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Kjeldsen T, Andersen AS, Hubálek F, Johansson E, Kreiner FF, Schluckebier G, Kurtzhals P. Molecular engineering of insulin for recombinant expression in yeast. Trends Biotechnol 2024; 42:464-478. [PMID: 37880066 DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2023.09.012] [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] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2023] [Revised: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
Since the first administration of insulin to a person with diabetes in 1922, scientific contributions from academia and industry have improved insulin therapy and access. The pharmaceutical need for insulin is now more than 40 tons annually, half of which is produced by recombinant secretory expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We discuss how, in this yeast species, adaptation of insulin precursors by removable structural elements is pivotal for efficient secretory expression. The technologies reviewed have been implemented at industrial scale and are seminal for the supply of human insulin and insulin analogues to people with diabetes now and in the future. Engineering of a target protein with removable structural elements may provide a general approach to yield optimisation.
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2
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Amendt T, Allies G, Nicolò A, El Ayoubi O, Young M, Röszer T, Setz CS, Warnatz K, Jumaa H. Autoreactive antibodies control blood glucose by regulating insulin homeostasis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2115695119. [PMID: 35131852 PMCID: PMC8833180 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2115695119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The random nature of antibody repertoire generation includes the potential of producing autoantibodies recognizing self-structures. It is believed that establishing immunological tolerance and prevention of autoimmune diseases require the removal of antibody specificities recognizing self. Using insulin as a common and physiologically important autoantigen, we show that anti-insulin antibodies associated with autoimmune diabetes can readily be detected in mice and humans and are involved in the physiological regulation of blood glucose levels. Importantly, human high-affinity, anti-insulin IgM antibodies protect insulin from autoimmune degradation by anti-insulin IgG antibodies. Thus, in contrast to the proposed negative selection, self-recognition and the production of highly autoreactive IgM antibodies are important for tolerance induction. Homeostasis of metabolism by hormone production is crucial for maintaining physiological integrity, as disbalance can cause severe metabolic disorders such as diabetes mellitus. Here, we show that antibody-deficient mice and immunodeficiency patients have subphysiological blood glucose concentrations. Restoring blood glucose physiology required total IgG injections and insulin-specific IgG antibodies detected in total IgG preparations and in the serum of healthy individuals. In addition to the insulin-neutralizing anti-insulin IgG, we identified two fractions of anti-insulin IgM in the serum of healthy individuals. These autoreactive IgM fractions differ in their affinity to insulin. Interestingly, the low-affinity IgM fraction (anti-insulin IgMlow) neutralizes insulin and leads to increased blood glucose, whereas the high-affinity IgM fraction (anti-insulin IgMhigh) protects insulin from neutralization by anti-insulin IgG, thereby preventing blood glucose dysregulation. To demonstrate that anti-insulin IgMhigh acts as a protector of insulin and counteracts insulin neutralization by anti-insulin IgG, we expressed the variable regions of a high-affinity anti-insulin antibody as IgG and IgM. Remarkably, the recombinant anti-insulin IgMhigh normalized insulin function and prevented IgG-mediated insulin neutralization. These results suggest that autoreactive antibodies recognizing insulin are key regulators of blood glucose and metabolism, as they control the concentration of insulin in the blood. Moreover, our data suggest that preventing autoimmune damage and maintaining physiological homeostasis requires adaptive tolerance mechanisms generating high-affinity autoreactive IgM antibodies during memory responses.
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3
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Sen S, Ali R, Onkar A, Ganesh S, Verma S. Strategies for interference of insulin fibrillogenesis: challenges and advances. Chembiochem 2022; 23:e202100678. [PMID: 35025120 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202100678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Revised: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The discovery of insulin came up with very high hopes for diabetic patients. In the year 2021, the world celebrated the 100 th anniversary of the discovery of this vital hormone. However, external use of insulin is highly affected by its aggregating tendency that occurs during its manufacturing, transportation, and improper handling which ultimately leads its pharmaceutically and biologically ineffective form. In this review, we aim to discuss the various approaches used for decelerating insulin aggregation which results in the enhancement of its overall structural stability and usage. The approaches that are discussed are broadly classified as either a measure through excipient additions or by intrinsic modifications in the insulin native structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shantanu Sen
- Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Chemistry, INDIA
| | - Rafat Ali
- Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Chemistry, Room No 131 Lab No2, CESE department IIT Kanpur, 208016, Kanpur, INDIA
| | - Akanksha Onkar
- Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, INDIA
| | - Subramaniam Ganesh
- Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, INDIA
| | - Sandeep Verma
- Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, Department of Chemistry, IIT-Kanpur, 208016, Kanpur, INDIA
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4
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Kjeldsen TB, Hubálek F, Hjørringgaard CU, Tagmose TM, Nishimura E, Stidsen CE, Porsgaard T, Fledelius C, Refsgaard HHF, Gram-Nielsen S, Naver H, Pridal L, Hoeg-Jensen T, Jeppesen CB, Manfè V, Ludvigsen S, Lautrup-Larsen I, Madsen P. Molecular Engineering of Insulin Icodec, the First Acylated Insulin Analog for Once-Weekly Administration in Humans. J Med Chem 2021; 64:8942-8950. [PMID: 33944562 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jmedchem.1c00257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Here, we describe the molecular engineering of insulin icodec to achieve a plasma half-life of 196 h in humans, suitable for once-weekly subcutaneously administration. Insulin icodec is based on re-engineering of the ultra-long oral basal insulin OI338 with a plasma half-life of 70 h in humans. This systematic re-engineering was accomplished by (1) further increasing the albumin binding by changing the fatty diacid from a 1,18-octadecanedioic acid (C18) to a 1,20-icosanedioic acid (C20) and (2) further reducing the insulin receptor affinity by the B16Tyr → His substitution. Insulin icodec was selected by screening for long intravenous plasma half-life in dogs while ensuring glucose-lowering potency following subcutaneous administration in rats. The ensuing structure-activity relationship resulted in insulin icodec. In phase-2 clinical trial, once-weekly insulin icodec provided safe and efficacious glycemic control comparable to once-daily insulin glargine in type 2 diabetes patients. The structure-activity relationship study leading to insulin icodec is presented here.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas B Kjeldsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - František Hubálek
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | | | - Tina M Tagmose
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Erica Nishimura
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Carsten E Stidsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Trine Porsgaard
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Christian Fledelius
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Hanne H F Refsgaard
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Sanne Gram-Nielsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Helle Naver
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Lone Pridal
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Thomas Hoeg-Jensen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Claus Bekker Jeppesen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Drug Discovery, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Valentina Manfè
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Svend Ludvigsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Inger Lautrup-Larsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
| | - Peter Madsen
- Novo Nordisk A/S, Global Research Technologies, Novo Nordisk Park, DK-2760 Maaloev, Denmark
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5
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Østergaard M, Mishra NK, Jensen KJ. The ABC of Insulin: The Organic Chemistry of a Small Protein. Chemistry 2020; 26:8341-8357. [DOI: 10.1002/chem.202000337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Revised: 02/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mads Østergaard
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of Copenhagen Thorvaldsensvej 40 1871 Frederiksberg C Denmark
| | - Narendra Kumar Mishra
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of Copenhagen Thorvaldsensvej 40 1871 Frederiksberg C Denmark
| | - Knud J. Jensen
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of Copenhagen Thorvaldsensvej 40 1871 Frederiksberg C Denmark
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Abstract
After the first seed concept introduced in the 18th century, different disciplines have attributed different names to dual-functional molecules depending on their application, including bioconjugates, bifunctional compounds, multitargeting molecules, chimeras, hybrids, engineered compounds. However, these engineered constructs share a general structure: a first component that targets a specific cell and a second component that exerts the pharmacological activity. A stable or cleavable linker connects the two modules of a chimera. Herein, we discuss the recent advances in the rapidly expanding field of chimeric molecules leveraging chemical biology concepts. This Perspective is focused on bifunctional compounds in which one component is a lead compound or a drug. In detail, we discuss chemical features of chimeric molecules and their use for targeted delivery and for target engagement studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Borsari
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Darci J Trader
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Purdue University, 610 Purdue Mall, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Annalisa Tait
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
| | - Maria P Costi
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via Campi 103, 41125 Modena, Italy
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Xiong X, Blakely A, Karra P, VandenBerg MA, Ghabash G, Whitby F, Zhang YW, Webber MJ, Holland WL, Hill CP, Chou DHC. Novel four-disulfide insulin analog with high aggregation stability and potency. Chem Sci 2019; 11:195-200. [PMID: 32110371 PMCID: PMC7012051 DOI: 10.1039/c9sc04555d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2019] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
A novel four-disulfide insulin analog was designed with retained bioactivity and increased fibrillation stability.
Although insulin was first purified and used therapeutically almost a century ago, there is still a need to improve therapeutic efficacy and patient convenience. A key challenge is the requirement for refrigeration to avoid inactivation of insulin by aggregation/fibrillation. Here, in an effort to mitigate this problem, we introduced a 4th disulfide bond between a C-terminal extended insulin A chain and residues near the C-terminus of the B chain. Insulin activity was retained by an analog with an additional disulfide bond between residues A22 and B22, while other linkages tested resulted in much reduced potency. Furthermore, the A22-B22 analog maintains the native insulin tertiary structure as demonstrated by X-ray crystal structure determination. We further demonstrate that this four-disulfide analog has similar in vivo potency in mice compared to native insulin and demonstrates higher aggregation stability. In conclusion, we have discovered a novel four-disulfide insulin analog with high aggregation stability and potency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaochun Xiong
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
| | - Alan Blakely
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
| | - Prasoona Karra
- Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA
| | - Michael A VandenBerg
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering , University of Notre Dame , IN 46556 , USA
| | - Gabrielle Ghabash
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
| | - Frank Whitby
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
| | - Yi Wolf Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
| | - Matthew J Webber
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering , University of Notre Dame , IN 46556 , USA
| | - William L Holland
- Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA
| | - Christopher P Hill
- Department of Biochemistry , University of Utah , Salt Lake City UT 84112 , USA . ;
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Salar S, Jafari M, Kaboli SF, Mehrnejad F. The role of intermolecular interactions on the encapsulation of human insulin into the chitosan and cholesterol-grafted chitosan polymers. Carbohydr Polym 2019; 208:345-355. [DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2018.12.083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Revised: 12/04/2018] [Accepted: 12/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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9
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Wu F, Mayer JP, Gelfanov VM, Liu F, DiMarchi RD. Synthesis of Four-Disulfide Insulin Analogs via Sequential Disulfide Bond Formation. J Org Chem 2017; 82:3506-3512. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.joc.6b03078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fangzhou Wu
- Department
of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - John P. Mayer
- Novo Nordisk
Research
Center Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana 46241, United States
| | - Vasily M. Gelfanov
- Novo Nordisk
Research
Center Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana 46241, United States
| | - Fa Liu
- Novo Nordisk
Research
Center Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana 46241, United States
| | - Richard D. DiMarchi
- Department
of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
- Novo Nordisk
Research
Center Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana 46241, United States
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10
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Abstract
The insulin molecule was discovered in 1921. Shortly thereafter, its propensity towards amyloid fibril formation, fibrillation, was observed and described in the literature as a "precipitate." In the past decades, the increased incidence of type 2 diabetes has reached global epidemic proportions. This has emphasized the demands for both insulin production and the development of modern insulin products for unmet medical needs. Bringing such new insulin drug products to the market for the benefit of patients requires that many CMC-related processes are understood, described, and controlled. One potential undesired process is insulin fibril formation. The compound thioflavin T (ThT) is known as a fluorescent probe for amyloid fibrils. As such, ThT is utilized in a versatile research assay in microtiter plate format, the ThT assay. This review will describe an experimental set-up using not only a ThT microtiter plate assay but also two orthogonal methods. The use of the ThT assay in research and characterization of insulin analogues, as well as formulations of insulin, is described by cases drawn from the scientific literature and patents. The ThT assay is compared to other physical stability tests and in conclusion the advantages and limitations of the assay are compared.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morten Schlein
- Injectable Formulation Research, Global Research, Novo Nordisk A/S, Novo Nordisk Park H6.S.09.1, DK2760, Maaloev, Denmark.
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11
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Vinther TN, Kjeldsen TB, Jensen KJ, Hubálek F. The road to the first, fully active and more stable human insulin variant with an additional disulfide bond. J Pept Sci 2015; 21:797-806. [DOI: 10.1002/psc.2822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2015] [Revised: 08/14/2015] [Accepted: 08/19/2015] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Knud J. Jensen
- Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry; University of Copenhagen; DK-1871 Frederiksberg Denmark
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12
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Trabjerg E, Jakobsen RU, Mysling S, Christensen S, Jørgensen TJD, Rand KD. Conformational analysis of large and highly disulfide-stabilized proteins by integrating online electrochemical reduction into an optimized H/D exchange mass spectrometry workflow. Anal Chem 2015; 87:8880-8. [PMID: 26249042 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b01996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Analysis of disulfide-bonded proteins by hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) requires effective and rapid reduction of disulfide bonds before enzymatic digestion in order to increase sequence coverage. In a conventional HDX-MS workflow, disulfide bonds are reduced chemically by addition of a reducing agent to the quench solution (e.g., tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP)). The chemical reduction, however, is severely limited under quenched conditions due to a narrow time window as well as low pH and temperature. Here, we demonstrate the real-world applicability of integrating electrochemical reduction into an online HDX-MS workflow. We have optimized the electrochemical reduction efficiency during HDX-MS analysis of two particularly challenging disulfide stabilized proteins: a therapeutic IgG1-antibody and nerve growth factor-β (NGF). Several different parameters (flow rate and applied square wave potential, as well as the type of labeling and quench buffer) were investigated, and the optimized workflow increased the sequence coverage of NGF from 46% with chemical reduction to 99%, when electrochemical reduction was applied. Additionally, the optimized workflow also enabled a similar high sequence coverage of 96% and 87% for the heavy and light chain of the IgG1-antibody, respectively. The presented results demonstrate the successful electrochemical reduction during HDX-MS analysis of both a small exceptional tightly disulfide-bonded protein (NGF) as well as the largest protein attempted to date (IgG1-antibody). We envision that online electrochemical reduction is poised to decrease the complexity of sample handling and increase the versatility of the HDX-MS technique.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esben Trabjerg
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Copenhagen , Universitetsparken 2, Copenhagen E, DK-2100, Denmark.,Department of Biologics, H. Lundbeck A/S , Ottiliavej 9, Valby, DK-2500, Denmark
| | - Rasmus U Jakobsen
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Copenhagen , Universitetsparken 2, Copenhagen E, DK-2100, Denmark
| | - Simon Mysling
- Finsen Laboratory, Rigshospitalet and Biotech Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC), Copenhagen Biocenter , Ole Maaløes vej 5, Copenhagen N, DK-2200, Denmark
| | - Søren Christensen
- Department of Biologics, H. Lundbeck A/S , Ottiliavej 9, Valby, DK-2500, Denmark
| | - Thomas J D Jørgensen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark , Campuvej 55, Odense, DK-5230, Denmark
| | - Kasper D Rand
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Copenhagen , Universitetsparken 2, Copenhagen E, DK-2100, Denmark
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