapidly in buffer containing the pharmaceutically acceptable crowding agents such as trehalose, polyethylene glycol, and n-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. Upon in vitro dilution of the dispersion, the nanoclusters rapidly reverted to monomeric protein with full activity, as monitored by dynamic light scattering and antigen binding. When administered to mice as an intravenous solution, subcutaneous solution, or subcutaneous dispersion at similar (4.6-7.3 mg/kg) or ultra-high dosages (51.6 mg/kg), the distribution and elimination kinetics were within error and the protein retained full activity. Overall, this method of generating high-concentration, low-viscosity dispersions of antibody nanoclusters could lead to improved administration and patient compliance, providing new opportunities for the biotechnology industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria A Miller
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, USA
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Johnston KP, Maynard JA, Truskett TM, Borwankar AU, Miller MA, Wilson BK, Dinin AK, Khan TA, Kaczorowski KJ. Concentrated dispersions of equilibrium protein nanoclusters that reversibly dissociate into active monomers. ACS Nano 2012; 6:1357-1369. [PMID: 22260218 DOI: 10.1021/nn204166z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Stabilizing proteins at high concentration is of broad interest in drug delivery, for treatment of cancer and many other diseases. Herein, we create highly concentrated antibody dispersions (up to 260 mg/mL) comprising dense equilibrium nanoclusters of protein (monoclonal antibody 1B7, polyclonal sheep immunoglobulin G, and bovine serum albumin) molecules which, upon dilution in vitro or administration in vivo, remain conformationally stable and biologically active. The extremely concentrated environment within the nanoclusters (∼700 mg/mL) provides conformational stability to the protein through a novel self-crowding mechanism, as shown by computer simulation, while the primarily repulsive nanocluster interactions result in colloidally stable, transparent dispersions. The nanoclusters are formed by adding trehalose as a cosolute which strengthens the short-ranged attraction between protein molecules. The protein cluster diameter was reversibly tuned from 50 to 300 nm by balancing short-ranged attraction against long-ranged electrostatic repulsion of weakly charged protein at a pH near the isoelectric point. This behavior is described semiquantitatively with a free energy model which includes the fractal dimension of the clusters. Upon dilution of the dispersion in vitro, the clusters rapidly dissociated into fully active protein monomers as shown with biophysical analysis (SEC, DLS, CD, and SDS-PAGE) and sensitive biological assays. Since the concept of forming nanoclusters by tuning colloid interactions is shown to be general, it is likely applicable to a variety of biological therapeutics, mitigating the need to engineer protein stability through amino acid modification. In vivo subcutaneous injection into mice results in indistinguishable pharmacokinetics versus a standard antibody solution. Stable protein dispersions with low viscosities may potentially enable patient self-administration by subcutaneous injection of antibody therapeutics being discovered and developed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keith P Johnston
- Department of Chemical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station C0400, Austin, Texas 78712-0231, United States.
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