IL-26 Potentiates Type 2 Skin Inflammation in the Presence of IL-1ß.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a debilitating inflammatory skin disorder. Biologics targeting the IL-4/IL-13 axis are effective in AD, but there is still a large proportion of patients who do not respond to IL-4R blockade. Further exploration of potentially pathogenic T-cell-derived cytokines in AD may lead to new effective treatments. This study aimed to investigate the downstream effects of IL-26 on skin in the context of type 2 skin inflammation. We found that IL-26 alone exhibited limited inflammatory activity in the skin. However, in the presence of IL-1ß, IL-26 potentiated the secretion of TSLP, CXCL1, and CCL20 from human epidermis through Jak/signal transducer and activator of transcription signaling. Moreover, in an in vivo AD-like skin inflammation model, IL-26 exacerbated skin pathology and locally increased type 2 cytokines, most notably of IL13 in skin T helper cells. Neutralization of IL-1ß abrogated IL-26-mediated effects, indicating that the presence of IL-1ß is required for full IL-26 downstream action in vivo. These findings suggest that the presence of IL-1ß enables IL-26 to be a key amplifier of inflammation in the skin. As such, IL-26 may contribute to the development and pathogenesis of inflammatory skin disorders such as AD.

Deep resolution of clinical, cellular, and transcriptomic inflammatory markers during 52 weeks of IL-17A inhibition by secukinumab.

BACKGROUND: Secukinumab, an anti-IL-17A monoclonal antibody, induces histological and molecular resolution of psoriatic plaques by 12 weeks. However, the long-term effects of secukinumab on molecular resolution of psoriatic inflammation remain unknown. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the molecular resolution of psoriasis following 52-weeks of secukinumab treatment. METHODS: NCT01537432 was a two-part Phase 2, randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, 52-week study of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis receiving secukinumab 300 mg. Psoriatic lesional and non-lesional skin biopsies were obtained at baseline, Week 12, and Week 52, and the composition of the residual disease genomic profile (RDGP, i.e., "molecular scar") of biopsies from secukinumab-responders was analysed. RESULTS: After 52 weeks of treatment, 14/24 enrolled patients were considered clinical responders (≥75% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index [PASI]; PASI75), 4/24 were considered non-responders (

Investigation of plaque psoriasis relapse after secukinumab withdrawal in patients from two Phase 3 studies.

BACKGROUND: Secukinumab is effective against a range of psoriatic manifestations. Investigating psoriasis (PsO) relapse following secukinumab discontinuation could provide insights into long-term PsO remission. OBJECTIVE: To examine PsO relapse rates upon treatment discontinuation following one year of secukinumab treatment. METHODS: This study (NCT01544595) is an extension of the Phase 3 ERASURE/FIXTURE studies in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque PsO. After one year of secukinumab 300 mg or 150 mg treatment, Week 52 PASI75 responders were randomly assigned to receive placebo. Upon relapse, patients receiving placebo were switched to their previous secukinumab dose. The study primary outcome was non-relapse rate after secukinumab withdrawal. RESULTS: Following the last dose of secukinumab 300 mg, 21% and 10% of patients who switched to placebo did not relapse at one and two years after discontinuation, respectively. Patients who received secukinumab 150 mg for one year showed a lower proportion of non-relapse following treatment discontinuation (14% and 6%) at one and two years, respectively). Non-relapsing patients maintained low mean PASI (2.8) at one year drug-free versus baseline (20.9); 1.7 at two years drug-free versus baseline (19.2). Disease duration (P=0.017) and severity (P=0.022) were significantly associated with time-to-relapse in patients initially treated with secukinumab 300 mg; patients with shorter disease duration and lower baseline PASI remained relapse-free for longer. CONCLUSIONS: Following discontinuation of secukinumab, a proportion of patients stayed relapse-free. Further, patients with shorter disease duration remained relapse-free for longer, suggesting that earlier treatment with secukinumab may result in long-term clinical control of moderate-to-severe PsO.

Secukinumab versus guselkumab in the complete resolution of ustekinumab-resistant psoriatic plaques: The ARROW study.

Interleukin (IL)-23-independent IL-17A production has been suggested to be involved in persistent manifestations of psoriatic disease, including anti-IL-12/23-refractory psoriatic plaques; this study aimed to test this hypothesis by investigating the clinical and molecular effects of direct IL-17A (with secukinumab) versus selective IL-23 inhibition (with guselkumab) in patients with anti-IL-12/23 (ustekinumab)-refractory psoriatic plaques. A 16-week, randomized, open-label, parallel-group, Phase IIa study (ARROW, NCT03553823) was conducted in patients with ≥1 active psoriatic plaque (total clinical score [TCS] ≥6) at screening despite treatment with ustekinumab, and a Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score 1-10. Patients were randomized 1:1 to receive secukinumab 300 mg (n = 20) or guselkumab 100 mg (n = 20). Biopsies from one refractory ('target plaque') were obtained at baseline and Week 16. The primary endpoint was the proportion of patients whose ustekinumab-refractory target plaque achieved clear/almost clear status (TCS 0-2) at Week 16. Transcriptomic and histological analyses were conducted on target plaques to determine the molecular effects of direct IL-17A versus selective IL-23 inhibition. At Week 16, target plaque clear/almost clear status was achieved in 60.0% of patients treated with secukinumab versus 40.0% of patients treated with guselkumab (p = 0.1715). Molecular analyses identified that secukinumab modulated a greater proportion of psoriasis disease transcriptome genes (72.1% vs. 48.0%) and resulted in more histological responders (72.2% vs. 53.3%) compared with guselkumab. Secukinumab demonstrated a greater clinical and molecular effect on ustekinumab-refractory psoriatic plaques versus guselkumab. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that IL-23-independent IL-17 mechanisms may be relevant to the inflammation driving refractory manifestations of psoriasis.

Secukinumab demonstrates superiority over narrow-band ultraviolet B phototherapy in new-onset moderate to severe plaque psoriasis patients: Week 52 results from the STEPIn study.

BACKGROUND: Biologic treatments have been studied mainly in patients with a long-term history of psoriasis and previous treatment failures. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this primary analysis of the STEPIn study is to determine whether early intervention with secukinumab in patients with new-onset moderate to severe plaque psoriasis is superior to standard of care treatment with narrow band ultraviolet B (nb-UVB) phototherapy. METHODS: The STEPIn study is a randomized, open-label, multicentre study to investigate early intervention with 52 weeks of secukinumab 300 mg administered subcutaneously versus standard treatment with nb-UVB phototherapy in patients with new-onset (≤12 months) moderate to severe plaque psoriasis (NCT03020199). The primary and additional secondary endpoints were ≥90% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI 90) at Week 52 and Investigator's Global Assessment (IGA mod 2011) 0/1 response at Week 52, respectively. RESULTS: In the secukinumab and nb-UVB study arms, 77/80 and 76/80 randomized patients received at least one dose of study treatment, respectively. The primary endpoint was achieved: 91.1% (70/77) of patients achieved a PASI 90 response at Week 52 in the secukinumab arm versus 42.3% (32/76) in the nb-UVB arm (p < 0.0001, odds ratio [OR] estimate [95% confidence intervals, CI] = 16.3 [5.6, 46.9]). The additional secondary endpoint was also achieved: 85.7% of patients achieved an IGA 0/1 response at Week 52 in the secukinumab arm versus 36.8% in the nb-UVB arm (p < 0.0001). The safety data were consistent with the safety profiles of secukinumab and nb-UVB with no new or unexpected safety signals. CONCLUSIONS: Secukinumab was superior to nb-UVB in treating patients with new-onset moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. The high and sustained skin clearance observed indicates that biologic treatment for psoriasis may be more effective if used early in the disease course.

IL-17-induced dimerization of IL-17RA drives the formation of the IL-17 signalosome to potentiate signaling.

Signaling through innate immune receptors such as the Toll-like receptor (TLR)/interleukin-1 receptor (IL-1R) superfamily proceeds via the assembly of large membrane-proximal complexes or "signalosomes." Although structurally distinct, the IL-17 receptor family triggers cellular responses that are typical of innate immune receptors. The IL-17RA receptor subunit is shared by several members of the IL-17 family. Using a combination of crystallographic, biophysical, and mutational studies, we show that IL-17A, IL-17F, and IL-17A/F induce IL-17RA dimerization. X-ray analysis of the heteromeric IL-17A complex with the extracellular domains of the IL-17RA and IL-17RC receptors reveals that cytokine-induced IL-17RA dimerization leads to the formation of a 2:2:2 hexameric signaling assembly. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the formation of the IL-17 signalosome potentiates IL-17-induced IL-36γ and CXCL1 mRNA expression in human keratinocytes, compared with a dimerization-defective IL-17RA variant.

IL-17A is a pertinent therapeutic target for moderate-to-severe hidradenitis suppurativa: Combined results from a pre-clinical and phase II proof-of-concept study.

Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) is a chronic, recurrent, inflammatory, follicular skin disease whose pathology is complex and not fully understood. The objective of this study was to elucidate the role of IL-17A in moderate-to-severe HS. Transcriptomic and histological analyses were conducted on ex vivo HS (n = 19; lesional and non-lesional) and healthy control (n = 8) skin biopsies. Further, a Phase II exploratory, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was carried out in moderate-to-severe HS patients. Patients were treated with either CJM112 300 mg (n = 33), a fully human anti-IL-17A IgG1/κ monoclonal antibody, or placebo (n = 33). The main outcome of the translational analyses was to identify IL-17A-producing cells and indications of IL-17A activity in HS lesional skin. The primary objective of the clinical study was to determine the efficacy of CJM112 in moderate-to-severe HS patients by HS-Physician Global Assessment (HS-PGA) responder rate at Week 16. Transcriptomic and histopathologic analyses revealed the presence of heterogeneous cell types in HS lesional skin; IL-17A gene signatures were increased in HS lesional vs non-lesional or healthy skin. High expression of IL-17A was localized to T cells, neutrophils, and mast cells, confirming the transcriptional data. Clinically, the proportion of Week 16 HS-PGA responders was significantly higher (p = 0.03) in the CJM112 group vs placebo (32.3% vs 12.5%). This study elucidated the role of the IL-17A pathway in HS pathogenesis and clinically validated the IL-17A pathway in moderate-to-severe HS patients in a proof-of-concept study using the anti-IL-17A-specific antibody CJM112.

Secukinumab for the treatment of psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and axial spondyloarthritis: Physical and pharmacological properties underlie the observed clinical efficacy and safety.

Psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and axial spondyloarthritis are systemic inflammatory diseases, each commonly manifesting as a spectrum of symptoms, complications, and comorbidities that arise differently in individual patients. Drugs targeting inflammatory cytokines common to the pathogenesis of each of these conditions have been developed, although their specific actions in the different tissues involved are variable. For a drug to be effective, it must be efficiently delivered to and locally bioactive in disease-relevant tissues. Detailed clinical data shed light on the therapeutic effects of individual biologics on specific domains or clinical manifestations of disease and assist in guiding treatment decisions. Pharmacologic, molecular, and functional properties of drugs strongly impact their observed safety and efficacy, and an understanding of these properties provides complementary insight. Secukinumab, a fully human monoclonal IgG1/κ antibody selectively targeting interleukin (IL)-17A, has been in clinical use for >6 years in the treatment of moderate to severe psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and both radiographic (also known as ankylosing spondylitis) and nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis. In this review, we discuss pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data for secukinumab to introduce clinicians to the pharmacological properties of this widely used drug. Understanding how these properties affect the observed clinical efficacy, safety, and tolerability of this drug in the treatment of IL-17A-mediated systemic inflammatory diseases is important for all physicians treating these conditions.

Structural Analysis Reveals that the Cytokine IL-17F Forms a Homodimeric Complex with Receptor IL-17RC to Drive IL-17RA-Independent Signaling.

Interleukin-17A (IL-17A), IL-17F, and IL-17A/F heterodimers are key cytokines of the innate and adaptive immune response. Dysregulation of the IL-17 pathway contributes to immune pathology, and it is therefore important to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that govern IL-17 recognition and signaling. The receptor IL-17RC is thought to act in concert with IL-17RA to transduce IL-17A-, IL-17F-, and IL-17A/F-mediated signals. We report the crystal structure of the extracellular domain of human IL-17RC in complex with IL-17F. In contrast to the expected model, we found that IL-17RC formed a symmetrical 2:1 complex with IL-17F, thus competing with IL-17RA for cytokine binding. Using biophysical techniques, we showed that IL-17A and IL-17A/F also form 2:1 complexes with IL-17RC, suggesting the possibility of IL-17RA-independent IL-17 signaling pathways. The crystal structure of the IL-17RC:IL-17F complex provides a structural basis for IL-17F signaling through IL-17RC, with potential therapeutic applications for respiratory allergy and inflammatory bowel diseases.

T cell epitope mapping of secukinumab and ixekizumab in healthy donors.

Secukinumab, a human monoclonal antibody that selectively neutralizes IL-17A, has consistently shown low anti-drug antibody responses in patients with psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis. Secukinumab has also shown lower in vitro immunogenicity potential compared with other monoclonal antibodies used to treat psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and a significantly lower in vitro T cell precursor frequency compared with ixekizumab, which targets the same antigen. Here, secukinumab and ixekizumab were further examined regarding their specific T cell epitopes. Secukinumab- or ixekizumab-specific CD4 T cell lines were generated from 31 healthy, treatment-naïve donors via 28-day co-culture with mature monocyte-derived dendritic cells exposed to either antibody. Consistent with previous data, the frequency of preexisting T cells to secukinumab was significantly lower as compared with ixekizumab. Only two T cell lines from two different donors could be derived for secukinumab, but no specific T cell epitope was identified. In contrast, 32 T cell lines from eight donors were obtained for ixekizumab. For 11 of these T cell lines, the specific T cell epitopes could be identified and confirmed by major histocompatibility complex-associated peptide proteomics as being naturally presented peptides. All identified T cell epitopes cluster in four main regions that are overlapping with the complementarity-determining regions HCDR3, LCDR1, LCDR2 and LCDR3. Interestingly, ixekizumab CDRs contain amino acids that are not found in any of the germline family members. These amino acids may be associated with the higher number of T cell epitopes identified for ixekizumab light chain and may contribute to the increased in vitro immunogenicity potential observed for ixekizumab vs. secukinumab.

Interleukin-17A Inhibition Diminishes Inflammation and New Bone Formation in Experimental Spondyloarthritis.

OBJECTIVE: It remains unclear if and how inflammation and new bone formation in spondyloarthritis (SpA) are coupled. We undertook this study to assess the hypothesis that interleukin-17A (IL-17A) is a pivotal driver of both processes. METHODS: The effect of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and IL-17A on osteogenesis was tested in an osteoblastic differentiation assay using SpA fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) differentiated with dexamethasone, ß-glycophosphatase, and ascorbic acid. IL-17A blockade was performed in HLA-B27/human ß2 -microglobulin (hß2 m)-transgenic rats, which served as a model for SpA in both prophylactic and therapeutic settings. Inflammation and new bone formation were evaluated by micro-computed tomography imaging, histologic analysis, and gene expression profiling. RESULTS: TNF and IL-17A significantly increased in vitro osteoblastic differentiation. In vivo, prophylactic blockade of IL-17A significantly delayed spondylitis and arthritis development and decreased arthritis severity. Anti-IL-17A treatment was also associated with prevention of bone loss and periosteal new bone formation. Therapeutic targeting of IL-17A after the initial inflammatory insult also significantly reduced axial and peripheral joint inflammation. This treatment was again associated with a marked reduction in spinal and peripheral structural damage, including new bone formation. RNA sequencing of target tissue confirmed that IL-17A is a key driver of the molecular signature of disease in this model and that therapeutic anti-IL-17A treatment reversed the inflammatory signature and the selected gene expression related to bone damage. CONCLUSION: Both prophylactic and therapeutic inhibition of IL-17A diminished inflammation and new bone formation in HLA-B27/hß2 m-transgenic rats. Taken together with the ability of IL-17A to promote osteoblastic differentiation of human SpA FLS, these data suggest a direct link between IL-17A-driven inflammation and pathologic new bone formation in SpA.

Antagonization of IL-17A Attenuates Skin Inflammation and Vascular Dysfunction in Mouse Models of Psoriasis.

Besides skin inflammation, patients with severe psoriasis suffer from an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. IL-17A plays a central role in the development of psoriasis and might connect skin and vascular disease. The aim of this study was to clarify whether anti-IL-17A therapy could also ameliorate the vascular dysfunction associated with severe psoriasis. We analyzed three murine models with varying severities of psoriasis-like skin disease concerning their vascular function and inflammation: (i) K14-IL-17Aind/+ mice with keratinocyte-specific IL-17A overexpression and an early-onset severe psoriasis-like phenotype; (ii) homozygous CD11c-IL-17Aind/ind and heterozygous CD11c-IL-17Aind/+ mice overexpressing IL-17A in CD11c+ cells, leading to a delayed onset of moderate psoriasis-like skin disease; and (iii) the acute model of imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like skin inflammation. Similar to the severity of skin disease, vascular dysfunction correlated with peripheral IL-17A levels and neutrophil infiltration into the aortic vessel wall. Successful anti-IL-17A treatment of psoriatic skin lesions diminished peripheral oxidative stress levels, proinflammatory cytokines, and vascular inflammation. These data highlight the pivotal role of IL-17A linking the development of skin lesions and vascular disease in psoriasis. Anti-IL-17A therapy might thus represent a useful approach to attenuate and prevent vascular disease in psoriasis patients.

Characterization of the in vitro and in vivo properties of CFZ533, a blocking and non-depleting anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody.

The CD40-CD154 costimulatory pathway is essential for T cell-dependent immune responses, development of humoral memory, and antigen presenting cell function. These immune functions have been implicated in the pathology of multiple autoimmune diseases as well as allograft rejection. We have generated CFZ533, a fully human, pathway blocking anti-CD40 monoclonal antibody that has been modified with a N297A mutation to render it unable to mediate Fcγ-dependent effector functions. CFZ533 inhibited CD154-induced activation of human leukocytes in vitro, but failed to induce human leukocyte activation. Additionally, CFZ533 was unable to mediate depletion of human CD40 expressing B cells. In vivo, CFZ533 blocked primary and recall T cell-dependent antibody responses in nonhuman primates and abrogated germinal formation without depleting peripheral blood B cells. We also established a relationship between plasma concentrations of CFZ533 and CD40 pathway-relevant pharmacodynamic effects in tissue. Collectively these data support the scientific rationale and posology for clinical utility of this antibody in select autoimmune diseases and solid organ transplantation.

Author Correction: Secukinumab Demonstrates Significantly Lower Immunogenicity Potential Compared to Ixekizumab.

In the original publication, information regarding "ustekinumab" was incorrectly published under the Methods section. The correct information in the section "Antibodies and Control Protein" should be "(secukinumab, 150 mg/mL; ixekizumab, 90 mg/mL; adalimumab, 50 mg/mL; ustekinumab 90 mg/ml)". Infliximab, which is mentioned in that section, was not used in the study.

Secukinumab Demonstrates Significantly Lower Immunogenicity Potential Compared to Ixekizumab.

INTRODUCTION: Secukinumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody that selectively neutralizes IL-17A, has been shown to have significant efficacy in the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis (PsO) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), demonstrating a rapid onset of action and sustained responses with a favorable safety profile. All biotherapeutics, including monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), can be immunogenic, leading to formation of anti-drug antibodies (ADAs) that can result in loss of response and adverse events such as hypersensitivity reactions. Thus, the immunogenicity potential of biotherapeutics is of particular interest for physicians. Of the 2842 patients receiving secukinumab across six phase 3 psoriasis clinical trials, only 0.4% developed treatment-emergent ADAs over 3 years of treatment. Direct comparison of clinical immunogenicity incidence rates is hampered by the nature of clinical immunogenicity assays, differences in study designs, patient populations, and treatment regimens. METHODS: We evaluated side-by-side in the same healthy donors two recently approved IL-17A selective antibodies, secukinumab and ixekizumab, along with adalimumab and ustekinumab, for their capacity to induce anti-drug related T cell responses in vitro and estimated their potential for developing ADAs in patients. RESULTS: We found that healthy donors show both significantly less frequent T cell responses and lower numbers of pre-existing T cells to secukinumab than to ixekizumab and adalimumab. Although there was a tendency for a lower response to ustekinumab, this difference was not significant. CONCLUSION: In summary, this in vitro study confirms the significantly lower immunogenicity potential and provides an explanation for the lower clinical immunogenicity incidence found for secukinumab in comparison to other approved therapeutic antibodies used to treat plaque psoriasis. FUNDING: Novartis Pharmaceuticals AG.

ß-Defensin 2 is a responsive biomarker of IL-17A-driven skin pathology in patients with psoriasis.

BACKGROUND: IL-17A is a key driver of human autoimmune diseases, particularly psoriasis. OBJECTIVE: We sought to determine the role of IL-17A in psoriasis pathogenesis and to identify a robust and measurable biomarker of IL-17A-driven pathology. METHODS: We studied 8 healthy subjects and 8 patients with psoriasis before and after administration of secukinumab, a fully human anti-IL-17A mAb, and used a combination of classical techniques and a novel skin microperfusion assay to evaluate the expression of 170 proteins in blood, nonlesional skin, and lesional skin. For validation, we also tested stored sera from 601 patients with a variety of autoimmune diseases. RESULTS: IL-17A was specifically expressed in lesional compared with nonlesional psoriatic skin (9.8 vs 0.8 pg/mL, P < .001). Proteomic and gene transcription analyses revealed dysregulated antimicrobial peptides, proinflammatory cytokines, and neutrophil chemoattractants, levels of which returned to normal after treatment with secukinumab. ß-Defensin 2 (BD-2) was identified as a biomarker of IL-17A-driven pathology by comparing protein expression in patients with psoriasis versus that in healthy subjects (5746 vs 82 pg/mL in serum, P < .0001; 2747 vs <218 pg/mL in dermis, P < .001), responsiveness to secukinumab therapy, and synergistic induction by IL-17A and TNF-α in epidermal keratinocytes. In a validation set of sera from 601 patients with autoimmune diseases thought to be IL-17A driven, we found that BD-2 levels are most highly increased in patients with psoriatic skin lesions, and in patients with psoriasis, BD-2 levels correlated well with IL-17A levels (r = 0.70, n = 199, P < .001) and Psoriasis Area and Severity Index scores (r = 0.53, n = 281, P < .001). CONCLUSION: IL-17A is a primary driver of skin pathology in patients with psoriasis, and serum BD-2 is an easily measurable biomarker of IL-17A-driven skin pathology.

IL-17A and Multiple Sclerosis: Signaling Pathways, Producing Cells and Target Cells in the Central Nervous System.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an immune mediated demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS). The importance of immune cells to MS pathology is supported by clinical data linking the depletion of T and B cells, or the prevention of their migration into the brain with significant reduction in relapses and development of new lesions. In vitro studies, preclinical animal models and encouraging data with the anti-IL-17A antibody secukinumab in a small proof of concept study in man, indicate that IL-17A, a key interleukin associated with many inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, may be involved in MS. Not only cells involved in adaptive immune responses such as Th17 cells and cytotoxic T cells, or innate immune responses such as mucosa-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells and γδT cells, but also CNS resident cells such as astrocytes and oligodendrocytes might contribute to the local production of IL-17A. IL-17A synergizes with other proinflammatory cytokines, by inducing the release of additional cytokines, mediators of tissue damage and chemokines, that recruit new inflammatory cells. IL-17A adversely affects the functions of microglia, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, neurons, neural precursor cells and endothelial cells. Blockade of IL-17A might be beneficial to MS patients not only by inhibiting inflammation and tissue destruction, but also by enhancing repair processes.

Secukinumab, a novel anti-IL-17A antibody, shows low immunogenicity potential in human in vitro assays comparable to other marketed biotherapeutics with low clinical immunogenicity.

Secukinumab is a human monoclonal antibody that selectively targets interleukin-17A and has been demonstrated to be highly efficacious in the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, starting at early time points, with a sustained effect and a favorable safety profile. Biotherapeutics--including monoclonal antibodies (mAbs)--can be immunogenic, leading to formation of anti-drug antibodies (ADAs) that can result in unwanted effects, including hypersensitivity reactions or compromised therapeutic efficacy. To gain insight into possible explanations for the clinically observed low immunogenicity of secukinumab, we evaluated its immunogenicity potential by applying 2 different in vitro assays: T-cell activation and major histocompatibility complex-associated peptide proteomics (MAPPs). For both assays, monocyte-derived dendritic cells (DCs) from healthy donors were exposed in vitro to biotherapeutic proteins. DCs naturally process proteins and present the derived peptides in the context of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-class II. HLA-DR-associated biotherapeutic-derived peptides, representing potential T-cell epitopes, were identified in the MAPPs assay. In the T-cell assay, autologous CD4(+) T cells were co-cultured with secukinumab-exposed DCs and T-cell activation was measured by proliferation and interleukin-2 secretion. In the MAPPs analysis and T-cell activation assays, secukinumab consistently showed relatively low numbers of potential T-cell epitopes and low T-cell response rates, respectively, comparable to other biotherapeutics with known low clinical immunogenicity. In contrast, biotherapeutics with elevated clinical immunogenicity rates showed increased numbers of potential T-cell epitopes and increased T-cell response rates in T-cell activation assays, indicating an approximate correlation between in vitro assay results and clinical immunogenicity incidence.

Antibody blockade of IL-17 family cytokines in immunity to acute murine oral mucosal candidiasis.

Antibodies targeting IL-17A or its receptor, IL-17RA, are approved to treat psoriasis and are being evaluated for other autoimmune conditions. Conversely, IL-17 signaling is critical for immunity to opportunistic mucosal infections caused by the commensal fungus Candida albicans, as mice and humans lacking the IL-17R experience chronic mucosal candidiasis. IL-17A, IL-17F, and IL-17AF bind the IL-17RA-IL-17RC heterodimeric complex and deliver qualitatively similar signals through the adaptor Act1. Here, we used a mouse model of acute oropharyngeal candidiasis to assess the impact of blocking IL-17 family cytokines compared with specific IL-17 cytokine gene knockout mice. Anti-IL-17A antibodies, which neutralize IL-17A and IL-17AF, caused elevated oral fungal loads, whereas anti-IL-17AF and anti-IL-17F antibodies did not. Notably, there was a cooperative effect of blocking IL-17A, IL-17AF, and IL-17F together. Termination of anti-IL-17A treatment was associated with rapid C. albicans clearance. IL-17F-deficient mice were fully resistant to oropharyngeal candidiasis, consistent with antibody blockade. However, IL-17A-deficient mice had lower fungal burdens than anti-IL-17A-treated mice. Act1-deficient mice were much more susceptible to oropharyngeal candidiasis than anti-IL-17A antibody-treated mice, yet anti-IL-17A and anti-IL-17RA treatment caused equivalent susceptibilities. Based on microarray analyses of the oral mucosa during infection, only a limited number of genes were associated with oropharyngeal candidiasis susceptibility. In sum, we conclude that IL-17A is the main cytokine mediator of immunity in murine oropharyngeal candidiasis, but a cooperative relationship among IL-17A, IL-17AF, and IL-17F exists in vivo. Susceptibility displays the following hierarchy: IL-17RA- or Act1-deficiency > anti-IL-17A + anti-IL-17F antibodies > anti-IL-17A or anti-IL-17RA antibodies > IL-17A deficiency.