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Schloßhauer JL, Tholen L, Körner A, Kubick S, Chatzopoulou S, Hönow A, Zemella A. Promoting the production of challenging proteins via induced expression in CHO cells and modified cell-free lysates harboring T7 RNA polymerase and mutant eIF2α. Synth Syst Biotechnol 2024; 9:416-424. [PMID: 38601208 PMCID: PMC11004649 DOI: 10.1016/j.synbio.2024.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Revised: 02/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/16/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are crucial in biopharmaceutical production due to their scalability and capacity for human-like post-translational modifications. However, toxic proteins and membrane proteins are often difficult-to-express in living cells. Alternatively, cell-free protein synthesis can be employed. This study explores innovative strategies for enhancing the production of challenging proteins through the modification of CHO cells by investigating both, cell-based and cell-free approaches. A major result in our study involves the integration of a mutant eIF2 translation initiation factor and T7 RNA polymerase into CHO cell lysates for cell-free protein synthesis. This resulted in elevated yields, while eliminating the necessity for exogenous additions during cell-free production, thereby substantially enhancing efficiency. Additionally, we explore the potential of the Rosa26 genomic site for the integration of T7 RNA polymerase and cell-based tetracycline-controlled protein expression. These findings provide promising advancements in bioproduction technologies, offering flexibility to switch between cell-free and cell-based protein production as needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey L. Schloßhauer
- Fraunhofer Project Group PZ-Syn of the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Laboratory of Protein Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Thielallee 63, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lena Tholen
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Alexander Körner
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute of Biotechnology, Technische Universität Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 135, 10623, Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan Kubick
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Joint Faculty of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus –Senftenberg, The Brandenburg Medical School Theodor Fontane, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Laboratory of Protein Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Thielallee 63, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sofia Chatzopoulou
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Anja Hönow
- New/era/mabs GmbH, August-Bebel-Str. 89, 14482, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Anne Zemella
- Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology-IZI, Branch Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses-IZI-BB, Am Mühlenberg, Potsdam, Germany
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2
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Reyes SJ, Lemire L, Molina RS, Roy M, L'Ecuyer-Coelho H, Martynova Y, Cass B, Voyer R, Durocher Y, Henry O, Pham PL. Multivariate data analysis of process parameters affecting the growth and productivity of stable Chinese hamster ovary cell pools expressing SARS-CoV-2 spike protein as vaccine antigen in early process development. Biotechnol Prog 2024:e3467. [PMID: 38660973 DOI: 10.1002/btpr.3467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/28/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
The recent COVID-19 pandemic revealed an urgent need to develop robust cell culture platforms which can react rapidly to respond to this kind of global health issue. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) stable pools can be a vital alternative to quickly provide gram amounts of recombinant proteins required for early-phase clinical assays. In this study, we analyze early process development data of recombinant trimeric spike protein Cumate-inducible manufacturing platform utilizing CHO stable pool as a preferred production host across three different stirred-tank bioreactor scales (0.75, 1, and 10 L). The impact of cell passage number as an indicator of cell age, methionine sulfoximine (MSX) concentration as a selection pressure, and cell seeding density was investigated using stable pools expressing three variants of concern. Multivariate data analysis with principal component analysis and batch-wise unfolding technique was applied to evaluate the effect of critical process parameters on production variability and a random forest (RF) model was developed to forecast protein production. In order to further improve process understanding, the RF model was analyzed with Shapley value dependency plots so as to determine what ranges of variables were most associated with increased protein production. Increasing longevity, controlling lactate build-up, and altering pH deadband are considered promising approaches to improve overall culture outcomes. The results also demonstrated that these pools are in general stable expressing similar level of spike proteins up to cell passage 11 (~31 cell generations). This enables to expand enough cells required to seed large volume of 200-2000 L bioreactor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian-Juan Reyes
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, Canada
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | - Lucas Lemire
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, Canada
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | | | - Marjolaine Roy
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | | | - Yuliya Martynova
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | - Robert Voyer
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
| | - Olivier Henry
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, Canada
| | - Phuong Lan Pham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Canada
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3
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Majumdar S, Desai R, Hans A, Dandekar P, Jain R. From Efficiency to Yield: Exploring Recent Advances in CHO Cell Line Development for Monoclonal Antibodies. Mol Biotechnol 2024:10.1007/s12033-024-01060-6. [PMID: 38363529 DOI: 10.1007/s12033-024-01060-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 12/29/2023] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
The increasing demand for biosimilar monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) has prompted the development of stable high-producing cell lines while simultaneously decreasing the time required for screening. Existing platforms have proven inefficient, resulting in inconsistencies in yields, growth characteristics, and quality features in the final mAb products. Selecting a suitable expression host, designing an effective gene expression system, developing a streamlined cell line generation approach, optimizing culture conditions, and defining scaling-up and purification strategies are all critical steps in the production of recombinant proteins, particularly monoclonal antibodies, in mammalian cells. As a result, an active area of study is dedicated to expression and optimizing recombinant protein production. This review explores recent breakthroughs and approaches targeted at accelerating cell line development to attain efficiency and consistency in the synthesis of therapeutic proteins, specifically monoclonal antibodies. The primary goal is to bridge the gap between rising demand and consistent, high-quality mAb production, thereby benefiting the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarmishta Majumdar
- Department of Biological Science and Biotechnology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, 400019, India
| | - Ranjeet Desai
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, 400019, India
| | - Aakarsh Hans
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, 400019, India
| | - Prajakta Dandekar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, 400019, India.
| | - Ratnesh Jain
- Department of Biological Science and Biotechnology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, 400019, India.
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4
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Pavan MF, Bok M, Betanzos San Juan R, Malito JP, Marcoppido GA, Franco DR, Militelo DA, Schammas JM, Bari SE, Stone W, López K, Porier DL, Muller JA, Auguste AJ, Yuan L, Wigdorovitz A, Parreño VG, Ibañez LI. SARS-CoV-2 Specific Nanobodies Neutralize Different Variants of Concern and Reduce Virus Load in the Brain of h-ACE2 Transgenic Mice. Viruses 2024; 16:185. [PMID: 38399961 PMCID: PMC10892724 DOI: 10.3390/v16020185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant need to develop antivirals and vaccines to combat the disease. In this work, we developed llama-derived nanobodies (Nbs) directed against the receptor binding domain (RBD) and other domains of the Spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2. Most of the Nbs with neutralizing properties were directed to RBD and were able to block S-2P/ACE2 interaction. Three neutralizing Nbs recognized the N-terminal domain (NTD) of the S-2P protein. Intranasal administration of Nbs induced protection ranging from 40% to 80% after challenge with the WA1/2020 strain in k18-hACE2 transgenic mice. Interestingly, protection was associated with a significant reduction in virus replication in nasal turbinates and a reduction in virus load in the brain. Employing pseudovirus neutralization assays, we identified Nbs with neutralizing capacity against the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants, including a Nb capable of neutralizing all variants tested. Furthermore, cocktails of different Nbs performed better than individual Nbs at neutralizing two Omicron variants (B.1.529 and BA.2). Altogether, the data suggest the potential of SARS-CoV-2 specific Nbs for intranasal treatment of COVID-19 encephalitis.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Florencia Pavan
- Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires ZC 1428, Argentina; (M.F.P.); (D.A.M.); (S.E.B.)
| | - Marina Bok
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (M.B.); (J.P.M.); (A.W.)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina;
| | - Rafael Betanzos San Juan
- Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (IQUIBICEN), Departamento de Química Biológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires ZC 1428, Argentina;
| | - Juan Pablo Malito
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (M.B.); (J.P.M.); (A.W.)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina;
| | - Gisela Ariana Marcoppido
- Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas (CICVyA), Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (G.A.M.); (D.R.F.)
| | - Diego Rafael Franco
- Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas (CICVyA), Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (G.A.M.); (D.R.F.)
| | - Daniela Ayelen Militelo
- Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires ZC 1428, Argentina; (M.F.P.); (D.A.M.); (S.E.B.)
| | - Juan Manuel Schammas
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina;
| | - Sara Elizabeth Bari
- Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires ZC 1428, Argentina; (M.F.P.); (D.A.M.); (S.E.B.)
| | - William Stone
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; (W.S.); (K.L.); (D.L.P.); (J.A.M.); (A.J.A.)
| | - Krisangel López
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; (W.S.); (K.L.); (D.L.P.); (J.A.M.); (A.J.A.)
| | - Danielle LaBrie Porier
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; (W.S.); (K.L.); (D.L.P.); (J.A.M.); (A.J.A.)
| | - John Anthony Muller
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; (W.S.); (K.L.); (D.L.P.); (J.A.M.); (A.J.A.)
| | - Albert Jonathan Auguste
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA; (W.S.); (K.L.); (D.L.P.); (J.A.M.); (A.J.A.)
- Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA;
| | - Lijuan Yuan
- Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-Borne Pathogens, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA;
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Andrés Wigdorovitz
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (M.B.); (J.P.M.); (A.W.)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina;
| | - Viviana Gladys Parreño
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina; (M.B.); (J.P.M.); (A.W.)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET), Hurlingham, Buenos Aires ZC 1686, Argentina;
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
| | - Lorena Itat Ibañez
- Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires ZC 1428, Argentina; (M.F.P.); (D.A.M.); (S.E.B.)
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5
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Forest-Nault C, Koyuturk I, Gaudreault J, Pelletier A, L'Abbé D, Cass B, Bisson L, Burlacu A, Delafosse L, Stuible M, Henry O, De Crescenzo G, Durocher Y. A Biosensor Assay Based on Coiled-Coil-Mediated Human ACE2 Receptor Capture for the Analysis of Its Interactions with the SARS-CoV-2 Receptor Binding Domain. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2762:89-105. [PMID: 38315361 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3666-4_6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based biosensing enables the characterization of protein-protein interactions. Several SPR-based approaches have been designed to evaluate the binding mechanism between the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein leading to a large range of kinetic and thermodynamic constants. This chapter describes a robust SPR assay based on the K5/E5 coiled-coil capture strategy that reduces artifacts. In this method, ACE2 receptors were produced with an E5-tag and immobilized as ligands in the SPR assay. This chapter details methods for high-yield production and purification of the studied proteins, functionalization of the sensor chip, conduction of the SPR assay, and data analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Izel Koyuturk
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Jimmy Gaudreault
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Alex Pelletier
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Denis L'Abbé
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Louis Bisson
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Alina Burlacu
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Laurence Delafosse
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Olivier Henry
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Gregory De Crescenzo
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, Montreal, QC, Canada.
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
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6
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Stuible M, Schrag JD, Sheff J, Zoubchenok D, Lord-Dufour S, Cass B, L'Abbé D, Pelletier A, Rossotti MA, Tanha J, Gervais C, Maurice R, El Bakkouri M, Acchione M, Durocher Y. Influence of variant-specific mutations, temperature and pH on conformations of a large set of SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer vaccine antigen candidates. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16498. [PMID: 37779126 PMCID: PMC10543594 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43661-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 subunit vaccines continue to be the focus of intense clinical development worldwide. Protein antigens in these vaccines most commonly consist of the spike ectodomain fused to a heterologous trimerization sequence, designed to mimic the compact, prefusion conformation of the spike on the virus surface. Since 2020, we have produced dozens of such constructs in CHO cells, consisting of spike variants with different mutations fused to different trimerization sequences. This set of constructs displayed notable conformational heterogeneity, with two distinct trimer species consistently detected by analytical size exclusion chromatography. A recent report showed that spike ectodomain fusion constructs can adopt an alternative trimer conformation consisting of loosely associated ectodomain protomers. Here, we applied multiple biophysical and immunological techniques to demonstrate that this alternative conformation is formed to a significant extent by several SARS-CoV-2 variant spike proteins. We have also examined the influence of temperature and pH, which can induce inter-conversion of the two forms. The substantial structural differences between these trimer types may impact their performance as vaccine antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Joseph D Schrag
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Joey Sheff
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Simon Lord-Dufour
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Denis L'Abbé
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Alex Pelletier
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Martin A Rossotti
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Jamshid Tanha
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Christian Gervais
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Roger Maurice
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Majida El Bakkouri
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Mauro Acchione
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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7
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Maltais JS, Lord-Dufour S, Morasse A, Stuible M, Loignon M, Durocher Y. Repressing expression of difficult-to-express recombinant proteins during the selection process increases productivity of CHO stable pools. Biotechnol Bioeng 2023; 120:2840-2852. [PMID: 37232536 DOI: 10.1002/bit.28435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
More than half of licensed therapeutic recombinant proteins (r-proteins) are manufactured using constitutively-expressing, stably-transfected Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) clones. While constitutive CHO expression systems have proven their efficacy for the manufacturing of monoclonal antibodies, many next-generation therapeutics such as cytokines and bispecific antibodies as well as biological targets such as ectodomains of transmembrane receptors remain intrinsically challenging to produce. Herein, we exploited a cumate-inducible CHO platform allowing reduced expression of various classes of r-proteins during selection of stable pools. Following stable pool generation, fed-batch productions showed that pools generated without cumate (OFF-pools) were significantly more productive than pools selected in the presence of cumate (ON-pools) for 8 out of the 10 r-proteins tested, including cytokines, G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), the HVEM membrane receptor ectodomain, the multifunctional protein High Mobility Group protein B1 (HMGB1), as well as monoclonal and bispecific T-cell engager antibodies. We showed that OFF-pools contain a significantly larger proportion of cells producing high levels of r-proteins and that these cells tend to proliferate faster when expression is turned off, suggesting that r-protein overexpression imposes a metabolic burden on the cells. Cell viability was lower and pool recovery was delayed during selection of ON-pools (mimicking constitutive expression), suggesting that high producers were likely lost or overgrown by faster-growing, low-producing cells. We also observed a correlation between the expression levels of the GPCRs with Binding immunoglobulin Protein, an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress marker. Taken together, these data suggest that using an inducible system to minimize r-protein expression during stable CHO pool selection reduces cellular stresses, including ER stress and metabolic burden, leading to pools with greater frequency of high-expressing cells, resulting in improved volumetric productivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Sébastien Maltais
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Simon Lord-Dufour
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Audrey Morasse
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Matthew Stuible
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Martin Loignon
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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8
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Sauvageau J, Koyuturk I, St Michael F, Brochu D, Goneau MF, Schoenhofen I, Perret S, Star A, Robotham A, Haqqani A, Kelly J, Gilbert M, Durocher Y. Simplifying glycan monitoring of complex antigens such as the SARS-CoV-2 spike to accelerate vaccine development. Commun Chem 2023; 6:189. [PMID: 37684364 PMCID: PMC10491790 DOI: 10.1038/s42004-023-00988-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Glycosylation is a key quality attribute that must be closely monitored for protein therapeutics. Established assays such as HILIC-Fld of released glycans and LC-MS of glycopeptides work well for glycoproteins with a few glycosylation sites but are less amenable for those with multiple glycosylation sites, resulting in complex datasets that are time consuming to generate and difficult to analyze. As part of efforts to improve preparedness for future pandemics, researchers are currently assessing where time can be saved in the vaccine development and production process. In this context, we evaluated if neutral and acidic monosaccharides analysis via HPAEC-PAD could be used as a rapid and robust alternative to LC-MS and HILIC-Fld for monitoring glycosylation between protein production batches. Using glycoengineered spike proteins we show that the HPAEC-PAD monosaccharide assays could quickly and reproducibly detect both major and minor glycosylation differences between batches. Moreover, the monosaccharide results aligned well with those obtained by HILIC-Fld and LC-MS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janelle Sauvageau
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada.
| | - Izel Koyuturk
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, H3C 3J7, Canada
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 6100 Avenue Royalmount, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Frank St Michael
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Denis Brochu
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Marie-France Goneau
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Ian Schoenhofen
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Sylvie Perret
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 6100 Avenue Royalmount, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Alexandra Star
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Anna Robotham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Arsalan Haqqani
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - John Kelly
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Michel Gilbert
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 100 Sussex Dr., Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, H3C 3J7, Canada
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada, 6100 Avenue Royalmount, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
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9
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Alpuche-Lazcano SP, Stuible M, Akache B, Tran A, Kelly J, Hrapovic S, Robotham A, Haqqani A, Star A, Renner TM, Blouin J, Maltais JS, Cass B, Cui K, Cho JY, Wang X, Zoubchenok D, Dudani R, Duque D, McCluskie MJ, Durocher Y. Preclinical evaluation of manufacturable SARS-CoV-2 spike virus-like particles produced in Chinese Hamster Ovary cells. COMMUNICATIONS MEDICINE 2023; 3:116. [PMID: 37612423 PMCID: PMC10447459 DOI: 10.1038/s43856-023-00340-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, novel vaccines need to be developed that are readily manufacturable and provide clinical efficacy against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. Virus-like particles (VLPs) presenting the spike antigen at their surface offer remarkable benefits over other vaccine antigen formats; however, current SARS-CoV-2 VLP vaccines candidates in clinical development suffer from challenges including low volumetric productivity, poor spike antigen density, expression platform-driven divergent protein glycosylation and complex upstream/downstream processing requirements. Despite their extensive use for therapeutic protein manufacturing and proven ability to produce enveloped VLPs, Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells are rarely used for the commercial production of VLP-based vaccines. METHODS Using CHO cells, we aimed to produce VLPs displaying the full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike. Affinity chromatography was used to capture VLPs released in the culture medium from engineered CHO cells expressing spike. The structure, protein content, and glycosylation of spikes in VLPs were characterized by several biochemical and biophysical methods. In vivo, the generation of neutralizing antibodies and protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection was tested in mouse and hamster models. RESULTS We demonstrate that spike overexpression in CHO cells is sufficient by itself to generate high VLP titers. These VLPs are evocative of the native virus but with at least three-fold higher spike density. In vivo, purified VLPs elicit strong humoral and cellular immunity at nanogram dose levels which grant protection against SARS-CoV-2 infection. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that CHO cells are amenable to efficient manufacturing of high titers of a potently immunogenic spike protein-based VLP vaccine antigen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio P Alpuche-Lazcano
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Bassel Akache
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Anh Tran
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - John Kelly
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Sabahudin Hrapovic
- Aquatic and Crop Resources Development Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Anna Robotham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Arsalan Haqqani
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Alexandra Star
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Tyler M Renner
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Julie Blouin
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Jean-Sébastien Maltais
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Brian Cass
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Kai Cui
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Jae-Young Cho
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Xinyu Wang
- Nanotechnology Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 11421 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2M9, Canada
| | - Daria Zoubchenok
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Renu Dudani
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Diana Duque
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Michael J McCluskie
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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10
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Broussau S, Lytvyn V, Simoneau M, Guilbault C, Leclerc M, Nazemi-Moghaddam N, Coulombe N, Elahi SM, McComb S, Gilbert R. Packaging cells for lentiviral vectors generated using the cumate and coumermycin gene induction systems and nanowell single-cell cloning. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2023; 29:40-57. [PMID: 36936448 PMCID: PMC10018046 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2023.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/27/2023]
Abstract
Lentiviral vectors (LVs) are important for cell therapy because of their capacity to stably modify the genome after integration. This study describes a novel and relatively simple approach to generate packaging cells and producer clones for self-inactivating (SIN) LVs pseudotyped with the vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSV-G). A novel gene regulation system, based on the combination of the cumate and coumermycin induction systems, was developed to ensure tight control for the expression of cytotoxic packaging elements. To accelerate clone isolation and ensure monoclonality, the packaging genes were transfected simultaneously into human embryonic kidney cells (293SF-3F6) previously engineered with the induction system, and clones were isolated after limiting dilution into nanowell arrays using a robotic cell picking instrument with scanning capability. The method's effectiveness to isolate colonies derived from single cells was demonstrated using mixed populations of cells labeled with two different fluorescent markers. Because the recipient cell line grew in suspension culture, and all the procedures were performed without serum, the resulting clones were readily adaptable to serum-free suspension culture. The best producer clone produced LVs expressing GFP at a titer of 2.3 × 108 transduction units (TU)/mL in the culture medium under batch mode without concentration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Broussau
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Viktoria Lytvyn
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Mélanie Simoneau
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Claire Guilbault
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Mélanie Leclerc
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Nazila Nazemi-Moghaddam
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Nathalie Coulombe
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Seyyed Mehdy Elahi
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Scott McComb
- Department of Immunology, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council, Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Rénald Gilbert
- Department of Production Platforms & Analytics, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada
- Department of Bioengineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0E9, Canada
- Département de Génie chimique, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
- Corresponding author: Rénald Gilbert, National Research Council Canada, Building Montreal, 6100 Avenue Royalmount, Montreal, QC H4P 2R2, Canada.
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11
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Joubert S, Stuible M, Lord-Dufour S, Lamoureux L, Vaillancourt F, Perret S, Ouimet M, Pelletier A, Bisson L, Mahimkar R, Pham PL, L Ecuyer-Coelho H, Roy M, Voyer R, Baardsnes J, Sauvageau J, St-Michael F, Robotham A, Kelly J, Acel A, Schrag JD, El Bakkouri M, Durocher Y. A CHO stable pool production platform for rapid clinical development of trimeric SARS-CoV-2 spike subunit vaccine antigens. Biotechnol Bioeng 2023. [PMID: 36987713 DOI: 10.1002/bit.28387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023]
Abstract
Protein expression from stably transfected Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) clones is an established but time-consuming method for manufacturing therapeutic recombinant proteins. The use of faster, alternative approaches, such as non-clonal stable pools, has been restricted due to lower productivity and longstanding regulatory guidelines. Recently, the performance of stable pools has improved dramatically, making them a viable option for quickly producing drug substance for GLP-toxicology and early-phase clinical trials in scenarios such as pandemics that demand rapid production timelines. Compared to stable CHO clones which can take several months to generate and characterize, stable pool development can be completed in only a few weeks. Here, we compared the productivity and product quality of trimeric SARS-CoV-2 spike protein ectodomains produced from stable CHO pools or clones. Using a set of biophysical and biochemical assays we show that product quality is very similar and that CHO pools demonstrate sufficient productivity to generate vaccine candidates for early clinical trials. Based on these data, we propose that regulatory guidelines should be updated to permit production of early clinical trial material from CHO pools to enable more rapid and cost-effective clinical evaluation of potentially life-saving vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Joubert
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Simon Lord-Dufour
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Linda Lamoureux
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - François Vaillancourt
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Sylvie Perret
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Manon Ouimet
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Alex Pelletier
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Louis Bisson
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Rohan Mahimkar
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Phuong Lan Pham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Helene L Ecuyer-Coelho
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Marjolaine Roy
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Robert Voyer
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Jason Baardsnes
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Janelle Sauvageau
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Frank St-Michael
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anna Robotham
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - John Kelly
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Andrea Acel
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Joseph D Schrag
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Majida El Bakkouri
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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12
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Pavan MF, Bok M, Juan RBS, Malito JP, Marcoppido GA, Franco DR, Militello DA, Schammas JM, Bari S, Stone WB, López K, Porier DL, Muller J, Auguste AJ, Yuan L, Wigdorovitz A, Parreño V, Ibañez LI. Nanobodies against SARS-CoV-2 reduced virus load in the brain of challenged mice and neutralized Wuhan, Delta and Omicron Variants. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.14.532528. [PMID: 36993215 PMCID: PMC10054972 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.14.532528] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
In this work, we developed llama-derived nanobodies (Nbs) directed to the receptor binding domain (RBD) and other domains of the Spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2. Nanobodies were selected after the biopanning of two VHH-libraries, one of which was generated after the immunization of a llama (lama glama) with the bovine coronavirus (BCoV) Mebus, and another with the full-length pre-fused locked S protein (S-2P) and the RBD from the SARS-CoV-2 Wuhan strain (WT). Most of the neutralizing Nbs selected with either RBD or S-2P from SARS-CoV-2 were directed to RBD and were able to block S-2P/ACE2 interaction. Three Nbs recognized the N-terminal domain (NTD) of the S-2P protein as measured by competition with biliverdin, while some non-neutralizing Nbs recognize epitopes in the S2 domain. One Nb from the BCoV immune library was directed to RBD but was non-neutralizing. Intranasal administration of Nbs induced protection ranging from 40% to 80% against COVID-19 death in k18-hACE2 mice challenged with the WT strain. Interestingly, protection was not only associated with a significant reduction of virus replication in nasal turbinates and lungs, but also with a reduction of virus load in the brain. Employing pseudovirus neutralization assays, we were able to identify Nbs with neutralizing capacity against the Alpha, Beta, Delta and Omicron variants. Furthermore, cocktails of different Nbs performed better than individual Nbs to neutralize two Omicron variants (B.1.529 and BA.2). Altogether, the data suggest these Nbs can potentially be used as a cocktail for intranasal treatment to prevent or treat COVID-19 encephalitis, or modified for prophylactic administration to fight this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Florencia Pavan
- CONICET Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE)
| | - Marina Bok
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET)
| | - Rafael Betanzos San Juan
- Departamento de Química Biológica, Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (IQUIBICEN) CONICET, Ciudad Universitaria, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Juan Pablo Malito
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET)
| | - Gisela Ariana Marcoppido
- Instituto de Investigación Patobiología, Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas (CICVyA), Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
| | - Diego Rafael Franco
- Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Veterinarias y Agronómicas (CICVyA), Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
| | - Daniela Ayelen Militello
- CONICET Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE)
| | - Juan Manuel Schammas
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET)
| | - Sara Bari
- CONICET Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE)
| | - William B Stone
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Krisangel López
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Danielle L Porier
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - John Muller
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Albert J Auguste
- Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Fralin Life Science Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
- Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-borne Pathogens, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Lijuan Yuan
- Center for Emerging, Zoonotic, and Arthropod-borne Pathogens, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Andrés Wigdorovitz
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET)
| | - Viviana Parreño
- Incuinta, Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)
- Instituto de Virología e Innovaciones Tecnológicas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (IVIT-CONICET)
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, USA
| | - Lorena Itatí Ibañez
- CONICET Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Química Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE)
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13
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Chen X, Liu Z, Lou C, Guan Y, Ouyang Q, Xiang Y. Improving cooperativity of transcription activators by oligomerization domains in mammalian cells. Synth Syst Biotechnol 2023; 8:114-120. [PMID: 36605704 PMCID: PMC9804245 DOI: 10.1016/j.synbio.2022.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Cooperative activation is critical for the applications of synthetic biology in mammalian cells. In this study, we have developed cooperative transcription factor by fusing oligomerization domain in mammalian cells. Firstly, we demonstrated that two oligomerized domains (CI434 and CI) successfully improved transcription factor cooperativity in bacterial cells but failed to increase cooperativity in mammalian cells, possibly because the additional mammalian activation domain disrupted their oligomerization capability. Therefore, we chose a different type of oligomerized domain (CarHC), whose ability to oligomerize is not dependent on its C-terminal domains, to fuse with a transcription factor (RpaR) and activation domain (VTR3), forming a potential cooperative transcription activator RpaR-CarH-VTR3 for mammalian regulatory systems. Compared with RpaR-VTR3, the cooperativity of RpaR-CarH-VTR3 was significantly improved with higher Hill coefficient and a narrower input range in the inducible switch system in mammalian cells. Moreover, a mathematical model based on statistical mechanics model was developed and the simulation results supported the hypothesis that the tetramer of the CarH domain in mammalian cells was the reason for the cooperative capacity of RpaR-CarH-VTR3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinmao Chen
- School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Ziming Liu
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Chunbo Lou
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Ying Guan
- School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100871, China
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Qi Ouyang
- School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Yanhui Xiang
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
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14
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Zhang Y, Na D, Zhang W, Liu X, Miao S, Tan WS, Zhao L. Development of stable HEK293T cell pools expressing CSFV E2 protein: A potential antigen expression platform. Vaccine 2023; 41:1573-1583. [PMID: 36725430 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2023.01.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Large quantities of antigens are required since protective antigens, such as classical swine fever virus (CSFV) E2 protein, are widely used in diagnostic reagents and subunit vaccines. Compared to clonal cell lines and transient gene expression, stable cell pools provide a potential alternative platform to rapidly produce large amounts of antigens. In this work, firstly, Human embryonic kidney 293 T (HEK293T) cell pools expressing E2 protein were developed by transduction of lentiviral vectors. On the one hand, the SP7 was selected from 7 well-performing signal peptides to remarkably increase the production of E2 protein. On the other hand, it was found that high MOI could improve the expression of E2 protein by increasing gene copy numbers. Moreover, the HEK293T cell pools were evaluated for stability by passages and batch cultures, demonstrating that the cell pools were stable for at least 90 days. And then, the performance of the cell pools in batch, fed-batch, and semi-perfusion was studied. Among them, the titer of E2 protein was up to 2 g/L in semi-perfusion, which is currently the highest to the authors' knowledge. Finally, the aggregations and immunogenicity of the E2 protein were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and immunization of mice, respectively. There was no significant difference in aggregations and antibody titers of E2 protein in three culture methods. These results suggest that stable HEK293T cell pools are a promising and robust platform for rapid and efficient production of recombinant proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanmin Zhang
- The State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Daoyuan Na
- The State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Weijian Zhang
- The State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Xuping Liu
- Shanghai Bioengine Sci-Tech Co Ltd, Shanghai 201203, China
| | - Shiwei Miao
- Hangzhou Sumgen Biotech Co Ltd, Zhejiang 310056, China
| | - Wen-Song Tan
- The State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Liang Zhao
- The State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China.
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15
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Arsenal of nanobodies shows broad-spectrum neutralization against SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern in vitro and in vivo in hamster models. Commun Biol 2022; 5:933. [PMID: 36085335 PMCID: PMC9461429 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03866-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Nanobodies offer several potential advantages over mAbs for the control of SARS-CoV-2. Their ability to access cryptic epitopes conserved across SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VoCs) and feasibility to engineer modular, multimeric designs, make these antibody fragments ideal candidates for developing broad-spectrum therapeutics against current and continually emerging SARS-CoV-2 VoCs. Here we describe a diverse collection of 37 anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein nanobodies extensively characterized as both monovalent and IgG Fc-fused bivalent modalities. The nanobodies were collectively shown to have high intrinsic affinity; high thermal, thermodynamic and aerosolization stability; broad subunit/domain specificity and cross-reactivity across existing VoCs; wide-ranging epitopic and mechanistic diversity and high and broad in vitro neutralization potencies. A select set of Fc-fused nanobodies showed high neutralization efficacies in hamster models of SARS-CoV-2 infection, reducing viral burden by up to six orders of magnitude to below detectable levels. In vivo protection was demonstrated with anti-RBD and previously unreported anti-NTD and anti-S2 nanobodies. This collection of nanobodies provides a potential therapeutic toolbox from which various cocktails or multi-paratopic formats could be built to combat multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants. Isolation and extensive characterization of a collection of 37 anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein nanobodies show broad neutralization efficacies in vitro and in vivo in a hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Collins E, Galipeau Y, Arnold C, Bosveld C, Heiskanen A, Keeshan A, Nakka K, Shir-Mohammadi K, St-Denis-Bissonnette F, Tamblyn L, Vranjkovic A, Wood LC, Booth R, Buchan CA, Crawley AM, Little J, McGuinty M, Saginur R, Langlois MA, Cooper CL. Cohort profile: Stop the Spread Ottawa (SSO) -a community-based prospective cohort study on antibody responses, antibody neutralisation efficiency and cellular immunity to SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination. BMJ Open 2022; 12:e062187. [PMID: 36691221 PMCID: PMC9461086 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-062187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE To investigate the robustness and longevity of SARS-CoV-2 immune responses conferred by natural infection and vaccination among priority populations such as immunocompromised individuals and people with post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 in a prospective cohort study (Stop the Spread Ottawa-SSO) in adults living in the Ottawa region. In this paper, we describe the study design, ongoing data collection and baseline characteristics of participants. PARTICIPANTS Since October 2020, participants who tested positive for COVID-19 (convalescents) or at high risk of exposure to the virus (under surveillance) have provided monthly blood and saliva samples over a 10-month period. As of 2 November 2021, 1026 adults had completed the baseline survey and 976 had attended baseline bloodwork. 300 participants will continue to provide bimonthly blood samples for 24 additional months (ie, total follow-up of 34 months). FINDINGS TO DATE The median age of the baseline sample was 44 (IQR 23, range: 18-79) and just over two-thirds (n=688; 67.1%) were female. 255 participants (24.9%) had a history of COVID-19 infection confirmed by PCR and/or serology. Over 600 participants (60.0%) work in high-risk occupations (eg, healthcare, teaching and transportation). 108 participants (10.5%) reported immunocompromising conditions or treatments at baseline (eg, cancer, HIV, other immune deficiency, and/or use of immunosuppressants). FUTURE PLANS SSO continues to yield rich research potential, given the collection of pre-vaccine baseline data and samples from the majority of participants, recruitment of diverse subgroups of interest, and a high level of participant retention and compliance with monthly sampling. The 24-month study extension will maximise opportunities to track SARS-CoV-2 immunity and vaccine efficacy, detect and characterise emerging variants, and compare subgroup humoral and cellular response robustness and persistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin Collins
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Clinical Epidemiology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Yannick Galipeau
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Corey Arnold
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Cameron Bosveld
- Chronic Disease Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Aliisa Heiskanen
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Clinical Epidemiology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Alexa Keeshan
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Clinical Epidemiology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Kiran Nakka
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Sprott Center for Stem Cell Research, Regenerative Medicine Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Khatereh Shir-Mohammadi
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Laura Tamblyn
- Chronic Disease Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Agatha Vranjkovic
- Chronic Disease Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Leah C Wood
- Chronic Disease Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Ronald Booth
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Immunology Section, Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association (EORLA), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - C Arianne Buchan
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Angela M Crawley
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Chronic Disease Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network (CoVaRR-Net), Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Julian Little
- School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Clinical Epidemiology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network (CoVaRR-Net), Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- The Knowledge Synthesis and Application Unit (KSAU), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Michaeline McGuinty
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Raphael Saginur
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Ottawa Health Science Network Research Ethics Board (OHSN-REB), Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Marc-André Langlois
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network (CoVaRR-Net), Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Curtis L Cooper
- Clinical Epidemiology, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Coronavirus Variants Rapid Response Network (CoVaRR-Net), Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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Guan Y, Chen X, Shao B, Ji X, Xiang Y, Jiang G, Xu L, Lin Z, Ouyang Q, Lou C. Mitigating Host Burden of Genetic Circuits by Engineering Autonegatively Regulated Parts and Improving Functional Prediction. ACS Synth Biol 2022; 11:2361-2371. [PMID: 35772024 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Mitigating unintended interferences between circuits and host cells is key to realize applications of synthetic regulatory systems both for bacteria and mammalian cells. Here, we demonstrated that growth burden and circuit dysregulation occurred in a concentration-dependent manner for specific transcription factors (CymR*/CymR) in E.coli, and direct negative feedback modules were able to control the concentration of CymR*/CymR, mitigate growth burden, and restore circuit functions. A quantitative design scheme was developed for circuits embedded with autorepression modules. Four key parameters were theoretically identified to determine the performance of autoregulated switches and were experimentally modified by fine-tuning promoter architectures and cooperativity. Using this strategy, we synthesized a number of switches and demonstrated its improvement of product titers and host growth controlling the complex deoxyviolacein biosynthesis pathway. Furthermore, we restored functions of a dysregulated multilayer NOR gate by integrating autorepression modules. Our work provides a blueprint for engineering host-adaptable synthetic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Guan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100871, China.,Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xinmao Chen
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Bin Shao
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xiangyu Ji
- CAS Key Laboratory of Microbial Physiological and Metabolic Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.,College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100149, China
| | - Yanhui Xiang
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Guoqiang Jiang
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Lina Xu
- National Protein Science Facility, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Zhanglin Lin
- School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
| | - Qi Ouyang
- Center for Quantitative Biology, Peking-Tsinghua Joint Center for Life Sciences, School of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Chunbo Lou
- Center for Cell and Gene Circuit Design, CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China.,College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing 100149, China
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18
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Shupe J, Zhang A, Odenwelder DC, Dobrowsky T. Gene therapy: challenges in cell culture scale-up. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2022; 75:102721. [DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2022.102721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Revised: 02/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Koyuturk I, Kedia S, Robotham A, Star A, Brochu D, Sauvageau J, Kelly J, Gilbert M, Durocher Y. High-level production of wild-type and oxidation-resistant recombinant alpha-1-antitrypsin in glycoengineered CHO cells. Biotechnol Bioeng 2022; 119:2331-2344. [PMID: 35508753 DOI: 10.1002/bit.28129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Revised: 04/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) is a serine protease inhibitor which blocks the activity of serum proteases including neutrophil elastase to protect the lungs. Its deficiency is known to increase the risk of pulmonary emphysema as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Currently, the only treatment for patients with A1AT deficiency is weekly injection of plasma-purified A1AT. There is still today no commercial source of therapeutic recombinant A1AT, likely due to significant differences in expression host-specific glycosylation profile and/or high costs associated with the huge therapeutic dose needed. Accordingly, we aimed to produce high levels of recombinant wild-type A1AT, as well as a mutated protein (mutein) version for increased oxidation resistance, with N-glycans analogous to human plasma-derived A1AT. To achieve this, we disrupted two endogenous glycosyltransferase genes controlling core α-1,6-fucosylation (Fut8) and α-2,3-sialylation (ST3Gal4) in CHO cells using CRISPR/Cas9 technology, followed by overexpression of human α-2,6-sialyltransferase (ST6Gal1) using a cumate-inducible expression system. Volumetric A1AT productivity obtained from stable CHO pools was 2.5- to 6.5-fold higher with the cumate-inducible CR5 promoter compared to five strong constitutive promoters. Using the CR5 promoter, glycoengineered stable CHO pools were able to produce over 2.1 g/L and 2.8 g/L of wild-type and mutein forms of A1AT, respectively, with N-glycans analogous to the plasma-derived clinical product Prolastin-C. Supplementation of N-acetylmannosamine to the cell culture media during production increased the overall sialylation of A1AT as well as the proportion of bi-antennary and disialylated A2G2S2 N-glycans. These purified recombinant A1AT proteins showed in vitro inhibitory activity equivalent to Prolastin-C and substitution of methionine residues 351 and 358 with valines rendered A1AT significantly more resistant to oxidation. The recombinant A1AT mutein bearing an improved oxidation-resistance described in this study could represent a viable biobetter drug, offering a safe and more stable alternative for augmentation therapy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Izel Koyuturk
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Qc, Canada, H3C 3J7.,Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, Building Montreal-Royalmount, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Qc, Canada, H4P 2R2
| | - Surbhi Kedia
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, Qc, Canada, H9X 3V9
| | - Anna Robotham
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - Alexandra Star
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - Denis Brochu
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - Janelle Sauvageau
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - John Kelly
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - Michel Gilbert
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A OR6
| | - Yves Durocher
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Qc, Canada, H3C 3J7.,Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, Building Montreal-Royalmount, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Qc, Canada, H4P 2R2
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20
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Joubert S, Guimond J, Perret S, Malenfant F, Elahi SM, Marcil A, Parat M, Gilbert M, Lenferink A, Baardsnes J, Durocher Y. Production of afucosylated antibodies in CHO cells by co-expression of an anti-FUT8 intrabody. Biotechnol Bioeng 2022; 119:2206-2220. [PMID: 35509261 DOI: 10.1002/bit.28127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 04/17/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Some effector functions prompted by IgG antibodies, such as antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC), strongly depend on the N-glycans linked to asparagine 297 of the Fc region of the protein. A single alpha-(1,6)-fucosyltransferase (FUT8) is responsible for catalyzing the addition of an α-1,6-linked fucose residue to the first GlcNAc residue of the N-linked glycans. Antibodies missing this core fucose show a significantly enhanced ADCC and increased anti-tumor activity, which could help reduce therapeutic dose requirement, potentially translating into reduced safety concerns and manufacturing costs. Several approaches have been developed to modify glycans and improve the biological functions of antibodies. Here, we demonstrate that expression of a membrane-associated anti-FUT8 intrabody engineered to reside in the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus can efficiently reduce FUT8 activity and therefore the core-fucosylation of the Fc N-glycan of an antibody. IgG1-producing CHO cells expressing the intrabody secrete antibodies with reduced core fucosylation as demonstrated by lectin blot analysis and UPLC-HILIC glycan analysis. Cells engineered to inhibit directly and specifically alpha-(1,6)-fucosyltransferase activity allows for the production of g/L levels of IgGs with strongly enhanced ADCC effector function, for which the level of fucosylation can be selected. The quick and efficient method described here should have broad practical applicability for the development of next-generation therapeutic antibodies with enhanced effector functions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Joubert
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Julie Guimond
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Sylvie Perret
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Félix Malenfant
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Seyyed Mehdy Elahi
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Anne Marcil
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Marie Parat
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Michel Gilbert
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R6, Canada
| | - Anne Lenferink
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Jason Baardsnes
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
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21
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Manipulating cellular microRNAs and analyzing high-dimensional gene expression data using machine learning workflows. STAR Protoc 2021; 2:100910. [PMID: 34746868 PMCID: PMC8554629 DOI: 10.1016/j.xpro.2021.100910] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are elements of the gene regulatory network and manipulating their abundance is essential toward elucidating their role in patho-physiological conditions. We present a detailed workflow that identifies important miRNAs using a machine learning algorithm. We then provide optimized techniques to validate the identified miRNAs through over-expression/loss-of-function studies. Overall, these protocols apply to any field in biology where high-dimensional data are produced. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Wong et al. (2021a). LASSO and bootstrapping identify important miRNAs associated with gene of interest Generating puromycin resistant, doxycycline inducible, miRNA overexpressing cells Transient miRNA knockdown using LNA inhibitors in human primary cells Optimized reagent concentrations and cell densities for miRNA manipulation
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22
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Galipeau Y, Siragam V, Laroche G, Marion E, Greig M, McGuinty M, Booth RA, Durocher Y, Cuperlovic-Culf M, Bennett SAL, Crawley AM, Giguère PM, Cooper C, Langlois MA. Relative Ratios of Human Seasonal Coronavirus Antibodies Predict the Efficiency of Cross-Neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 Spike Binding to ACE2. EBioMedicine 2021; 74:103700. [PMID: 34861490 PMCID: PMC8629681 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2021] [Revised: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Antibodies raised against human seasonal coronaviruses (sCoVs), which are responsible for the common cold, are known to cross-react with SARS-CoV-2 antigens. This prompts questions about their protective role against SARS-CoV-2 infections and COVID-19 severity. However, the relationship between sCoVs exposure and SARS-CoV-2 correlates of protection are not clearly identified. METHODS We performed a cross-sectional analysis of cross-reactivity and cross-neutralization to SARS-CoV-2 antigens (S-RBD, S-trimer, N) using pre-pandemic sera from four different groups: pediatrics and adolescents, individuals 21 to 70 years of age, older than 70 years of age, and individuals living with HCV or HIV. Data was then further analysed using machine learning to identify predictive patterns of neutralization based on sCoVs serology. FINDINGS Antibody cross-reactivity to SARS-CoV-2 antigens varied between 1.6% and 15.3% depending on the cohort and the isotype-antigen pair analyzed. We also show a range of neutralizing activity (0-45%) with median inhibition ranging from 17.6 % to 23.3 % in serum that interferes with SARS-CoV-2 spike attachment to ACE2 independently of age group. While the abundance of sCoV antibodies did not directly correlate with neutralization, we show that neutralizing activity is rather dependent on relative ratios of IgGs in sera directed to all four sCoV spike proteins. More specifically, we identified antibodies to NL63 and OC43 as being the most important predictors of neutralization. INTERPRETATION Our data support the concept that exposure to sCoVs triggers antibody responses that influence the efficiency of SARS-CoV-2 spike binding to ACE2, which may potentially impact COVID-19 disease severity through other latent variables. FUNDING This study was supported by a grant by the CIHR (VR2 -172722) and by a grant supplement by the CITF, and by a NRC Collaborative R&D Initiative Grant (PR031-1).
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannick Galipeau
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | - Vinayakumar Siragam
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | - Geneviève Laroche
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | - Erika Marion
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | - Matthew Greig
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | | | - Ronald A Booth
- University of Ottawa & The Ottawa Hospital Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and The Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association (EORLA)
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada
| | - Miroslava Cuperlovic-Culf
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada; Digital Technologies Research Center, National Research Council Canada; Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology
| | - Steffany A L Bennett
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada; Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology; University of Ottawa Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3)
| | - Angela M Crawley
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada; The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute; University of Ottawa Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3); Department of Biology, Carleton University, Canada
| | - Patrick M Giguère
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada
| | | | - Marc-André Langlois
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology & Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada; University of Ottawa Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation (CI3).
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Wong YC, Osahor A, Al-Ajli FOM, Narayanan K. Large BACs transfect more efficiently in circular topology. Anal Biochem 2021; 630:114324. [PMID: 34363787 DOI: 10.1016/j.ab.2021.114324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2021] [Revised: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/01/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The effect of DNA topology on transfection efficiency of mammalian cells has been widely tested on plasmids smaller than 10 kb, but little is known for larger DNA vectors carrying intact genomic DNA containing introns, exons, and regulatory regions. Here, we demonstrate that circular BACs transfect more efficiently than covalently closed linear BACs. We found up to 3.1- and 8.9- fold higher eGFP expression from circular 11 kb and 100 kb BACs, respectively, compared to linear BACs. These findings provide insights for improved vector development for gene delivery and expression studies of large intact transgenes in mammalian cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yin Cheng Wong
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Malaysia
| | - Andrew Osahor
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Malaysia
| | | | - Kumaran Narayanan
- School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Malaysia.
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24
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Donaldson JS, Dale MP, Rosser SJ. Decoupling Growth and Protein Production in CHO Cells: A Targeted Approach. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2021; 9:658325. [PMID: 34150726 PMCID: PMC8207133 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2021.658325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 04/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Fed-batch cultures of Chinese Hamster Ovary cells have been used to produce high quantities of biotherapeutics, particularly monoclonal antibodies. However, a growing number of next-generation biotherapeutics, such as bi-specific antibodies and fusion proteins, are difficult to express using standard fed-batch processes. Decoupling cell growth and biotherapeutic production is becoming an increasingly desired strategy for the biomanufacturing industry, especially for difficult-to-express products. Cells are grown to a high cell density in the absence of recombinant protein production (the growth phase), then expression of the recombinant protein is induced and cell proliferation halted (the production phase), usually by combining an inducible gene expression system with a proliferation control strategy. Separating the growth and production phases allows cell resources to be more efficiently directed toward either growth or production, improving growth characteristics and enhancing the production of difficult to express proteins. However, current mammalian cell proliferation control methods rely on temperature shifts and chemical agents, which interact with many non-proliferation pathways, leading to variable impacts on product quality and culture viability. Synthetic biology offers an alternative approach by strategically targeting proliferation pathways to arrest cell growth but have largely remained unused in industrial bioproduction. Due to recent developments in microbial decoupling systems and advances in available mammalian cell engineering tools, we propose that the synthetic biology approach to decoupling growth and production needs revisiting.
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Affiliation(s)
- James S Donaldson
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Matthew P Dale
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Susan J Rosser
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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25
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Obaidi I, Mota LM, Quigley A, Butler M. The role of protein hydrolysates in prolonging viability and enhancing antibody production of CHO cells. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2021; 105:3115-3129. [PMID: 33796891 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11244-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2020] [Revised: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Four independent mAb-producing CHO cell lines were grown in media supplemented with one of seven protein hydrolysates of animal and plant origin. This generated a 7x4 matrix of replicate cultures which was analysed for viable cell density and mAb productivity. In all cultures, a consistent growth rate was shown in batch culture up to 4 to 5 days. Differences between cultures appeared in the decline phase which was followed up to 7 days beyond the start of the cultures. There was a marginal but significant overall increase (x1.1) in the integral viable cell density (IVCD) in the presence of hydrolysate but a more substantial increase in the cell-specific mAb (qMab) productivity (x1.5). There were individual differences between hydrolysates in terms of enhancement of mAb productivity, the highest being a 166% increase of mAb titre (to 117 mg/L) in batch cultures of CHO-EG2 supplemented with UPcotton hydrolysate. The effect of one of the most active hydrolysates (HP7504) on antibody glycosylation was investigated. This showed no change in the predominant seven glycans produced but a significant increase in the galactosylation and sialylation of some but not all the antibodies. Overall, the animal hydrolysate, Primatone and two cotton-derived hydrolysates provided the most substantial benefit for enhanced productivity. The cotton-based hydrolysates can be viewed as valuable supplements for animal-derived component-free (ADCF) media and as a source for the investigation of chemically defined bioactive components. KEY POINTS: • Protein hydrolysates enhanced both IVCD & qMab; the effect on qMab being consistently greater. • Cotton-based hydrolysates showed high bioactivity and potential for use in serum-free media. • Enhanced galactosylation and sialylation was shown for some of the Mabs tested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ismael Obaidi
- Cell Technology Group, National Institute for Bioprocessing, Research and Training (NIBRT), Fosters Avenue, Mount Merrion, Blackrock, Dublin, A94 X099, Ireland
- College of Pharmacy, University of Babylon, Babylon, Iraq
| | - Letícia Martins Mota
- Cell Technology Group, National Institute for Bioprocessing, Research and Training (NIBRT), Fosters Avenue, Mount Merrion, Blackrock, Dublin, A94 X099, Ireland
- School of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland
| | - Andrew Quigley
- Cell Technology Group, National Institute for Bioprocessing, Research and Training (NIBRT), Fosters Avenue, Mount Merrion, Blackrock, Dublin, A94 X099, Ireland
| | - Michael Butler
- Cell Technology Group, National Institute for Bioprocessing, Research and Training (NIBRT), Fosters Avenue, Mount Merrion, Blackrock, Dublin, A94 X099, Ireland.
- School of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering, University College Dublin, Dublin, D04 V1W8, Ireland.
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26
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Johari YB, Jaffé SRP, Scarrott JM, Johnson AO, Mozzanino T, Pohle TH, Maisuria S, Bhayat-Cammack A, Lambiase G, Brown AJ, Tee KL, Jackson PJ, Wong TS, Dickman MJ, Sargur RB, James DC. Production of trimeric SARS-CoV-2 spike protein by CHO cells for serological COVID-19 testing. Biotechnol Bioeng 2021; 118:1013-1021. [PMID: 33128388 DOI: 10.1002/bit.27615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Revised: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
We describe scalable and cost-efficient production of full length, His-tagged severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike glycoprotein trimer by Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells that can be used to detect SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in patient sera at high specificity and sensitivity. Transient production of spike in both human embryonic kidney (HEK) and CHO cells mediated by polyethyleneimine was increased significantly (up to 10.9-fold) by a reduction in culture temperature to 32°C to permit extended duration cultures. Based on these data GS-CHO pools stably producing spike trimer under the control of a strong synthetic promoter were cultured in hypothermic conditions with combinations of bioactive small molecules to increase yield of purified spike product 4.9-fold to 53 mg/L. Purification of recombinant spike by Ni-chelate affinity chromatography initially yielded a variety of co-eluting protein impurities identified as host cell derived by mass spectrometry, which were separated from spike trimer using a modified imidazole gradient elution. Purified CHO spike trimer antigen was used in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay format to detect immunoglobulin G antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in sera from patient cohorts previously tested for viral infection by polymerase chain reaction, including those who had displayed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms. The antibody assay, validated to ISO 15189 Medical Laboratories standards, exhibited a specificity of 100% and sensitivity of 92.3%. Our data show that CHO cells are a suitable host for the production of larger quantities of recombinant SARS-CoV-2 trimer which can be used as antigen for mass serological testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yusuf B Johari
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Stephen R P Jaffé
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Joseph M Scarrott
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Abayomi O Johnson
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Théo Mozzanino
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Thilo H Pohle
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Sheetal Maisuria
- Department of Immunology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - Amina Bhayat-Cammack
- Department of Immunology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - Giulia Lambiase
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Adam J Brown
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Kang Lan Tee
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Philip J Jackson
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Tuck Seng Wong
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Mark J Dickman
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
| | - Ravishankar B Sargur
- Department of Immunology, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, UK
| | - David C James
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin St., Sheffield, UK
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27
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Stuible M, Gervais C, Lord-Dufour S, Perret S, L'Abbé D, Schrag J, St-Laurent G, Durocher Y. Rapid, high-yield production of full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike ectodomain by transient gene expression in CHO cells. J Biotechnol 2021; 326:21-27. [PMID: 33301853 PMCID: PMC7720734 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2020.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2020] [Revised: 11/29/2020] [Accepted: 12/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Recombinant forms of the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses have proven difficult to produce with good yields in mammalian cells. Given the panoply of potential COVID-19 diagnostic tools and therapeutic candidates that require purified spike protein and its importance for ongoing SARS-CoV-2 research, we have explored new approaches for spike production and purification. Three transient gene expression methods based on PEI-mediated transfection of CHO or HEK293 cells in suspension culture in chemically-defined media were compared for rapid production of full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike ectodomain. A high-cell-density protocol using DXB11-derived CHOBRI/55E1 cells gave substantially better yields than the other methods. Different forms of the spike ectodomain were expressed, including the wild-type SARS-CoV-2 sequence and a mutated form (to favor expression of the full-length spike ectodomain stabilized in pre-fusion conformation), with and without fusion to putative trimerization domains. An efficient two-step affinity purification method was also developed. Ultimately, we have been able to produce highly homogenous preparations of full-length spike, both monomeric and trimeric, with yields of 100-150 mg/L in the harvested medium. The speed and productivity of this method support further development of CHO-based approaches for recombinant spike protein manufacturing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Stuible
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Christian Gervais
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Simon Lord-Dufour
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Sylvie Perret
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Denis L'Abbé
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Joseph Schrag
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Gilles St-Laurent
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 6100 Royalmount Avenue, Montreal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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28
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Dong E, Lam C, Tang D, Louie S, Yim M, Williams AJ, Sawyer W, Yip S, Carver J, AlBarakat A, Tsukuda J, Snedecor B, Misaghi S. Concurrent transfection of randomized transgene configurations into targeted integration CHO host is an advantageous and cost-effective method for expression of complex molecules. Biotechnol J 2020; 16:e2000230. [PMID: 33259700 DOI: 10.1002/biot.202000230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Complex recombinant proteins are increasingly desired as potential therapeutic options for many disease indications and are commonly expressed in the mammalian Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. Generally, stoichiometric expression and proper folding of all subunits of a complex recombinant protein are required to achieve the desired titers and product qualities for a complex molecule. Targeted integration (TI) cell line development (CLD), which entails the insertion of the desired transgene(s) into a predefined landing-pad in the CHO genome, enables the generation of a homogeneous pool of cells from which clonally stable and high titer clones can be isolated with minimal screening efforts. Despite these advantages, using a single transgene(s) configuration with predetermined gene dosage might not be adequate for the expression of complex molecules. The goal of this study is to develop a method for seamless screening of many vector configurations in a single TI CLD attempt. As testing vector configurations in transient expression systems is not predictive of protein expression in the stable cell lines and parallel TI CLDs with different transgene configurations is resource-intensive, we tested the concept of randomized configuration targeted integration (RCTI) CLD approach for expression of complex molecules. RCTI allows simultaneous transfection of multiple vector configurations, encoding a complex molecule, to generate diverse TI clones each with a single transgene configuration but clone specific productivity and product qualities. Our findings further revealed a direct correlation between transgenes' configuration/copy-number and titer/product quality of the expressed proteins. RCTI CLD enabled, with significantly fewer resources, seamless isolation of clones with comparable titers and product quality attributes to that of several parallel standard TI CLDs. Therefore, RCTI introduces randomness to the TI CLD platform while maintaining all the advantages, such as clone stability and reduced sequence variant levels, that the TI system has to offer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Dong
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Cynthia Lam
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Danming Tang
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Salina Louie
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Mandy Yim
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Ambrose J Williams
- Purification Development Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - William Sawyer
- Biochemical and Cellular Pharmacology Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Shirley Yip
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Joseph Carver
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Ali AlBarakat
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Joni Tsukuda
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Brad Snedecor
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Shahram Misaghi
- Cell Culture and Bioprocess Operations Department, Genentech, Inc. 1 DNA Way, South San Francisco, California, USA
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29
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Puente-Massaguer E, Grau-Garcia P, Strobl F, Grabherr R, Striedner G, Lecina M, Gòdia F. Accelerating HIV-1 VLP production using stable High Five insect cell pools. Biotechnol J 2020; 16:e2000391. [PMID: 33247883 DOI: 10.1002/biot.202000391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2020] [Revised: 10/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Stable cell pools are receiving a renewed interest as a potential alternative system to clonal cell lines. The shorter development timelines and the capacity to achieve high product yields make them an interesting approach for recombinant protein production. In this study, stable High Five cell pools are assessed for the production of a simple protein, mCherry, and the more complex HIV-1 Gag-eGFP virus-like particles (VLPs). Random integration coupled to fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) in suspension conditions is applied to accelerate the stable cell pool generation process and enrich it with high producer cells. This methodology is successfully transferred to a bioreactor for VLP production, resulting in a 2-fold increase in VLP yields with respect to shake flask cultures. In these conditions, maximum viable cell concentration improves by 1.5-fold, and by-product formation is significantly reduced. Remarkably, a global increase in the uptake of amino acids in the Gag-eGFP stable cell pool is observed when compared with parental High Five cells, reflecting the additional metabolic burden associated with VLP production. These results suggest that stable High Five cell pools are a robust and powerful approach to produce VLPs and other recombinant proteins, and put the basis for future studies aiming to scale up this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduard Puente-Massaguer
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Paula Grau-Garcia
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
| | - Florian Strobl
- Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (acib GmbH), Vienna, 1010, Austria.,Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Reingard Grabherr
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Gerald Striedner
- Department of Biotechnology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1190, Austria
| | - Martí Lecina
- IQS School of Engineering, Universitat Ramón Llull, Barcelona, 08017, Spain
| | - Francesc Gòdia
- Departament d'Enginyeria Química, Biològica i Ambiental, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, 08193, Spain
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30
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Isho B, Abe KT, Zuo M, Jamal AJ, Rathod B, Wang JH, Li Z, Chao G, Rojas OL, Bang YM, Pu A, Christie-Holmes N, Gervais C, Ceccarelli D, Samavarchi-Tehrani P, Guvenc F, Budylowski P, Li A, Paterson A, Yue FY, Marin LM, Caldwell L, Wrana JL, Colwill K, Sicheri F, Mubareka S, Gray-Owen SD, Drews SJ, Siqueira WL, Barrios-Rodiles M, Ostrowski M, Rini JM, Durocher Y, McGeer AJ, Gommerman JL, Gingras AC. Persistence of serum and saliva antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 spike antigens in COVID-19 patients. Sci Immunol 2020. [PMID: 33033173 DOI: 10.1101/2020.08.01.20166553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
While the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 has been extensively studied in blood, relatively little is known about the antibody response in saliva and its relationship to systemic antibody levels. Here, we profiled by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) IgG, IgA and IgM responses to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (full length trimer) and its receptor-binding domain (RBD) in serum and saliva of acute and convalescent patients with laboratory-diagnosed COVID-19 ranging from 3-115 days post-symptom onset (PSO), compared to negative controls. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses were readily detected in serum and saliva, with peak IgG levels attained by 16-30 days PSO. Longitudinal analysis revealed that anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgA and IgM antibodies rapidly decayed, while IgG antibodies remained relatively stable up to 105 days PSO in both biofluids. Lastly, IgG, IgM and to a lesser extent IgA responses to spike and RBD in the serum positively correlated with matched saliva samples. This study confirms that serum and saliva IgG antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 are maintained in the majority of COVID-19 patients for at least 3 months PSO. IgG responses in saliva may serve as a surrogate measure of systemic immunity to SARS-CoV-2 based on their correlation with serum IgG responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baweleta Isho
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Kento T Abe
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Michelle Zuo
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Alainna J Jamal
- Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Bhavisha Rathod
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jenny H Wang
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Zhijie Li
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Gary Chao
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Olga L Rojas
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yeo Myong Bang
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Annie Pu
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Christian Gervais
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Derek Ceccarelli
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Payman Samavarchi-Tehrani
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Furkan Guvenc
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Patrick Budylowski
- Combined Containment Level 3 Unit, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Angel Li
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Aimee Paterson
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Feng Yun Yue
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Lina M Marin
- College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Lauren Caldwell
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jeffrey L Wrana
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Karen Colwill
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Frank Sicheri
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Samira Mubareka
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Diagnostics, Division of Microbiology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre; Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute; and Division of Infectious Diseases, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Scott D Gray-Owen
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Combined Containment Level 3 Unit, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Steven J Drews
- Canadian Blood Services, Edmonton, AB & Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Walter L Siqueira
- College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Miriam Barrios-Rodiles
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Mario Ostrowski
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada; Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute.,Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - James M Rini
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Allison J McGeer
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Anne-Claude Gingras
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada. .,Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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31
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Isho B, Abe KT, Zuo M, Jamal AJ, Rathod B, Wang JH, Li Z, Chao G, Rojas OL, Bang YM, Pu A, Christie-Holmes N, Gervais C, Ceccarelli D, Samavarchi-Tehrani P, Guvenc F, Budylowski P, Li A, Paterson A, Yue FY, Marin LM, Caldwell L, Wrana JL, Colwill K, Sicheri F, Mubareka S, Gray-Owen SD, Drews SJ, Siqueira WL, Barrios-Rodiles M, Ostrowski M, Rini JM, Durocher Y, McGeer AJ, Gommerman JL, Gingras AC. Persistence of serum and saliva antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 spike antigens in COVID-19 patients. Sci Immunol 2020; 5:5/52/eabe5511. [PMID: 33033173 PMCID: PMC8050884 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.abe5511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 536] [Impact Index Per Article: 134.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Accepted: 10/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
While the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 has been extensively studied in blood, relatively little is known about the antibody response in saliva and its relationship to systemic antibody levels. Here, we profiled by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) IgG, IgA and IgM responses to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (full length trimer) and its receptor-binding domain (RBD) in serum and saliva of acute and convalescent patients with laboratory-diagnosed COVID-19 ranging from 3-115 days post-symptom onset (PSO), compared to negative controls. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses were readily detected in serum and saliva, with peak IgG levels attained by 16-30 days PSO. Longitudinal analysis revealed that anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgA and IgM antibodies rapidly decayed, while IgG antibodies remained relatively stable up to 105 days PSO in both biofluids. Lastly, IgG, IgM and to a lesser extent IgA responses to spike and RBD in the serum positively correlated with matched saliva samples. This study confirms that serum and saliva IgG antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 are maintained in the majority of COVID-19 patients for at least 3 months PSO. IgG responses in saliva may serve as a surrogate measure of systemic immunity to SARS-CoV-2 based on their correlation with serum IgG responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baweleta Isho
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Kento T Abe
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Michelle Zuo
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Alainna J Jamal
- Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Bhavisha Rathod
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jenny H Wang
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Zhijie Li
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Gary Chao
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Olga L Rojas
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yeo Myong Bang
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Annie Pu
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Christian Gervais
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Derek Ceccarelli
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Payman Samavarchi-Tehrani
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Furkan Guvenc
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Patrick Budylowski
- Combined Containment Level 3 Unit, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Angel Li
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Aimee Paterson
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Feng Yun Yue
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Lina M Marin
- College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Lauren Caldwell
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jeffrey L Wrana
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Karen Colwill
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Frank Sicheri
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Samira Mubareka
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Diagnostics, Division of Microbiology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre; Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute; and Division of Infectious Diseases, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Scott D Gray-Owen
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Combined Containment Level 3 Unit, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Steven J Drews
- Canadian Blood Services, Edmonton, AB & Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Walter L Siqueira
- College of Dentistry, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Miriam Barrios-Rodiles
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Mario Ostrowski
- Department of Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada; Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - James M Rini
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Allison J McGeer
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Microbiology, at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Anne-Claude Gingras
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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32
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Abe KT, Li Z, Samson R, Samavarchi-Tehrani P, Valcourt EJ, Wood H, Budylowski P, Dupuis AP, Girardin RC, Rathod B, Wang JH, Barrios-Rodiles M, Colwill K, McGeer AJ, Mubareka S, Gommerman JL, Durocher Y, Ostrowski M, McDonough KA, Drebot MA, Drews SJ, Rini JM, Gingras AC. A simple protein-based surrogate neutralization assay for SARS-CoV-2. JCI Insight 2020; 5:142362. [PMID: 32870820 PMCID: PMC7566699 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.142362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 139] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 08/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Most of the patients infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) mount a humoral immune response to the virus within a few weeks of infection, but the duration of this response and how it correlates with clinical outcomes has not been completely characterized. Of particular importance is the identification of immune correlates of infection that would support public health decision-making on treatment approaches, vaccination strategies, and convalescent plasma therapy. While ELISA-based assays to detect and quantitate antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 in patient samples have been developed, the detection of neutralizing antibodies typically requires more demanding cell-based viral assays. Here, we present a safe and efficient protein-based assay for the detection of serum and plasma antibodies that block the interaction of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein receptor binding domain (RBD) with its receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). The assay serves as a surrogate neutralization assay and is performed on the same platform and in parallel with an ELISA for the detection of antibodies against the RBD, enabling a direct comparison. The results obtained with our assay correlate with those of 2 viral-based assays, a plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) that uses live SARS-CoV-2 virus and a spike pseudotyped viral vector-based assay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kento T. Abe
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Zhijie Li
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Reuben Samson
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Payman Samavarchi-Tehrani
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Emelissa J. Valcourt
- Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens, National Microbiology Laboratory (NML), Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Heidi Wood
- Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens, National Microbiology Laboratory (NML), Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Patrick Budylowski
- Department of Immunology and
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Alan P. Dupuis
- Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA
| | - Roxie C. Girardin
- Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA
| | - Bhavisha Rathod
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jenny H. Wang
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Miriam Barrios-Rodiles
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Karen Colwill
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Allison J. McGeer
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Microbiology, University Health Network and Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Dalla Lana School of Public Health and
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Samira Mubareka
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Molecular Diagnostics, Division of Microbiology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Biological Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Yves Durocher
- Mammalian Cell Expression, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Mario Ostrowski
- Department of Immunology and
- Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Kathleen A. McDonough
- Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, New York, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Public Health, University at Albany, SUNY, Albany, New York, USA
| | - Michael A. Drebot
- Zoonotic Diseases and Special Pathogens, National Microbiology Laboratory (NML), Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease, University of Manitoba, Manitoba, Canada
| | - Steven J. Drews
- Canadian Blood Services, Edmonton, AB & Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - James M. Rini
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anne-Claude Gingras
- Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital, Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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33
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Doshi A, Sadeghi F, Varadarajan N, Cirino PC. Small-molecule inducible transcriptional control in mammalian cells. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2020; 40:1131-1150. [PMID: 32862714 DOI: 10.1080/07388551.2020.1808583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Tools for tuning transcription in mammalian cells have broad applications, from basic biological discovery to human gene therapy. While precise control over target gene transcription via dosing with small molecules (drugs) is highly sought, the design of such inducible systems that meets required performance metrics poses a great challenge in mammalian cell synthetic biology. Important characteristics include tight and tunable gene expression with a low background, minimal drug toxicity, and orthogonality. Here, we review small-molecule-inducible transcriptional control devices that have demonstrated success in mammalian cells and mouse models. Most of these systems employ natural or designed ligand-binding protein domains to directly or indirectly communicate with transcription machinery at a target sequence, via carefully constructed fusions. Example fusions include those to transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs), DNA-targeting proteins (e.g. dCas systems) fused to transactivating domains, and recombinases. Similar to the architecture of Type I nuclear receptors, many of the systems are designed such that the transcriptional controller is excluded from the nucleus in the absence of an inducer. Techniques that use ligand-induced proteolysis and antibody-based chemically induced dimerizers are also described. Collectively, these transcriptional control devices take advantage of a variety of recently developed molecular biology tools and cell biology insights and represent both proof of concept (e.g. targeting reporter gene expression) and disease-targeting studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aarti Doshi
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Fatemeh Sadeghi
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Navin Varadarajan
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Patrick C Cirino
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA.,Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
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34
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Wang TY, Guo X. Expression vector cassette engineering for recombinant therapeutic production in mammalian cell systems. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2020; 104:5673-5688. [PMID: 32372203 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-020-10640-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2020] [Revised: 04/13/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Human tissue plasminogen activator was the first recombinant therapy protein that successfully produced in Chinese hamster ovary cells in 1986 and approved for clinical use. Since then, more and more therapeutic proteins are being manufactured in mammalian cells, and the technologies for recombinant protein production in this expression system have developed rapidly, with the optimization of both upstream and downstream processes. One of the most promising strategies is expression vector cassette optimization based on the expression vector cassette. In this review paper, these approaches and developments are summarized, and the future strategy on the utilizing of expression cassettes for the production of recombinant therapeutic proteins in mammalian cells is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tian-Yun Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453003, Henan, China.
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Recombinant Pharmaceutical Protein Expression System of Henan, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453003, Henan, China.
| | - Xiao Guo
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Recombinant Pharmaceutical Protein Expression System of Henan, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453003, Henan, China
- Perildicals Publishing House, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
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35
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Lalonde ME, Koyuturk I, Brochu D, Jabbour J, Gilbert M, Durocher Y. Production of α2,6-sialylated and non-fucosylated recombinant alpha-1-antitrypsin in CHO cells. J Biotechnol 2020; 307:87-97. [PMID: 31697975 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2019.10.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2019] [Revised: 10/23/2019] [Accepted: 10/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) is an abundant serum inhibitor of serine proteases. A1AT deficiency is a common genetic disorder which is currently treated with augmentation therapies. These treatments involve weekly injections of patients with purified plasma-derived A1AT. Such therapies can be extremely expensive and rely on plasma donors. Hence, large-scale production of recombinant A1AT (rA1AT) could greatly benefit these patients, as it could decrease the cost of treatments, reduce biosafety concerns and ensure quantitative and qualitative controls of the protein. In this report, we sought to produce α2,6-sialylated rA1AT with our cumate-inducible stable CHO pool expression system. Our different CHO pools could reach volumetric productivities of 1,2 g/L. The human α2,6-sialyltransferase was stably expressed in these cells in order to mimic elevated α2,6-sialylation levels of native A1AT protein. Sialylation of the recombinant protein was stable over the duration of the fed-batch production phase and was higher in a pool where cells were sorted and enriched by FACS based on cell-surface α2,6-sialylation. Addition of ManNAc to the cell culture media during production enhanced both α2,3 and α2,6 A1AT sialylation levels whereas addition of 2F-peracetylfucose potently inhibited fucosylation of the protein. Finally, we demonstrated that rA1AT proteins exhibited human neutrophil elastase inhibitory activities similar to the commercial human plasma-derived A1AT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Eve Lalonde
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada
| | - Izel Koyuturk
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada
| | - Denis Brochu
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A OR6, Canada
| | - Jonathan Jabbour
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada
| | - Michel Gilbert
- Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, 100 Sussex Drive, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A OR6, Canada
| | - Yves Durocher
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada; Life Sciences, Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, Building Montreal-Royalmount, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, Québec, H4P 2R2, Canada.
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36
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Assessment of fed-batch cultivation strategies for an inducible CHO cell line. J Biotechnol 2019; 298:45-56. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2019.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2018] [Revised: 04/04/2019] [Accepted: 04/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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37
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Ong EC, Smidt P, McGrew JT. Limiting the metabolic burden of recombinant protein expression during selection yields pools with higher expression levels. Biotechnol Prog 2019; 35:e2839. [PMID: 31090257 DOI: 10.1002/btpr.2839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2019] [Revised: 05/02/2019] [Accepted: 05/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
In order to avoid the metabolic burden of protein expression during cell growth, and to avoid potential toxicity of recombinant proteins, microbial expression systems typically utilize regulated expression vectors. In contrast, constitutive expression vectors have usually been utilized for isolation of protein expressing mammalian cell lines. In mammalian systems, inducible expression vectors are typically utilized for only those proteins that are toxic when overexpressed. We developed a tetracycline regulated expression system in CHO cells, and show that cell pools selected in the uninduced state recover faster than those selected in the induced state even though the proteins showed no apparent toxicity or expression instability. Furthermore, cell pools selected in the uninduced state had higher expression levels when protein expression was turned on only in production cultures compared to pools that were selected and maintained in the induced state through production. We show a titer improvement of greater than twofold for an Fc-fusion protein and greater than 50% improvement for a recombinant antibody. The improvement is primarily due to an increase in specific productivity. Recombinant protein mRNA levels correlate strongly with protein expression levels and are highest in those cultures selected in the uninduced state and only induced during production. These data are consistent with a model where CHO cell lines with constitutive expression select for subclones with lower expression levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- E-Ching Ong
- Process Design, Just Biotherapeutics, Seattle, Washington
| | - Pauline Smidt
- Process Design, Just Biotherapeutics, Seattle, Washington
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38
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Poulain A, Mullick A, Massie B, Durocher Y. Reducing recombinant protein expression during CHO pool selection enhances frequency of high-producing cells. J Biotechnol 2019; 296:32-41. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2019.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2018] [Revised: 03/12/2019] [Accepted: 03/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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39
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Process intensification for the production of rituximab by an inducible CHO cell line. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 2019; 42:711-725. [DOI: 10.1007/s00449-019-02075-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2018] [Accepted: 01/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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40
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Mellahi K, Cambay F, Brochu D, Gilbert M, Perrier M, Ansorge S, Durocher Y, Henry O. Process development for an inducible rituximab-expressing Chinese hamster ovary cell line. Biotechnol Prog 2018; 35:e2742. [PMID: 30414355 DOI: 10.1002/btpr.2742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2018] [Revised: 10/25/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Inducible mammalian expression systems are becoming increasingly available and are not only useful for the production of cytotoxic/cytostatic products, but also confer the unique ability to uncouple the growth and production phases. In this work, we have specifically investigated how the cell culture state at the time of induction influences the cumate-inducible expression of recombinant rituximab by a GS-CHO cell line. To this end, cells grown in batch and fed-batch cultures were induced at increasing cell densities (1 to 10 × 10 6 cells/mL). In batch, the cell specific productivity and the product yield were found to reduce with increasing cell density at induction. A dynamic feeding strategy using a concentrated nutrient solution applied prior and postinduction allowed to significantly increase the integral of viable cells and led to a 3-fold increase in the volumetric productivity (1.2 g/L). The highest product yields were achieved for intermediate cell densities at induction, as cultures induced during the late exponential phase (10 × 10 6 cells/mL) were associated with a shortened production phase. The final glycosylation patterns remained however similar, irrespective of the cell density at induction. The kinetics of growth and production in a 2 L bioreactor were largely comparable to shake flasks for a similar cell density at induction. The degree of galactosylation was found to decrease over time, but the final glycan distribution at harvest was consistent to that of the shake flasks cultures. Taken together, our results provide useful insights for the rational development of fed-batch cell culture processes involving inducible CHO cells. © 2018 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 35: e2742, 2019.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kahina Mellahi
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7
| | - Florian Cambay
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7
| | - Denis Brochu
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON
| | - Michel Gilbert
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, Ottawa, ON
| | - Michel Perrier
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7
| | - Sven Ansorge
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC
| | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Center, National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC
| | - Olivier Henry
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7
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41
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Vaniotis G, Moffett S, Sulea T, Wang N, Elahi SM, Lessard E, Baardsnes J, Perrino S, Durocher Y, Frystyk J, Massie B, Brodt P. Enhanced anti-metastatic bioactivity of an IGF-TRAP re-engineered to improve physicochemical properties. Sci Rep 2018; 8:17361. [PMID: 30478273 PMCID: PMC6255772 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-35407-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2018] [Accepted: 09/07/2018] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The insulin-like growth factor (IGF) axis has been implicated in the progression of malignant disease and identified as a clinically important therapeutic target. Several IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R) targeting drugs including humanized monoclonal antibodies have advanced to phase II/III clinical trials, but to date, have not progressed to clinical use, due, at least in part, to interference with insulin receptor signalling. We previously reported on the production of a soluble fusion protein consisting of the extracellular domain of human IGF-1R fused to the Fc portion of human IgG1 (first generation IGF-TRAP) that bound human IGF-1 and IGF-2 with a 3 log higher affinity than insulin. We showed that the IGF-TRAP had potent anti-cancer activity in several pre-clinical models of aggressive carcinomas. Here we report on the re-engineering of the IGF-TRAP with the aim of improving physicochemical properties and suitability for clinical applications. We show that cysteine-serine substitutions in the Fc hinge region of IGF-TRAP eliminated high-molecular-weight oligomerized species, while a further addition of a flexible linker, not only improved the pharmacokinetic profile, but also enhanced the therapeutic profile of the IGF-TRAP, as evaluated in an experimental colon carcinoma metastasis model. Dose-response profiles of the modified IGF-TRAPs correlated with their bio-availability profiles, as measured by the IGF kinase-receptor-activation (KIRA) assay, providing a novel, surrogate biomarker for drug efficacy. This study provides a compelling example of structure-based re-engineering of Fc-fusion-based biologics for better manufacturability that also significantly improved pharmacological parameters. It identifies the re-engineered IGF-TRAP as a potent anti-cancer therapeutic.
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Affiliation(s)
- George Vaniotis
- Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Serge Moffett
- Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Traian Sulea
- Institute of Parasitology, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Ni Wang
- Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - S Mehdy Elahi
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Etienne Lessard
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Jason Baardsnes
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Yves Durocher
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Jan Frystyk
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Bernard Massie
- Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, Montreal Quebec, Canada
| | - Pnina Brodt
- Department of Surgery, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada.
- Department of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada.
- Department of Oncology, McGill University, Montreal Quebec, Canada.
- Cancer Research Program, Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, Montreal Quebec, Canada.
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42
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McKenzie EA, Abbott WM. Expression of recombinant proteins in insect and mammalian cells. Methods 2018; 147:40-49. [PMID: 29778647 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2018.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2018] [Revised: 05/10/2018] [Accepted: 05/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Purified recombinant proteins are key reagents in academic and industrial research. The ability to make these proteins quickly often relies on the availability of higher eukaryotic cell hosts such as insect and mammalian cells where there is a very wide range of post-translational modifications, protein folding and trafficking pathways. This enables the generation of many proteins that cannot be made in microbial hosts. In this article we outline some of the most commonly used methods to express recombinant proteins in insect and mammalian cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward A McKenzie
- Protein Expression Facility, Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
| | - W Mark Abbott
- Peak Proteins Ltd, Alderley Park, Cheshire SK10 4TG, UK.
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43
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Romanova N, Noll T. Engineered and Natural Promoters and Chromatin-Modifying Elements for Recombinant Protein Expression in CHO Cells. Biotechnol J 2017; 13:e1700232. [DOI: 10.1002/biot.201700232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2017] [Revised: 11/07/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nadiya Romanova
- Cell Culture Technology; Faculty of Technology; Bielefeld University; Germany
| | - Thomas Noll
- Cell Culture Technology; Faculty of Technology; Bielefeld University; Germany
- Bielefeld University; Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec); Germany
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44
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Manceur AP, Kim H, Misic V, Andreev N, Dorion-Thibaudeau J, Lanthier S, Bernier A, Tremblay S, Gélinas AM, Broussau S, Gilbert R, Ansorge S. Scalable Lentiviral Vector Production Using Stable HEK293SF Producer Cell Lines. Hum Gene Ther Methods 2017; 28:330-339. [PMID: 28826344 PMCID: PMC5734158 DOI: 10.1089/hgtb.2017.086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Lentiviral vectors (LV) represent a key tool for gene and cell therapy applications. The production of these vectors in sufficient quantities for clinical applications remains a hurdle, prompting the field toward developing suspension processes that are conducive to large-scale production. This study describes a LV production strategy using a stable inducible producer cell line. The HEK293 cell line employed grows in suspension, thus offering direct scalability, and produces a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing lentiviral vector in the 106 transduction units (TU)/mL range without optimization. The stable producer cell line, called clone 92, was derived by stable transfection from a packaging cell line with a plasmid encoding the transgene GFP. The packaging cell line expresses all the other necessary components to produce LV upon induction with cumate and doxycycline. First, the study demonstrated that LV production using clone 92 is scalable from 20 mL shake flasks to 3 L bioreactors. Next, two strategies were developed for high-yield LV production in perfusion mode using acoustic cell filter technology in 1–3 L bioreactors. The first approach uses a basal commercial medium and perfusion mode both pre- and post-induction for increasing cell density and LV recovery. The second approach makes use of a fortified medium formulation to achieve target cell density for induction in batch mode, followed by perfusion mode after induction. Using these perfusion-based strategies, the titer was improved to 3.2 × 107 TU/mL. As a result, cumulative functional LV titers were increased by up to 15-fold compared to batch mode, reaching a cumulative total yield of 8 × 1010 TU/L of bioreactor culture. This approach is easily amenable to large-scale production and commercial manufacturing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aziza P Manceur
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Howard Kim
- 2 BridGE, Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine , Toronto, Canada
| | - Vanja Misic
- 2 BridGE, Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine , Toronto, Canada
| | - Nadejda Andreev
- 2 BridGE, Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine , Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Stéphane Lanthier
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Alice Bernier
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Sonia Tremblay
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Anne-Marie Gélinas
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Sophie Broussau
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Rénald Gilbert
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
| | - Sven Ansorge
- 1 Human Health Therapeutics, National Research Council Canada , Montreal, Canada
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