Adcitmer® , a new CD56-targeting monomethyl auristatin E-conjugated antibody, is a potential therapeutic approach in Merkel cell carcinoma.
Br J Dermatol
; 186(2): 295-306, 2022 02.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34582565
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is an aggressive skin cancer, whose tumour cells often express CD56. While immune checkpoint inhibitors constitute a major advance for treating patients with MCC with advanced disease, new therapeutic options are still urgently required.OBJECTIVES:
To produce and evaluate the therapeutic performance of a new antibody-drug conjugate (Adcitmer® ) targeting CD56 in preclinical models of MCC.METHODS:
CD56 expression was evaluated in a MCC cohort (immunohistochemistry on a tissue microarray of 90 tumour samples) and MCC cell lines. Interaction of an unconjugated CD56-targeting antibody with CD56+ MCC cell lines was investigated by immunohistochemistry and imaging flow cytometry. Adcitmer® product was generated by the bioconjugation of CD56-targeting antibody to a cytotoxic drug (monomethyl auristatin E) using the McSAF Inside® bioconjugation process. The chemical properties and homogeneity of Adcitmer® were characterized by hydrophobic interaction chromatography. Adcitmer® cytotoxicity was evaluated in vitro and in an MCC xenograft mice model.RESULTS:
Similar to previous reports, CD56 was expressed by 66% of MCC tumours in our cohort, confirming its relevance as a therapeutic target. Specific binding and internalization of the unconjugated CD56-targeting antibody was validated in MCC cell lines. The high homogeneity of the newly generated Adcitmer® was confirmed by hydrophobic interaction chromatography. The CD56-mediated cytotoxicity of Adcitmer® was demonstrated in vitro in MCC cell lines. Moreover, Adcitmer® significantly reduced tumour growth in a MCC mouse model.CONCLUSIONS:
Our study suggests that Adcitmer® should be further assessed as a therapeutic option in patients with MCC, as an alternative therapy or combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Skin Neoplasms
/
Carcinoma, Merkel Cell
Limits:
Animals
/
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
Br J Dermatol
Year:
2022
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
France