title: Boosting antibody developability through rational sequence optimization.
abstract: The application of monoclonal antibodies as commercial therapeutics poses substantial demands on stability and properties of an antibody. Therapeutic molecules that exhibit favorable properties increase the success rate in development. However, it is not yet fully understood how the protein sequences of an antibody translates into favorable in vitro molecule properties. In this work, computational design strategies based on heuristic sequence analysis were used to systematically modify an antibody that exhibited a tendency to precipitation in vitro. The resulting series of closely related antibodies showed improved stability as assessed by biophysical methods and long-term stability experiments. As a notable observation, expression levels also improved in comparison with the wild-type candidate. The methods employed to optimize the protein sequences, as well as the biophysical data used to determine the effect on stability under conditions commonly used in the formulation of therapeutic proteins, are described. Together, the experimental and computational data led to consistent conclusions regarding the effect of the introduced mutations. Our approach exemplifies how computational methods can be used to guide antibody optimization for increased stability.
authors.affiliation: a Division Research Germany; Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG ; Biberach/Riss , Germany.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Seeliger
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Litzenburger
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Spitz
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hoerer
authors.forename: Michaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Blech
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Enenkel
authors.forename: Joey M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Studts
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Garidel
authors.forename: Anne R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Karow
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D015202:Protein Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D055550:Protein Stability
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal
keywords: CMC, chemistry, manufacturing and control; DSC, differential scanning calorimetry; HC, heavy chain; LC, light chain; PK, pharmacokinetics; RALS, right angle light scattering; WT, wild-type; biopharmaceuticals; design; developability; mAb, monoclonal antibody; monoclonal antibodies; prediction; protein engineering; stability; thermal stability