Generation of a panel of related human scFv antibodies with high affinities for human CEA

A simeprevir-inducible molecular switch for the control of cell and gene therapies

Chemical inducer of dimerization (CID) modules can be used effectively as molecular switches to control biological processes, and thus there is significant interest within the synthetic biology community in identifying novel CID systems. To date, CID modules have been used primarily in engineering cells for in vitro applications. To broaden their utility to the clinical setting, including the potential to control cell and gene therapies, the identification of novel CID modules should consider factors such as the safety and pharmacokinetic profile of the small molecule inducer, and the orthogonality and immunogenicity of the protein components. Here we describe a CID module based on the orally available, approved, small molecule simeprevir and its target, the NS3/4A protease from hepatitis C virus. We demonstrate the utility of this CID module as a molecular switch to control biological processes such as gene expression and apoptosis in vitro, and show that the CID system can be used to rapidly induce apoptosis in tumor cells in a xenograft mouse model, leading to complete tumor regression.

Antibody display technologies: selecting the cream of the crop

Antibody display technologies enable the successful isolation of antigen-specific antibodies with therapeutic potential. The key feature that facilitates the selection of an antibody with prescribed properties is the coupling of the protein variant to its genetic information and is referred to as genotype phenotype coupling. There are several different platform technologies based on prokaryotic organisms as well as strategies employing higher eukaryotes. Among those, phage display is the most established system with more than a dozen of therapeutic antibodies approved for therapy that have been discovered or engineered using this approach. In recent years several other technologies gained a certain level of maturity, most strikingly mammalian display. In this review, we delineate the most important selection systems with respect to antibody generation with an emphasis on recent developments.

A direct role for SNX9 in the biogenesis of filopodia

Filopodia are finger-like actin-rich protrusions that extend from the cell surface and are important for cell-cell communication and pathogen internalization. The small size and transient nature of filopodia combined with shared usage of actin regulators within cells confounds attempts to identify filopodial proteins. Here, we used phage display phenotypic screening to isolate antibodies that alter the actin morphology of filopodia-like structures (FLS) in vitro. We found that all of the antibodies that cause shorter FLS interact with SNX9, an actin regulator that binds phosphoinositides during endocytosis and at invadopodia. In cells, we discover SNX9 at specialized filopodia in Xenopus development and that SNX9 is an endogenous component of filopodia that are hijacked by Chlamydia entry. We show the use of antibody technology to identify proteins used in filopodia-like structures, and a role for SNX9 in filopodia.

Designing Human Antibodies by Phage Display

With six approved products and more than 60 candidates in clinical testing, human monoclonal antibody discovery by phage display is well established as a robust and reliable source for the generation of therapeutic antibodies. While a vast diversity of library generation philosophies and selection strategies have been conceived, the power of molecular design offered by controlling the in vitro selection step is still to be recognized by a broader audience outside of the antibody engineering community. Here, we summarize some opportunities and achievements, e.g., the generation of antibodies which could not be generated otherwise, and the design of antibody properties by different panning strategies, including the adjustment of kinetic parameters.

Preclinical Evaluation of MEDI0641, a Pyrrolobenzodiazepine-Conjugated Antibody-Drug Conjugate Targeting 5T4

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) are used to selectively deliver cytotoxic agents to tumors and have the potential for increased clinical benefit to cancer patients. 5T4 is an oncofetal antigen overexpressed on the cell surface in many carcinomas on both bulk tumor cells as well as cancer stem cells (CSC), has very limited normal tissue expression, and can internalize when bound by an antibody. An anti-5T4 antibody was identified and optimized for efficient binding and internalization in a target-specific manner, and engineered cysteines were incorporated into the molecule for site-specific conjugation. ADCs targeting 5T4 were constructed by site-specifically conjugating the antibody with payloads that possess different mechanisms of action, either a DNA cross-linking pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD) dimer or a microtubule-destabilizing tubulysin, so that each ADC had a drug:antibody ratio of 2. The resulting ADCs demonstrated significant target-dependent activity in vitro and in vivo; however, the ADC conjugated with a PBD payload (5T4-PBD) elicited more durable antitumor responses in vivo than the tubulysin conjugate in xenograft models. Likewise, the 5T4-PBD more potently inhibited the growth of 5T4-positive CSCs in vivo, which likely contributed to its superior antitumor activity. Given that the 5T4-PBD possessed both potent antitumor activity as well as anti-CSC activity, and thus could potentially target bulk tumor cells and CSCs in target-positive indications, it was further evaluated in non-GLP rat toxicology studies that demonstrated excellent in vivo stability with an acceptable safety profile. Taken together, these preclinical data support further development of 5T4-PBD, also known as MEDI0641, against 5T4⁺ cancer indications. Mol Cancer Ther; 16(8); 1576-87. ©2017 AACR.

General overview of radioimmunotherapy of solid tumors

Radioimmunotherapy (RIT) represents an attractive tool for the treatment of local and/or diffuse tumors with radiation. In RIT, cytotoxic radionuclides are delivered by monoclonal antibodies that specifically target tumor-associated antigens or the tumor microenvironment. While RIT has been successfully employed for the treatment of lymphoma, mostly with radiolabeled antibodies against CD20 (Bexxar(®); Corixa Corp., WA, USA and Zevalin(®); Biogen Idec Inc., CA, USA and Schering AG, Berlin, Germany), its use in solid tumors is more challenging and, so far, few trials have progressed beyond Phase II. This review provides an update on antibody-radionuclide conjugates and their use in RIT. It also discusses possible optimization strategies to improve the clinical response by considering biological, radiobiological and physical features.

A novel highly reactive Fab antibody for breast cancer tissue diagnostics and staging also discriminates a subset of good prognostic triple-negative breast cancers

The discovery of novel markers for breast cancer (BC) has been recently relied on antibody combinatorial libraries and selection through phage display. We constructed a recombinant Fab library, and after selections against BC tissues, the FabC4 clone was thoroughly investigated by immunohistochemistry in 232 patients with long-term follow-up. The FabC4 ligand was determined by mass spectrometry. The FabC4 expression was associated with younger age, lack of progesterone receptor, higher histological grades and non-luminal subtypes, and it also identified a subset of good prognostic triple-negative BCs, possibly targeting a conformational epitope of Cytokeratin-10 (CK10). This new CK10-epitope specific antibody may open new possibilities in diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Synthetic single-framework antibody library integrated with rapid affinity maturation by VL shuffling

Affinity maturation is often applied to improve the properties of antibodies isolated from universal antibody libraries in vitro. A synthetic human scFv antibody library was constructed in single immunoglobulin framework to enable rapid affinity maturation by updated Kunkel's mutagenesis. The initial diversity was generated predominantly in the V(H) domain combined with only 36 V(L) domain variants yielding 3 × 10(10) unique members in the phage-displayed library. After three rounds of panning the enriched V(H) genes from the primary library selections against lysozyme were incorporated into a ready-made circular single-stranded affinity maturation library containing 7 × 10(8) V(L) gene variants. Several unique antibodies with 0.8-10 nM (K(d), dissociation constant) affinities against lysozyme were found after panning from the affinity maturation library, contrasted by only one anti-lysozyme scFv clone with K(d) <20 nM among the clones panned from the primary universal library. The presented single-framework strategy provides a way to convey significant amount of functional V(H) domain diversity to affinity maturation without bimolecular ligation leading to a diverse set of antibodies with binding affinities in the low nanomolar range.

Affinity maturation of human botulinum neurotoxin antibodies by light chain shuffling via yeast mating

Botulism is caused by the botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs), the most poisonous substance known. Because of the high potency of BoNT, development of diagnostic and therapeutic antibodies for botulism requires antibodies of very high affinity. Here we report the use of yeast mating to affinity mature BoNT antibodies by light chain shuffling. A library of immunoglobulin light chains was generated in a yeast vector where the light chain is secreted. The heavy chain variable region and the first domain of the constant region (V(H)-C(H)1) from a monoclonal antibody was cloned into a different yeast vector for surface display as a fusion to the Aga2 protein. Through yeast mating of the two haploid yeasts, a library of light chain-shuffled Fab was created. Using this approach, the affinities of one BoNT/A and two BoNT/B scFv antibody fragments were increased from 9- to more than 77-fold. Subcloning the V-genes from the affinity-matured Fab yielded fully human IgG1 with equilibrium binding constants for BoNT/A and BoNT/B of 2.51 x 10(-11) M or lower for all three monoclonal antibodies. This technique provides a rapid route to antibody affinity maturation.

Imaging in targeted delivery of therapy to cancer

We review the current status of imaging as applied to targeted therapy with particular focus on antibody-based therapeutics. Antibodies have high tumor specificity and can be engineered to optimize delivery to, and retention within, the tumor. Whole antibodies can activate natural immune effector mechanisms and can be conjugated to beta- and alpha-emitting radionuclides, toxins, enzymes, and nanoparticles for enhanced therapeutic effect. Imaging is central to the development of these agents and is used for patient selection, performing dosimetry and assessment of response. gamma- and positron-emitting radionuclides may be used to image the distribution of antibody-targeted therapeutics While some radionuclides such as iodine-131 emit both beta and gamma radiation and are therefore suitable for both imaging and therapy, others are more suited to imaging or therapy alone. Hence for radionuclide therapy of neuroendocrine tumors, patients can be selected for therapy on the basis of gamma-emitting indium-111-octreotide imaging and treated with beta-emitting yttrium-90-octreotate. Positron-emitting radionuclides can give greater sensitivity that gamma-emitters but only a single radionuclide can be imaged at one time and the range of radionuclides is more limited. The multiple options for antibody-based therapeutic molecules, imaging technologies and therapeutic scenarios mean that very large amounts of diverse data are being acquired. This can be most effectively shared and progress accelerated by use of common data standards for imaging, biological, and clinical data.

Harnessing phage and ribosome display for antibody optimisation

Therapeutic antibodies have become a major driving force for the biopharmaceutical industry; therefore, the discovery and development of safe and efficacious antibody leads have become competitive processes. Phage and ribosome display are ideal tools for the generation of such molecules and have already delivered an approved drug as well as a multitude of clinical candidates. Because they are capable of searching billions of antibody variants in tailored combinatorial libraries, they are particularly applicable to potency optimisation. In conjunction with targeted, random or semi-rational mutagenesis strategies, they deliver large panels of potent antibody leads. This review introduces the two technologies, compares them with respect to their use in antibody optimisation and highlights how they can be exploited for the successful and efficient generation of putative drug candidates.

Affinity maturation of phage display antibody populations using ribosome display

A comparison has been performed, using phage display or ribosome display, of stringent selections on antibody populations derived from three rounds of phage display selection. Stringent selections were performed by reducing concentrations of the antigen, bovine insulin, down to 1 nM. Higher affinity antibodies were isolated using ribosome display in a process that introduces random mutations across the clone population. Whereas the highest affinity antibody produced by phage display, D3, has a K(d) of 5.8 nM as a scFv fragment, ribosome display generated higher affinity variants of this antibody with K(d) values of 189 pM and 152 pM, without or with the use of error prone mutagenesis, respectively. The affinities were further increased for each antibody on conversion of the scFv fragments to whole IgG format, to a K(d) of less than 21 pM for the highest affinity variant of D3. Mutation of VH D101 of antibody D3 to glycine or valine, removing the salt bridge between K94 and D101 at the base of VHCDR3, was responsible for the enhanced affinity observed. In addition to the variants of D3, other unrelated antibodies of comparable or higher affinity for insulin, were isolated by ribosome display, but not phage display, indicating that ribosome display can enrich for different populations of antibodies. Affinity maturation of phage antibody populations using ribosome display is a valuable method of rapidly generating diverse, high affinity antibodies to antigen and should be readily applicable to the isolation of antibodies for the detection and assay of biomarkers.

A human monoclonal antibody neutralizes diverse HIV-1 isolates by binding a critical gp41 epitope

HIV-1 entry into cells is mediated by the envelope glycoprotein receptor-binding (gp120) and membrane fusion-promoting (gp41) subunits. The gp41 heptad repeat 1 (HR1) domain is the molecular target of the fusion-inhibitor drug enfuvirtide (T20). The HR1 sequence is highly conserved and therefore considered an attractive target for vaccine development, but it is unknown whether antibodies can access HR1. Herein, we use gp41-based peptides to select a human antibody, 5H/I1-BMV-D5 (D5), that binds to HR1 and inhibits the assembly of fusion intermediates in vitro. D5 inhibits the replication of diverse HIV-1 clinical isolates and therefore represents a previously unknown example of a crossneutralizing IgG selected by binding to designed antigens. NMR studies and functional analyses map the D5-binding site to a previously identified hydrophobic pocket situated in the HR1 groove. This hydrophobic pocket was proposed as a drug target and subsequently identified as a common binding site for peptide and peptidomimetic fusion inhibitors. The finding that the D5 fusion-inhibitory antibody shares the same binding site suggests that the hydrophobic pocket is a "hot spot" for fusion inhibition and an ideal target on which to focus a vaccine-elicited antibody response. Our data provide a structural framework for the design of new immunogens and therapeutic antibodies with crossneutralizing potential.

Intrabody applications in neurological disorders: progress and future prospects

Single-chain Fv and single-domain antibodies retain the binding specificity of full-length antibodies, but they can be expressed as single genes in phage or yeast surface-display libraries, thus allowing efficient in vitro selection from a naive human repertoire. Selected genes can then be expressed intracellularly in mammalian cells as intrabodies, with the potential for alteration of the folding, interactions, modifications, or subcellular localization of their targets. These reagents have been developed as therapeutics against cancer and HIV. Since misfolded and accumulated intracellular proteins characterize a wide range of neurodegenerative disorders, they are also potentially useful intrabody targets. Here, we review the extension of intrabody technology to the nervous system, in which studies of Huntington's disease have been used to develop the approach, and anti-synuclein and -beta-amyloid strategies are in the early stages of development. Research on several other neurodegenerations, including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and prion diseases, provides support for the development of intrabodies directed against specific targets, or possibly against more common downstream targets, as novel therapeutics and as drug discovery tools.

Isolation of human prostate cancer cell reactive antibodies using phage display technology

Here we describe a phage display strategy for the selection of rabbit monoclonal antibodies that recognize cell surface tumor-associated antigens expressed in prostate cancer. Two immune rabbit/human chimeric Fab libraries were displayed on phage and used to search for tumor-associated antigens by panning on DU145 human prostate cancer cells. For this, we developed a novel whole-cell panning protocol with two negative selection steps designed to remove antibodies reacting with common antigens. After three rounds of subtractive panning, a majority of clones bound to DU145 cells as detected by flow cytometry. Among these, we identified several clones that bound selectively to DU145 cells but not to primary human prostate epithelial cell line PrEC. In summary, our work demonstrates the potential of immune rabbit antibody libraries for target discovery in general and the identification of cell surface tumor-associated antigens in particular.

Efficient Cancer Therapy with a Nanobody-Based Conjugate

Nanobodies are the smallest fragments of naturally occurring single-domain antibodies that have evolved to be fully functional in the absence of a light chain. Nanobodies are strictly monomeric, very stable, and highly soluble entities. We identified a nanobody with subnanomolar affinity for the human tumor-associated carcinoembryonic antigen. This nanobody was conjugated to Enterobacter cloacae beta-lactamase, and its site-selective anticancer prodrug activation capacity was evaluated. The conjugate was readily purified in high yields without aggregation or loss of functionality of the constituents. In vitro experiments showed that the nanobody-enzyme conjugate effectively activated the release of phenylenediamine mustard from the cephalosporin nitrogen mustard prodrug 7-(4-carboxybutanamido) cephalosporin mustard at the surface of carcinoembryonic antigen-expressing LS174T cancer cells. In vivo studies demonstrated that the conjugate had an excellent biodistribution profile and induced regressions and cures of established tumor xenografts. The easy generation and manufacturing yield of nanobody-based conjugates together with their potent antitumor activity make nanobodies promising vehicles for new generation cancer therapeutics.

The Remarkable Flexibility of the Human Antibody Repertoire; Isolation of Over One Thousand Different Antibodies to a Single Protein, BLyS

It is well established that the humoral immune response can generate antibodies to many different antigens. The antibody diversity required to achieve this is believed to be substantial. However, the extent to which the immune repertoire can generate structural diversity against a single target antigen has never been addressed. Here, we have used phage display to demonstrate the extraordinary capacity of the human antibody repertoire. Over 1000 antibodies, all different in amino acid sequence, were generated to a single protein, B-lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS protein). This is a highly diverse panel of antibodies as exemplified by the extensive heavy and light chain germline usage: 42/49 functional heavy chain germlines and 19/33 V(lambda) and 13/35 V(kappa) light chain germlines were all represented in the panel of antibodies. Moreover, a high level of sequence diversity was observed in the V(H) CDR3 domains of these antibodies, with 568 different amino acid sequences identified. Thus we have demonstrated that specific recognition of a single antigen can be achieved from many different VDJ combinations, illustrating the remarkable problem-solving ability of the human immune repertoire. When studied in a biochemical assay, around 500 (40%) of these antibodies inhibited the binding of BLyS to its receptors on B-cell lines. The most potent antibodies inhibited BLyS binding with sub-nanomolar IC(50) values and with sub-nanomolar affinities. Such antibodies provide excellent choices as candidates for the treatment of BLyS-associated autoimmune diseases.

Affinity maturation of Fab antibody fragments by fluorescent-activated cell sorting of yeast-displayed libraries

We report for the first time the affinity maturation of Fab antibody fragments using fluorescent-activated cell sorting (FACS) of yeast-displayed repertoires. A single yeast display vector which enables the inducible expression of an anchored heavy chain and a soluble light chain has been constructed. The assembly and functional display on the yeast cell surface of Fab antibodies specific for different protein targets has been demonstrated by flow cytometry and immunofluorescence microscopy. We have affinity matured a Fab antibody specific for the tetravalent antigen streptavidin using FACS of yeast-displayed repertoires diversified by error-prone polymerase chain reaction. A panel of variants with up to 10.7-fold improvement in affinity was obtained after selection. Two leading clones, R2H10 (3.2 nM) and R3B1 (5.5 nM), had mutations in light chain complementarity determining region 1 LC-CDR1 (H34R) and LC-CDR3 (Y96H or Y96F) and gave a 10.7-fold and 6.3-fold affinity improvement over the starting antibody, respectively. The ability to efficiently affinity mature Fab antibodies is an important component of the antibody development pipeline and we have shown that yeast display is an efficient method for this purpose.

Single-chain antibody-based gene therapy: inhibition of tumor growth by in situ production of phage-derived human antibody fragments blocking functionally active sites of cell-associated matrices

Experimental evidence suggests that blocking the interactions between endothelial cells and extracellular matrix (ECM) components may provide a potent and general strategy to inhibit tumor neovascularization. Based on these considerations, we have focused our efforts on laminin, component of the vascular basement membrane of every tumor-associated vessel, which serves an essential role in tube formation. We screened anti-laminin single-chain antibody fragments (scFv) derived from a human phage-display library and identified one that blocks the formation of capillary-like structures in vitro. This scFv inhibits angiogenesis in vivo in the chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane assay and prevents the establishment and growth of subcutaneous tumors in mice, either when administered as bolus protein therapy or when produced locally by gene-modified tumor cells. Our work represents the first demonstration of a direct in vivo therapeutic effect of a single-chain antibody secreted by gene-modified mammalian cells. These results open the way for a new antibody-based gene therapy strategy of cancer.

Test of a statistical model for molecular recognition in biological repertoires

A chance encounter between members of a random repertoire and a molecular target is characteristic of different biological systems, including the immune and olfactory pathways as well as combinatorial libraries. In such systems, the affinity between the target and members of the repertoire is distributed with a probability function describing the propensity of obtaining a particular affinity value. We have previously proposed a phenomenological receptor affinity distribution (RAD) formalism, which describes this probability function based on simple statistical considerations. In the present analysis, we use published data from diverse experimental systems, including phage display libraries, immunoglobulins and enzymes, to test the RAD model and to compare it to other affinity distribution formalisms. The RAD model is found to provide the best description for binding data for over eight orders of magnitude on the affinity scale, and to account for a relationship between repertoire size and the maximal obtainable affinity within different repertoires. This approach points to a potential universality of the rules that govern affinity distributions in biology.

Higher affinity human D MoAb prepared by light-chain shuffling and selected by phage display

BACKGROUND

In blood banks, D MoAbs are routinely used to phenotype donors and patients. However, most D MoAbs do not agglutinate RBCs that weakly express D. The use of higher affinity MoAbs could overcome this problem. In this work, an attempt has been made to increase the affinity of the human clone 43F10, an IgG anti-D, by light (L)-chain shuffling followed by selection using phage display.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

PBMNCs of three polyimmunized individuals were used to construct the kappa L-chain repertoire that was recombined with the 43F10 heavy chain in a phagemid vector system (pComb3H, Scripps Institute, La Jolla, CA). L-chain-shuffled 43F10-F(ab) phages were selected on intact RBCs and characterized by ELISA, indirect agglutination, and sequence analysis.

RESULTS

L-chain shuffling combined with phage display permitted the selection of a 43F10 MoAb variant (p3.17) with improved reactivity with weak D RBCs in agglutination assays. Nucleic acid sequence analysis showed that p3.17 and wild-type (wt) 43F10 L chains are encoded by different VL segments of the Vk1 family and different J segments, thus showing a relatively low degree of homology (86.4%).

CONCLUSION

The use of a variant such as p3.17 could permit a further increase of the potency of existing anti-D reagents. The low homology between p3.17 and wt 43F10 sequences further exemplifies the predominant role of the heavy chain in determining the specificity of the anti-D.

Antibody constructs for radioimmunodiagnosis and treatment of human pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a common disease that is seldom cured. Current approaches to the treatment of PC are not effective because the non-specific nature of both chemotherapy and external beam radiation results in toxicity to normal tissue. Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) can be used as selective carriers for delivering radionuclides, toxins, or cytotoxic drugs to malignant cell populations. Therefore, MAb-technology has led to a significant amount of research in targeted therapy. Targeted therapy would generally allow the concentration of cytotoxic agents in tumors and would markedly lessen the toxicity to normal tissues, which limits the dosage and effectiveness of systemically administered drugs. A variety of MAbs are being pre-clinically evaluated for the diagnosis and treatment of PC. Novel recombinant antibody constructs hold a promising future in both the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. By genetic-engineering methods, several high affinity antibody fragments with optimum tumor targeting properties, such as higher functional affinity (divalent and multivalent scFvs) and blood residence time (good tumor localization with high radiolocalization index), have been generated. Animal models have permitted the in vivo assessment of these antibody-based reagents, therapeutic/diagnostic radionuclide, radiolabeling conditions, and efficacy of administration regimes. For PC, immunoscintigraphy using MAbs has taken new strides. The use of MAbs and their fragments for radioimmunoguided surgery and therapy of PC has shown encouraging results at preclinical levels and warrants further attention.

Streptabody, a high avidity molecule made by tetramerization of in vivo biotinylated, phage display-selected scFv fragments on streptavidin

Phage display is a powerful method of isolating of antibody fragments from highly diverse naive human antibody repertoires. However, the affinity of the selected antibodies is usually low and current methods of affinity maturation are complex and time-consuming. In this paper, we describe an easy way to increase the functional affinity (avidity) of single chain variable fragments (scFvs) by tetramerization on streptavidin, following their site-specific biotinylation by the enzyme BirA. Expression vectors have been constructed that enable addition of the 15 amino acid biotin acceptor domain (BAD) on selected scFvs. Different domains were cloned at the C-terminus of scFv in the following order: a semi-rigid hinge region (of 16 residues), the BAD, and a histidine tail. Two such recombinant scFvs directed against the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were previously selected from human non-immune and murine immune phage display libraries. The scFvs were first synthesized in Escherichia coli carrying the plasmid encoding the BirA enzyme, and then purified from the cytoplasmic extracts by Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. Purified biotinylated scFvs were tetramerized on the streptavidin molecule to create a streptabody (StAb). The avidity of various forms of anti-CEA StAbs, tested on purified CEA by competitive assays and surface plasmon resonance showed an increase of more than one log, as compared with the scFv monomer counterparts. Furthermore, the percentage of direct binding of 125I-labeled StAb or monomeric scFv on CEA-Sepharose beads and on CEA-expressing cells showed a dramatic increase for the tetramerized scFv (>80%), as compared with the monomeric scFv (<20%). Interestingly, the percentage binding of 125I-labeled anti-CEA StAbs to CEA-expressing colon carcinoma cells was definitely higher (>80%) than that obtained with a reference high affinity murine anti-CEA mAb (30%). Another advantage of using scFvs in a StAb format was demonstrated by Western blot analysis, where tetramerized anti-CEA scFv could detect a small quantity of CEA at a concentration 100-fold lower than the monomeric scFv.

The use of phage display for the development of tumour targeting agents

One way to improve the selectivity of therapeutic molecules in clinical oncology would be to target them on the tumour site, thereby sparing normal tissues. The development of targeted therapeutic methodologies relies in most cases on the availability of binding molecules specific for tumour-associated markers. The display of repertoires of polypeptides on the surface of filamentous phage, together with the efficient selection-amplification of the desired binding specificities using affinity capture, represents an efficient route towards the isolation of specific peptides and proteins that could act as vehicles for tumour targeting applications. Most investigations in this area of research have so far been performed with phage derived recombinant antibodies, which have been shown to selectively target tumour-associated markers both in preclinical animal models and in the clinic. However, future developments with other classes of polypeptides (small constrained peptides, small globular proteins) promise to be important for the selective delivery of therapeutic agents to the tumour site.

Radioimmunodiagnosis and therapy

Although promising results with radioimmunotherapy and radioimmunodiagnosis in haematological diseases, have been reported, they are less encouraging results in solid tumours. Experimental mathematical models suggest that optimization of antibody-based therapy and diagnosis is possible and that further research towards improvement is warranted. In this review, the major problems of radioimmunotherapy and diagnosis are discussed. Particular items adressed include tumour uptake of antibodies and antibody-fragments, the target/non-target ratio, immunogenicity and the selection of radionuclides.

Generating improved single-chain Fv molecules for tumor targeting

Due to their ease of isolation from phage display libraries and their ability to recognize conserved antigens, single-chain Fv (scFv) molecules are rapidly becoming commonplace. However, the monovalent nature of the scFv molecule often dictates, at best, transient interactions with target antigens when molecules with moderate to low affinity are employed. This, along with their rapid elimination from circulation, has limited the utility of scFv molecules for applications in the fields of cancer imaging and therapy. Recently, a number of strategies, including affinity maturation and modification of size and valence, have been evaluated for improving the in vivo efficacy of scFv molecules. In this review, we describe a number of these methods and discuss some of the characteristics that may belong to an optimal antibody-based targeting vehicle.

A fully human antibody neutralising biologically active human TGFbeta2 for use in therapy

Phage display provides a methodology for obtaining fully human antibodies directed against human transforming growth factor-beta (TGFbeta) suitable for the treatment of fibrotic disorders. The strategy employed was to isolate a human single chain Fv (scFv) fragment that neutralises human TGFbeta2 from a phage display repertoire, convert it into a human IgG4 and then determine its TGFbeta binding and neutralisation properties and its physical characteristics. Several scFv fragments binding to TGFbeta2 were isolated by panning of an antibody phage display repertoire, and subsequent chain shuffling of the selected V(H) domains with a library of V(L) domains. The three most potent neutralising antibodies were chosen for conversion to IgG4 format. The IgG4 antibodies were ranked for their ability to neutralise TGFbeta2 and the most potent, 6B1 IgG4, was chosen for further characterisation. 6B1 IgG4 has a high affinity for TGFbeta2 with a dissociation constant of 0.89 nM as determined using the BIAcore biosensor and only 9% cross-reactivity with TGFbeta3 (dissociation constant, 10 nM). There was no detectable binding to TGFbeta1. 6B1 IgG4 strongly neutralises (IC50 = 2 nM) the anti-proliferative effect of TGFbeta2 in bioassays using TF1 human erythroleukaemia cells. Similarly, there was strong inhibition of binding of TGFbeta2 to cell surface receptors in a radioreceptor assay using A549 cells. 6B1 IgG4 shows no detectable cross-reactivity with related or unrelated antigens by immunocytochemistry or ELISA. The 6B1 V(L) domain has entirely germline framework regions and the V(H) domain has only three non-germline framework amino acids. This, together with its fully human nature, should minimise any potential immunogenicity of 6B1 IgG4 when used in therapy of fibrotic diseases mediated by TGFbeta2.

Disruption of anthrax toxin binding with the use of human antibodies and competitive inhibitors

The protective antigen (PA83) of Bacillus anthracis is integral to the mechanism of anthrax toxicity. We have isolated a human single-chain Fv antibody fragment (scFv) that blocks binding of a fluorescently tagged protective antigen (PA) moiety to cell surface receptors. Several phage-displayed scFv were isolated from a naive library biopanned against PA83. Soluble, monomeric scFv were characterized for affinity and screened for their capacity to disrupt receptor-mediated binding of PA. Four unique scFv bound to PA83, as determined by surface plasmon resonance, the tightest binder exhibiting a Kd of 50 nM. Two scFv had similar affinities for natural PA83 and a novel, recombinant, 32-kDa carboxy-terminal PA fragment (PA32). Binding of scFv to green fluorescent protein fused to the amino-terminal 32-kDa fragment of B. anthracis edema factor, EGFP-EF32, was used to confirm specificity. Fusion of EGFP to PA32 facilitated development of a novel flow cytometric assay that showed that one of the scFv disrupted PA receptor binding. This method can now be used as a rapid assay for small molecule inhibitors of PA binding to cell receptors. The combined data presented suggest the potential utility of human scFv as prophylactics against anthrax poisoning. Moreover, recombinant PA32 may also be useful as a therapeutic agent to compete with anthrax toxins for cellular receptors during active infection.

Antigen specificity and tumour targeting efficiency of a human carcinoembryonic antigen-specific scFv and affinity-matured derivatives

We have examined the biological properties of CEA6, a human carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA)-specific single-chain Fv (scFv) isolated by phage display, and five related clones derived by affinity maturation and selected for improved off-rate (Koff). All clones bind strongly and specifically to CEA-positive human tumours by immunocytochemistry and show negligible cross-reactivity with normal colon. Flow cytometry of scFv on human liver cells indicates a shift in fine epitope specificity resulting from mutagenesis. All monomeric scFv have been radioiodinated, retaining effectively full binding activity. A single intravenous injection into nude mice bearing human colon tumour xenografts confirms tumour targeting in all cases. As reported in other studies, the kidney is the main route of elimination of scFv at early time points. Tumour binding of the parental antibody CEA6 consistently gives the highest tumour-blood ratios at 24 h (mean 16:1). Clone TO6D11, which has a sevenfold reduced Koff relative to CEA6, showed no difference in tumour uptake at 24 h but persisted at the tumour site for longer than CEA6. This study demonstrates a possible correlation between binding affinity and tumour residence time when examined in this model.

Strategies for selection of antibodies by phage display

Phage antibody-display is rapidly maturing into a very effective tool for antibody generation. The recent development of large primary antibody libraries enables selection of antibodies against most targets in under two weeks and many of these antibodies have relatively high (nanomolar) affinities. Successful strategies have also been developed to affinity mature these antibodies into the picomolar range if required.

Pathfinder selection: in situ isolation of novel antibodies

BACKGROUND

To devise a novel method for targeted recovery of binding molecules from phage libraries.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the potential of the novel technique to the selection of human antibodies to specific cell surface antigens in situ, including carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), E- and P-selectins, and to the selection of novel antibodies which recognize immobilized purified antigen.

STUDY DESIGN

Recovery of these antibodies from a naive human scFv library was effected using a 'pathfinder' molecule. Monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies, as well as natural ligands can serve as pathfinders when conjugated directly or indirectly to horseradish peroxidase (HRP). In the presence of biotin tyramine these molecules catalyze biotinylation of phage binding in close proximity to the target antigen, allowing specific recovery of 'tagged' phage from the total population using streptavidin. In this way, phage binding to the target itself, or in its immediate proximity, are selectively recovered.

RESULTS

This work demonstrates that an existing binding specificity can be used as a tool to select phage libraries in situ, obviating the need to purify or clone the target.

CONCLUSION

The speed and technical simplicity of this method should find a wide range of applications to phage display libraries, and could be applied to the discovery of new receptors and the elucidation of protein-protein interactions.