title: Generation of antibodies against membrane proteins.
abstract: The monoclonal antibody has become an important therapeutic in the treatment of both hematological malignancies and solid tumors. The recent success of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) has broadened the extent of the potential target molecules in cancer immunotherapy. As a result, even molecules of low abundance have become targets for cytotoxic reagents. The multi-pass membrane proteins are an emerging target for the next generation antibody therapeutics. One outstanding challenge is the difficulty in preparing a sufficient amount of these membrane proteins so as to be able to generate the functional antibody. We have pursued the expression of various membrane proteins on the baculovirus particle and the utilization of displayed protein for immunization. The strong antigenicity of the virus acts either as a friend or foe in the making of an efficient antibody against an immunologically tolerant antigen. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Recent advances in molecular engineering of antibody.
authors.affiliation: Department of Quantitative Biology and Medicine, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8904, Japan. Electronic address: hamakubo@qbm.rcast.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hamakubo
authors.affiliation: Department of Quantitative Biology and Medicine, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8904, Japan; Institute of Immunology Co. Ltd, .1-1-10 Koraku, Bunkyo, Tokyo 112-0004, Japan.
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kusano-Arai
authors.affiliation: Department of Quantitative Biology and Medicine, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8904, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Iwanari
keywords: Baculovirus; Membrane protein; Monoclonal antibody