Utilizing noncatalytic ACE2 protein mutant as a competitive inhibitor to treat SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Introduction: Angiotensin converting-enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an enzyme catalyzing the conversion of angiotensin 2 into angiotensin 1-7. ACE2 also serves as the receptor of several coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, ACE2 could be utilized as a therapeutic target for treating these coronaviruses, ideally lacking enzymatic function. Methods: Based on structural analysis, specific mutations were introduced to generate mutants of ACE2 and ACE2-Fc (fusion protein of ACE2 and Fc region of IgG1). The enzyme activity, binding affinity, and neutralization abilities were measured. Results and discussion: As predicted, five mutants (AMI081, AMI082, AMI083, AMI084, AMI090) have completely depleted ACE2 enzymatic activities. More importantly, enzyme-linked receptor-ligand assay (ELRLA) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) results showed that 2 mutants (AMI082, AMI090) maintained binding activity to the viral spike proteins of SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. In An in vitro neutralization experiment using a pseudovirus, SARS-CoV-2 S1 spike protein-packed lentivirus particles, was also performed, showing that AMI082 and AMI090 significantly reduced GFP transgene expression. Further, in vitro virulent neutralization assays using SARS-CoV-2 (strain name: USA-WA1/2020) showed that AMI082 and AMI090 had remarkable inhibitory effects, indicated by comparable IC50 to wildtype ACE2 (5.33 µg/mL). In addition to the direct administration of mutant proteins, an alternative strategy for treating COVID-19 is through AAV delivery to achieve long-lasting effects. Therefore, AAV5 encoding AMI082 and AMI090 were packaged and transgene expression was assessed. In summary, these ACE2 mutants represent a novel approach to prevent or treat COVID-19 and other viruses with the same spike protein.

Evaluation of recombinant baculovirus clearance during rAAV production in Sf9 cells using a newly developed fluorescent-TCID50 assay.

Introduction: Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) vectors provide a safe and efficient means for in vivo gene delivery, although its large-scale production remains challenging. Featuring high manufacturing speed, flexible product design, and inherent safety and scalability, the baculovirus/Sf9 cell system offers a practical solution to the production of rAAV vectors in large quantities and high purity. Nonetheless, removal and inactivation of recombinant baculoviruses during downstream purification of rAAV vectors remain critical prior to clinical application. Methods: The present study utilized a newly developed fluorescent-TCID50 (F-TCID50) assay to determine the infectious titer of recombinant baculovirus (rBV) stock after baculovirus removal and inactivation, and to evaluate the impact of various reagents and solutions on rBV infectivity. Results and discussion: The results showed that a combination of sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and Triton X-100 lysis, AAVx affinity chromatography, low pH hold (pH3.0), CsCl ultracentrifugation, and NFR filtration led to effective removal and/or inactivation of recombinant baculoviruses, and achieved a log reduction value (LRV) of more than 18.9 for the entire AAV purification process. In summary, this study establishes a standard protocol for downstream baculovirus removal and inactivation and a reliable F-TCID50 assay to detect rBV infectivity, which can be widely applied in AAV manufacturing using the baculovirus system.

Systematic comparison of rAAV vectors manufactured using large-scale suspension cultures of Sf9 and HEK293 cells.

Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) vectors could be manufactured by plasmid transfection into human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells or baculovirus infection of Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) insect cells. However, systematic comparisons between these systems using large-scale, high-quality AAV vectors are lacking. rAAV from Sf9 cells (Sf9-rAAV) at 2-50 L and HEK293 cells (HEK-rAAV) at 2-200 L scales were characterized. HEK-rAAV had ∼40-fold lower yields but ∼10-fold more host cell DNA measured by droplet digital PCR and next-generation sequencing, respectively. The electron microscope observed a lower full/empty capsid ratio in HEK-rAAV (70.8%) than Sf9-rAAV (93.2%), while dynamic light scattering and high-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed that HEK-rAAV had more aggregation. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry identified different post-translational modification profiles between Sf9-rAAV and HEK-rAAV. Furthermore, Sf9-rAAV had a higher tissue culture infectious dose/viral genome than HEK-rAAV, indicating better infectivity. Additionally, Sf9-rAAV achieved higher in vitro transgene expression, as measured by ELISA. Finally, after intravitreal dosing into a mouse laser choroidal neovascularization model, Sf9-rAAV and HEK-rAAV achieved similar efficacy. Overall, this study detected notable differences in the physiochemical characteristics of HEK-rAAV and Sf9-rAAV. However, the in vitro and in vivo biological functions of the rAAV from these systems were highly comparable. Sf9-rAAV may be preferred over HEK293-rAAV for advantages in yields, full/empty ratio, scalability, and cost.

rAAV immunogenicity, toxicity, and durability in 255 clinical trials: A meta-analysis.

Recombinant Adeno-associated virus (rAAV) is one of the main delivery vectors for gene therapy. To assess immunogenicity, toxicity, and features of AAV gene therapy in clinical settings, a meta-analysis of 255 clinical trials was performed. A total of 7,289 patients are planned to be dosed. AAV2 was the most dominantly used serotype (29.8%, n=72), and 8.3% (n=20) of trials used engineered capsids. 38.7% (n=91) of trials employed neutralizing antibody assays for patient enrollment, while 15.3% (n=36) used ELISA-based total antibody assays. However, there was high variability in the eligibility criteria with cut-off tiers ranging from 1:1 to 1:1,600. To address potential immunogenicity, 46.3% (n=118) of trials applied immunosuppressants (prophylactic or reactive), while 32.7% (n=18) of CNS and 37.5% (n=24) of ocular-directed trials employed immunosuppressants, possibly due to the immune-privileged status of CNS and retina. There were a total of 11 patient deaths across 8 trials, and 18 out of 30 clinical holds were due to toxicity findings in clinical studies. 30.6% (n=78) of trials had treatment-emergent serious adverse events (TESAEs), with hepatotoxicity and thrombotic microangiopathy (systemic delivery) and neurotoxicity (CNS delivery) being the most prominent. Additionally, the durability of gene therapy may be impacted by two distinct decline mechanisms: 1) rapid decline presumably due to immune responses; or 2) gradual decline due to vector dilution. The durability varied significantly depending on disease indication, dose, serotypes, and patient individuals. Most CNS (90.0%) and muscle trials (73.3%) achieved durable transgene expression, while only 43.6% of ocular trials had sustained clinical outcomes. The rAAV production system can affect rAAV quality and thus immunogenicity and toxicity. Out of 186 trials that have disclosed production system information, 63.0% (n=126) of trials used the transient transfection of the HEK293/HEK293T system, while 18.0% (n=36) applied the baculovirus/Sf9 (rBac/Sf9) system. There were no significant differences in TESAEs and durability between AAV generated by rBac/Sf9 and HEK293/HEK293T systems. In summary, rAAV immunogenicity and toxicity poses significant challenges for clinical development of rAAV gene therapies, and it warrants collaborative efforts to standardize monitoring/measurement methods, design novel strategies to overcome immune responses, and openly share relevant information.

Corrigendum: rAAV immunogenicity, toxicity, and durability in 255 clinical trials: A meta-analysis.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1001263.].

Retrospective Evaluation of Low-pH Viral Inactivation and Viral Filtration Data from a Multiple Company Collaboration.

Considerable resources are spent within the biopharmaceutical industry to perform viral clearance studies, which are conducted for widely used unit operations that are known to have robust and effective retrovirus clearance capability. The collaborative analysis from the members of the BioPhorum Development Group Viral Clearance Working Team considers two common virus reduction steps in biopharmaceutical processes: low-pH viral inactivation and viral filtration. Analysis included eight parameters for viral inactivation and nine for viral filtration. The extensive data set presented in this paper provides the industry with a reference point for establishing robust processes in addition to other protocols available in the literature (e.g., ASTM Std. E2888-12 for low-pH inactivation). In addition, it identifies points of weakness in the existing data set and instructs the design and interpretation of future studies. Included is an abundance of data that would have been difficult to generate individually but collectively will help support modular viral clearance claims.

Evaluation of infectivity and reverse transcriptase real-time polymerase chain reaction assays for detection of xenotropic murine leukemia virus used in virus clearance validation.

Infectivity and reverse transcriptase quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assays have been optimized and validated for xenotropic murine leukemia virus (X-MuLV) detection. We have evaluated the assays systematically with regard to specificity, linearity, lower limit of detection (LLOD), lower limit of quantification (LLOQ), and precision. Both assays are specific for X-MuLV detection, with a linear detection range of 0.6-5.6 log(10) TCID(50)/mL for the infectivity assay, and 1.4-6.5 log(10) particles/mL for the qRT-PCR assay. The LLOD and LLOQ of the infectivity and the qRT-PCR assays are determined as 0.5 and 1.0 log(10)/mL, and 1.4 and 2.2 log(10)/mL. The inter-assay repeatability of qRT-PCR assay (4.2% coefficient of variation [CV]) is higher than the infectivity assay (7.9% CV). We have shown that both assays are closely correlated (r = 0.85, P < 0.05, n = 22). The particle/infectivity ratio is determined as 66. Both assays were applied to evaluate virus removal using virus clearance samples of chromatographic and filtration processes. Here, we have demonstrated that the qRT-PCR assay is much faster in testing and is approximately 8-fold more sensitive than the infectivity assay. Therefore, the qRT-PCR assay can replace the infectivity assay in many cases, but both assays are complementary in elucidating the mechanism of virus inactivation and removal in virus clearance validation.

Characterisation of aroma profiles of commercial sufus by odour activity value, gas chromatography-olfactometry, aroma recombination and omission studies.

Sufu is a solid-state fermented product made from soya beans. For the sake of quality control and regulation purposes, it is essential to be able to identify key odorants of various commercial sufus. To identify the aroma-active compounds in sufus, gas chromatography-olfactometry/aroma extract dilution analysis (GC-O/AEDA) was performed, and odour activity value (OAV) was estimated. The correlations between aroma profiles and identified aroma-active compounds were also investigated by principal component analysis. Results showed that 35 aroma-active compounds were detected through OAV calculation, while 28 compounds were identified by using GC-O/AEDA. Quantitative descriptive analysis revealed that aroma recombination model based on OAV calculation was more similar to original sufu in terms of aroma comparing to aroma recombination model based on GC-O/AEDA. Omission experiments further confirmed that the aroma compounds, such as ethyl butanoate, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl hexanoate, (E,E)-2,4-decadienal and 2,6-dimethylpyrazine, contributed most significantly to the characteristic aroma of a commercial sufu.

Discrimination of cherry wines based on their sensory properties and aromatic fingerprinting using HS-SPME-GC-MS and multivariate analysis.

UNLABELLED: Volatiles of cherry wines were extracted by headspace solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and analyzed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS), multivariate statistical techniques (such as principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) and correlation analysis) to differentiate sensory attributes of 3 groups of the wines through characterization of volatiles of cherry wine. Seventy-five volatiles were identified in 9 samples, including 29 esters, 22 alcohols, 8 acids, 3 ketones, 5 aldehydes, and 8 miscellaneous compounds. The PCA results showed that the cherry wines were mainly differentiated by 8 sensory attributes. The samples W2, W4, and W7 were grouped around sweet aromatic and the samples W1, W5, and W9 were highly associated with the sweet, esters, green, bitter, and fermented. Nevertheless, the samples W3, W6, and W8 were located close to the sour, alcoholic, and fruity. The final result of correlation analysis was in conformity with the conclusion of PCA. The CA results showed that the group of W2, W4, and W7, and the group of W1, W5, and W9 had less difference than the group of W3, W6, and W8. The reason should be that esterification reactions and fermentation process during the ageing period was more extended. The results of analyzing revealed that HS-SPME-GC-MS coupled with chemometrics could give an appropriate way of characterizing and classifying the cherry wines. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Attributes that represent and discriminate among cherry wines might be made use of a better comprehending of the wines and for being utilized in future work. In addition, several chemometrics were used to classify the type of wines and try to install the relationship between volatiles and sensory property. Especially, PCA clearly revealed that the most contributing compounds for sensory attributes of cherry wines, CA was a more applicable way to distinguish types of cherry wines. Therefore, a feasible method that would be helpful to promote the quality of the wines by improving the winemaking process and analyzing aromatic characteristics of wines.

Detection of minute virus of mice using real time quantitative PCR in assessment of virus clearance during the purification of Mammalian cell substrate derived biotherapeutics.

A real time quantitative PCR assay has been developed for detecting minute virus of mice (MVM). This assay directly quantifies PCR product by monitoring the increase of fluorescence intensity emitted during enzymatic hydrolysis of an oligonucleotide probe labelled covalently with fluorescent reporting and quenching dyes via Taq polymerase 5'-->3' exonuclease activity. The quantity of MVM DNA molecules in the samples was determined using a known amount of MVM standard control DNA fragment cloned into a plasmid (pCR-MVM). We have demonstrated that MVM TaqMan PCR assay is approximately 1000-fold more sensitive than the microplate infectivity assay with the lowest detection limit of approximately one particle per reaction. The reliable detection range is within 100 to 10(9) molecules per reaction with high reproducibility. The intra assay variation is <2.5%, and the inter assays variation is <6.5% when samples contain >100 particles/assay. When we applied the TaqMan PCR to MVM clearance studies done by column chromatography or normal flow viral filtration, we found that the virus removal factors were similar to that of virus infectivity assay. It takes about a day to complete entire assay processes, thus, the TaqMan PCR assay is at least 10-fold faster than the infectivity assay. Therefore, we concluded that this fast, specific, sensitive, and robust assay could replace the infectivity assay for virus clearance evaluation.