Novel amyloid-beta specific scFv and VH antibody fragments from human and mouse phage display antibody libraries.

Anti-amyloid immunotherapy has been proposed as an appropriate therapeutic approach for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Significant efforts have been made towards the generation and assessment of antibody-based reagents capable of preventing and clearing amyloid aggregates as well as preventing their synaptotoxic effects. In this study, we selected a novel set of human anti-amyloid-beta peptide 1-42 (Abeta1-42) recombinant monoclonal antibodies in a single chain fragment variable (scFv) and a single-domain (VH) format. We demonstrated that these antibody fragments recognize in a specific manner amyloid-beta deposits in APP/Tg mouse brains, inhibit toxicity of oligomeric Abeta1-42 in neuroblastoma cell cultures in a concentration-dependent manner and reduced amyloid deposits in APP/Tg2576 mice after intracranial administration. These antibody fragments recognize epitopes in the middle/C-terminus region of Abeta, which makes them strong therapeutic candidates due to the fact that most of the Abeta species found in the brains of AD patients display extensive N-terminus truncations/modifications.

Immunodominant epitope and properties of pyroglutamate-modified Abeta-specific antibodies produced in rabbits.

N-truncated and N-modified forms of amyloid beta (Abeta) peptide are found in diffused and dense core plaques in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Down's syndrome patients as well as transgenic mouse models of AD. Although the pathological significance of these shortened forms Abeta is not completely understood, previous studies have demonstrated that these peptides are significantly more resistant to degradation, aggregate more rapidly in vitro and exhibit similar or, in some cases, increased toxicity in hippocampal neuronal cultures compared to the full length peptides. In the present study we further investigated the mechanisms of toxicity of one of the most abundant N-truncated/modified Abeta peptide bearing amino-terminal pyroglutamate at position 3 (AbetaN3(pE)). We demonstrated that AbetaN3(pE) oligomers induce phosphatidyl serine externalization and membrane damage in SH-SY5Y cells. Also, we produced AbetaN3(pE)-specific polyclonal antibodies in rabbit and identified an immunodominant epitope recognized by anti-AbetaN3(pE) antibodies. Our results are important for developing new immunotherapeutic compounds specifically targeting AbetaN3(pE) aggregates since the most commonly used immunogens in the majority of vaccines for AD have been shown to induce antibodies that recognize the N-terminal immunodominant epitope (EFRH) of the full length Abeta, which is absent in N-amino truncated peptides.

Epitope mapping and neuroprotective properties of a human single chain FV antibody that binds an internal epitope of amyloid-beta 1-42.

Active and passive immunotherapy targeted at the amyloid-beta (Abeta) peptide has been proposed as therapeutic approach against Alzheimer's disease (AD), and efforts towards the generation and application of antibody-based reagents that are capable of preventing and clearing amyloid aggregates are currently under active investigation. Previously, we selected and characterized a new anti-Abeta1-42 phage-displayed scFv antibody, designated clone b4.4, using a non-immune human scFv antibody library and demonstrated that a peptide based on the sequence of the Ig heavy chain (VH) complementarity-determining region (HCDR3) of this antibody fragment bound to Abeta1-42)and had neuroprotective potential against Abeta1-42 mediated neurotoxicity in rat hippocampal cultured neurons. In the present study, using novel computational methods and in vitro experiments we demonstrated that b4.4 binds to the central region of Abeta1-42. We also demonstrated that this scFv antibody binds to Abeta-derived diffusible ligands (ADDLs) and neutralizes the toxicity of both fibrillar and oligomeric forms of Abeta1-42 tested in vitro in SH-SY5Y cell cultures.

Purification and some properties of Thermotoga neapolitana thermostable xylanase B expressed in E. coli cells.

A xylanase was purified from the recombinant strain E. coli TG1 carrying the pTT32 vector with a fragment of the Thermotoga neapolitana chromosomal DNA. The enzyme was purified 419-fold with 36% yield after heating at 70 degrees C and pH 4.5 and subsequent ion-exchange chromatography. By polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of SDS, the molecular weight of the apparently homogeneous protein is 39 kD. By isoelectric focusing, the protein is of a single form with pI = 5.9. The optimal pH for hydrolysis is 5.5, and the optimal temperature is 90 degrees C. The xylanase is stable to heating at 70 degrees C for 4 h. The enzyme is inactivated by 50% at 80, 90, and 100 degrees C after 227, 162, and 30 min, respectively. Enzyme activity was tested using xylans and glucans as substrates. By thin-layer chromatography of the xylan hydrolysis products, the enzyme was classified as an endoxylanase.

[Construction and analysis of transgenic plants of Nicotiana tabacum L. expressing a bacterial gene for beta-1,3-glucanase. I. Construction of vector plasmids for transfer into plants and expression of a modified gene for beta-1,3-glucanase from Clostridium thermocellum in tobacco protoplasts]. / Konstruirovanie i analiz transgennykh rastenii Nicotiana tabacum L. s ékspressiruiushchimsia bakterial'nym genom beta-1,3-gliukanazy. I. Konstruirovanie vektorynykh plazmid dlia perenosa v rasteniia i ékspressiia modifitsirovannogo gena beta-1,3-gliukanazy iz Clostridium thermocellum v protoplastakh tabaka.

We constructed two vectors, pC27-glc and pC29-glc, that allow expression of the beta-1,3-glucanase gene (glc) in plant cells. The glc gene was previously cloned from anaerobic thermophilous bacterium Clostridium thermocellum. To increase the efficiency of expression, the N-terminal fragment of the glc gene encoding bacterial transient peptide was deleted, and hybrid variants of lacZ-glc were obtained. Analysis of expression of the hybrid genes in Escherichia coli showed that deletion of the fragment corresponding to 31 amino acids (a.a.) of beta-glucanase affected neither activity nor thermostability of the enzyme. The modified gene was subcloned into two vectors, pC27 and pC29, in which its expression was controlled by the TR2' promoter of the 2' gene of T-DNA and the rbcS promoter from Arabidopsis, respectively. Each of the resulting plasmids, pC27-glc and pC29-glc, was transfected into protoplasts of Nicotiana plumbaginifolia. Both the plasmids were shown to allow a high level of activity of the thermostable beta-1,3-glucanase. We plan to use the vectors obtained for transformation of agrobacteria and construction of transgenic plants.

[Construction and analysis of transgenic plants of Nicotiana tabacum L. expressing a bacterial gene for beta-1,3-glucanase. II. Transgenic tobacco plants expressing the bacterial beta-glucanase gene from Clostridium thermocellum,--a model for studying the differential expression of stress response-related genes]. / Konstruirovanie i analiz transgennykh rastenii Nicotiana tabacum L. s ékspressiruiushchimsia bakterial'nym genom beta-1,3-gliukanazy. II. Transgennye rasteniia tabaka, ékspressiruiushchie bakterial'nye gen beta-gliukanazy iz Clostridium thermocellum,--model' dlia izucheniia differentsial'noi ékspressii genov stressovogo otveta.

The modified hybrid beta-1,3-glucanase gene (glc) of Clostridium thermocellum was expressed in tobacco Nicotiana tabacum. The glc gene was cloned into two plasmids, pC27-glc and pC29-glc, in which its expression was controlled by the TR2' promoter of the 2' gene of T-DNA and the rbcS promoter of Arabidopsis, respectively. These constructions were used for transformation of agrobacteria followed by transfer into plants. In transformed plants, each plasmid caused a high level of activity of thermostable bacterial glucanase not observed in reference plants. The plants obtained were used to study activation of some defense-related genes induced by their interaction with either tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) or a pathogenic fungus.