Candidate Biomarkers for Targeting in Type 1 Diabetes; A Bioinformatic Analysis of Pancreatic Cell Surface Antigens.

OBJECTIVE: Type 1 diabetes (T1Ds) is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system invades and destroys insulin-producing cells. Nevertheless, at the time of diagnosis, about 30-40% of pancreatic beta cells are healthy and capable of producing insulin. Bi-specific antibodies, chimeric antigen receptor regulatory T cells (CAR-Treg cells), and labeled antibodies could be a new emerging option for the treatment or diagnosis of type I diabetic patients. The aim of the study is to choose appropriate cell surface antigens in the pancreas tissue for generating an antibody for type I diabetic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this bioinformatics study, we extracted pancreas-specific proteins from two large databases; the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) and Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) Portal. Pancreatic-enriched genes were chosen and narrowed down by Protter software for the investigation of accessible extracellular domains. The immunohistochemistry (IHC) data of the protein atlas database were used to evaluate the protein expression of selected antigens. We explored the function of candidate antigens by using the GeneCards database to evaluate the potential dysfunction or activation/hyperactivation of antigens after antibody binding. RESULTS: The results showed 429 genes are highly expressed in the pancreas tissue. Also, eighteen genes encoded plasma membrane proteins that have high expression in the microarray (GEO) dataset. Our results introduced four structural proteins, including NPHS1, KIRREL2, GP2, and CUZD1, among all seventeen candidate proteins. CONCLUSION: The presented antigens can potentially be used to produce specific pancreatic antibodies that guide CARTreg, bi-specific, or labeling molecules to the pancreas for treatment, detection, or other molecular targeted therapy scopes for type I diabetes.

Development of an ostrich-derived single-chain variable fragment (scFv) against PTPRN extracellular domain.

In type 1 diabetes, the immune system destroys pancreatic beta cells in an autoimmune condition. To overcome this disease, a specific monoclonal antibody that binds to pancreatic beta cells could be used for targeted immunotherapy. Protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor N (PTPRN) is one of the important surface antigen candidates. Due to its high sequence homology among mammals, so far, no single-chain monoclonal antibody has been produced against this receptor. In this study, we developed a novel single-chain variable fragment (scFv) against the PTPRN extracellular domain. To this aim, ostrich species was used as a host is far phylogenetically birds from mammals to construct a phage display library for the first time. An ostrich-derived scfv phage display library was prepared and biopanning steps were done to enrich and screen for isolating the best anti-PTPRN binders. An scFv with appropriate affinity and specificity to the PTPRN extracellular domain was selected and characterized by ELISA, western blotting, and flow cytometry. The anti-PTPRN scFv developed in this study could be introduced as an effective tool that can pave the way for the creation of antibody-based targeting systems in cooperation with the detection and therapy of type I diabetes.

Production and characterization of a camelid single domain anti-CD22 antibody conjugated to DM1.

Antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) with twelve FDA approved drugs, known as a novel category of anti-neoplastic treatment created to merge the monoclonal antibody specificity with cytotoxicity effect of chemotherapy. However, despite many undeniable advantages, ADCs face certain problems, including insufficient internalization after binding, complex structures and large size of full antibodies especially in targeting of solid tumors. Camelid single domain antibody fragments (Nanobody®) offer solutions to this challenge by providing nanoscale size, high solubility and excellent stability, recombinant expression in bacteria, in vivo enhanced tissue penetration, and conjugation advantages. Here, an anti-human CD22 Nanobody was expressed in E.coli cells and conjugated to Mertansine (DM1) as a cytotoxic payload. The anti-CD22 Nanobody was expressed and purified by Ni-NTA resin. DM1 conjugated anti-CD22 Nanobody was generated by conjugation of SMCC-DM1 to Nanobody lysine groups. The conjugates were characterized using SDS-PAGE and Capillary electrophoresis (CE-SDS), RP-HPLC, and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Additionally, flow cytometry analysis and a competition ELISA were carried out for binding evaluation. Finally, cytotoxicity of conjugates on Raji and Jurkat cell lines was assessed. The drug-to-antibody ratio (DAR) of conjugates was calculated 2.04 using UV spectrometry. SDS-PAGE, CE-SDS, HPLC, and mass spectrometry confirmed conjugation of DM1 to the Nanobody. The obtained results showed the anti-CD22 Nanobody cytotoxicity was enhanced almost 80% by conjugation with DM1. The binding of conjugates was similar to the non-conjugated anti-CD22 Nanobody in flow cytometry experiments. Concludingly, this study successfully suggest that the DM1 conjugated anti-CD22 Nanobody can be used as a novel tumor specific drug delivery system.

Site-specific transgene integration in chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells and natural killer (NK) cells are genetically engineered immune cells that can detect target antigens on the surface of target cells and eliminate them following adoptive transfer. Recent progress in CAR-based therapies has led to outstanding clinical success in certain patients with leukemias and lymphomas and offered therapeutic benefits to those resistant to conventional therapies. The universal approach to stable CAR transgene delivery into the T/NK cells is the use of viral particles. Such approaches mediate semi-random transgene insertions spanning the entire genome with a high preference for integration into sites surrounding highly-expressed genes and active loci. Regardless of the variable CAR expression level based on the integration site of the CAR transgene, foreign integrated DNA fragments may affect the neighboring endogenous genes and chromatin structure and potentially change a transduced T/NK cell behavior and function or even favor cellular transformation. In contrast, site-specific integration of CAR constructs using recent genome-editing technologies could overcome the limitations and disadvantages of universal random gene integration. Herein, we explain random and site-specific integration of CAR transgenes in CAR-T/NK cell therapies. Also, we tend to summarize the methods for site-specific integration as well as the clinical outcomes of certain gene disruptions or enhancements due to CAR transgene integration. Also, the advantages and limitations of using site-specific integration methods are discussed in this review. Ultimately, we will introduce the genomic safe harbor (GSH) standards and suggest some appropriate safety prospects for CAR integration in CAR-T/NK cell therapies.

Enhanced solubility, oral bioavailability and anti-osteoporotic effects of raloxifene HCl in ovariectomized rats by Igepal CO-890 nanomicelles.

The purpose of the present study was to enhance the bioavailability and anti-osteoporotic effects of raloxifene HCl (RH) by increasing its solubility and inhibition of the p-glycoprotein pump using surfactant micelles of Igepal CO-890. The micelles were prepared by the direct method and their critical micellar concentration, drug dissolution rate, saturated solubility, drug loading and surface morphology were defined. The cytotoxicity of Igepal CO-890 and its ability to inhibit the p-glycoprotein pump were studied on Caco-2 cells. The pharmacokinetic parameters were analyzed by oral administration of a single dose of 15 mg/kg in Wistar rats. Anti-osteoporotic effects were studied by measuring the calcium, phosphorous, and uterus weight of rats after one month of oral administration of 6 mg/kg/day of RH in ovariectomized rats. Igepal CO-890 micelles enhanced the RH solubility by about two-fold. The FT-IR and DSC studies indicated no interaction between the drug and the surfactant. XRD spectrum showed an amorphous state of RH in the micelles. The p-glycoprotein pump was inhibited by Igepal CO-890 in Caco-2 cells comparable to verapamil. Micelles increased the uterine weight and decreased the serum calcium and phosphorus significantly compared to the untreated drug. Oral bioavailability of RH increased about four-fold by nanomicelles.