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Fischman S, Levin I, Rondeau JM, Štrajbl M, Lehmann S, Huber T, Nimrod G, Cebe R, Omer D, Kovarik J, Bernstein S, Sasson Y, Demishtein A, Shlamkovich T, Bluvshtein O, Grossman N, Barak-Fuchs R, Zhenin M, Fastman Y, Twito S, Vana T, Zur N, Ofran Y. "Redirecting an anti-IL-1β antibody to bind a new, unrelated and computationally predicted epitope on hIL-17A". Commun Biol 2023; 6:997. [PMID: 37773269 PMCID: PMC10542344 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05369-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Antibody engineering technology is at the forefront of therapeutic antibody development. The primary goal for engineering a therapeutic antibody is the generation of an antibody with a desired specificity, affinity, function, and developability profile. Mature antibodies are considered antigen specific, which may preclude their use as a starting point for antibody engineering. Here, we explore the plasticity of mature antibodies by engineering novel specificity and function to a pre-selected antibody template. Using a small, focused library, we engineered AAL160, an anti-IL-1β antibody, to bind the unrelated antigen IL-17A, with the introduction of seven mutations. The final redesigned antibody, 11.003, retains favorable biophysical properties, binds IL-17A with sub-nanomolar affinity, inhibits IL-17A binding to its cognate receptor and is functional in a cell-based assay. The epitope of the engineered antibody can be computationally predicted based on the sequence of the template antibody, as is confirmed by the crystal structure of the 11.003/IL-17A complex. The structures of the 11.003/IL-17A and the AAL160/IL-1β complexes highlight the contribution of germline residues to the paratopes of both the template and re-designed antibody. This case study suggests that the inherent plasticity of antibodies allows for re-engineering of mature antibodies to new targets, while maintaining desirable developability profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Itay Levin
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- Enzymit LTD, Ness Ziona, Israel
| | | | | | - Sylvie Lehmann
- Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Thomas Huber
- Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
- Ridgelinediscovery, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | - Régis Cebe
- Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Dotan Omer
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- EmendoBio Inc., Rehovot, Israel
| | - Jiri Kovarik
- Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Alik Demishtein
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- Anima Biotech, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | | | - Olga Bluvshtein
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- Enzymit LTD, Ness Ziona, Israel
| | | | | | | | | | - Shir Twito
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- Enzymit LTD, Ness Ziona, Israel
| | - Tal Vana
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Nevet Zur
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Yanay Ofran
- Biolojic Design LTD, Rehovot, Israel
- The Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Nanotechnology Building, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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