Albumin-binding domain from Streptococcus zooepidemicus protein Zag as a novel strategy to improve the half-life of therapeutic proteins.

Recombinant antibody fragments belong to the promising class of biopharmaceuticals with high potential for future therapeutic applications. However, due to their small size they are rapidly cleared from circulation. Binding to serum proteins can be an effective approach to improve pharmacokinetic properties of short half-life molecules. Herein, we have investigated the Zag albumin-binding domain (ABD) derived from Streptococcus zooepidemicus as a novel strategy to improve the pharmacokinetic properties of therapeutic molecules. To validate our approach, the Zag ABD was fused with an anti-TNFα single-domain antibody (sdAb). Our results demonstrated that the sdAb-Zag fusion protein was highly expressed and specifically recognizes human, rat and mouse serum albumins with affinities in the nanomolar range. Moreover, data also demonstrated that the sdAb activity against the therapeutic target (TNFα) was not affected when fused with Zag ABD. Importantly, the Zag ABD increased the sdAb half-life ∼39-fold (47min for sdAb versus 31h for sdAb-Zag). These findings demonstrate that the Zag ABD fusion is a promising approach to increase the half-life of small recombinant antibodies molecules without affecting their therapeutic efficacy. Moreover, the present study strongly suggests that the Zag ABD fusion strategy can be potentially used as a universal method to improve the pharmokinetics properties of many others therapeutics proteins and peptides in order to improve their dosing schedule and clinical effects.

Development of synthetic light-chain antibodies as novel and potent HIV fusion inhibitors.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a novel and potent fusion inhibitor of HIV infection based on a rational strategy for synthetic antibody library construction. DESIGN: The reduced molecular weight of single-domain antibodies (sdAbs) allows targeting of cryptic epitopes, the most conserved and critical ones in the context of HIV entry. Heavy-chain sdAbs from camelids are particularly suited for this type of epitope recognition because of the presence of long and flexible antigen-binding regions [complementary-determining regions (CDRs)]. METHODS: We translated camelid CDR features to a rabbit light-chain variable domain (VL) and constructed a library of minimal antibody fragments with elongated CDRs. Additionally to elongation, CDRs' variability was restricted to binding favorable amino acids to potentiate the selection of high-affinity sdAbs. The synthetic library was screened against a conserved, hidden, and crucial-to-fusion sequence on the heptad-repeat 1 (HR1) region of the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein. RESULTS: Two anti-HR1 VLs, named F63 and D104, strongly inhibited laboratory-adapted HIV-1 infectivity. F63 also inhibited infectivity of HIV-1 and HIV-2 primary isolates similarly to the Food and Drug Administration-approved fusion inhibitor T-20 and HIV-1 strains resistant to T-20. Moreover, epitope mapping of F63 revealed a novel target sequence within the highly conserved hydrophobic pocket of HR1. F63 was also capable of interacting with viral and cell lipid membrane models, a property previously associated with T-20's inhibitory mechanism. CONCLUSION: In summary, to our best knowledge, we developed the first potent and broad VL sdAb fusion inhibitor of HIV infection. Our study also gives insights into engineering strategies that could be explored to enhance the development of antiviral drugs.

Biodistribution of a (67)Ga-labeled anti-TNF VHH single-domain antibody containing a bacterial albumin-binding domain (Zag).

INTRODUCTION: Small domain antibodies (sdAbs) present high potential for both molecular in vivo imaging and therapy. Owing to the low molecular weight they are rapidly cleared from blood circulation, and new strategies to extend their half-lifes are needed for therapeutic applications. We have selected a bacterial albumin-binding domain (ABD) from protein Zag to be fused to an anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) single variable-domain heavy-chain region antibody (VHH) to delay blood clearance, and evaluated the biodistribution profile of the fusion protein. METHODS: The anti-TNF VHH and the fusion protein VHH-Zag were conjugated to S-2-(4-isothiocyanatobenzyl)-1,4,7-triazacyclononane-1,4,7-triacetic acid (p-SCN-Bn-NOTA). The anti-TNF and albumin-binding properties of the conjugates NOTA-VHH and NOTA-VHH-Zag were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The radioconjugates (67)Ga-NOTA-VHH and (67)Ga-NOTA-VHH-Zag were obtained by reaction of (67)GaCl3 with the corresponding conjugates at room temperature. Biodistribution studies were performed in healthy female CD-1 mice. RESULTS: The immunoreactivity of the VHH-based proteins is preserved upon conjugation to NOTA as well as after radiometallation. The radiochemical purity of the radioconjugates was higher than 95% as determined by ITLC-SG after purification by gel filtration. The biodistribution studies showed that the Zag domain affected the pharmacokinetic properties of VHH, with impressive differences in blood clearance (0.028 ± 0.004 vs 1.7 ± 0.8 % I.A./g) and total excretion (97.8 ± 0.6 vs 25.5 ± 2.1 % I.A.) for (67)Ga-NOTA-VHH and (67)Ga-NOTA-VHH-Zag, respectively, at 24h p.i. CONCLUSION: The Zag domain prolonged the circulation time of VHH by reducing the blood clearance of the labeled fusion protein (67)Ga-NOTA-VHH-Zag. In this way, the anti-TNF VHH in fusion with the Zag ABD presents a higher therapeutic potential than the unmodified VHH.

Novel chimerical endolysins with broad antimicrobial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Due to their bacterial lytic action, bacteriophage endolysins have recently gained great attention as a potential alternative to antibiotics in the combat of Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria, particularly those displaying multidrug resistance. However, large-scale production and purification of endolysins is frequently impaired due to their low solubility. In addition, a large number of endolysins appear to exhibit reduced lytic efficacy when compared with their action during phage infection. Here, we took advantage of the high solubility of two recently characterized enterococcal endolysins to construct chimeras targeting Staphylococcus aureus. The putative cell wall binding domain of these endolysins was substituted by that of a staphylococcal endolysin that showed poor solubility. Under appropriate conditions the resulting chimeras presented the high solubility of the parental enterococcal endolysins. In addition, they proved to be broadly active against a collection of the most relevant methicillin-resistant S. aureus epidemic clones and against other Gram-positive pathogens. Thus, fusion of endolysin domains of heterologous origin seems to be a suitable approach to design new potent endolysins with changed and/or extended lytic spectrum that are amenable to large-scale production.

Is prnt a pseudogene? Identification of ram Prt in testis and ejaculated spermatozoa.

A hallmark of prion diseases or transmissible spongiform encephalopaties is the conversion of the cellular prion protein (PrP(C)), expressed by the prion gene (prnp), into an abnormally folded isoform (PrP(Sc)) with amyloid-like features that causes scrapie in sheep among other diseases. prnp together with prnd (which encodes a prion-like protein designated as Doppel), and prnt (that encodes the prion protein testis specific--Prt) with sprn (shadow of prion protein gene, that encodes Shadoo or Sho) genes, constitute the "prion gene complex". Whereas a role for prnd in the proper functioning of male reproductive system has been confirmed, the function of prnt, a recently discovered prion family gene, comprises a conundrum leading to the assumption that ruminant prnt is a pseudogene with no protein expression. The main objective of the present study was to identify Prt localization in the ram reproductive system and simultaneously to elucidate if ovine prnt gene is transcribed into protein-coding RNA. Moreover, as Prt is a prnp-related protein, the amyloid propensity was also tested for ovine and caprine Prt. Recombinant Prt was used to immunize BALB/c mice, and the anti-Prt polyclonal antibody (APPA) immune response was evaluated by ELISA and Western Blot. When tested by indirect immunofluorescence, APPA showed high avidity to the ram sperm head apical ridge subdomain, before and after induced capacitation, but did not show the same behavior against goat spermatozoa, suggesting high antibody specificity against ovine-Prt. Prt was also found in the testis when assayed by immunohistochemistry during ram spermatogenesis, where spermatogonia, spermatocytes, spermatids and spermatozoa, stained positive. These observations strongly suggest ovine prnt to be a translated protein-coding gene, pointing to a role for Prt protein in the ram reproductive physiology. Besides, caprine Prt appears to exhibit a higher amyloid propensity than ovine Prt, mostly associated with its phenylalanine residue.