Peptides that bind specifically to an antibody from a chronic lymphocytic leukemia clone expressing unmutated immunoglobulin variable region genes.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a clonal disease of a subset of human B lymphocytes. Although the cause of the disease is unknown, its development and evolution appear to be promoted by signals delivered when B-cell receptors (BCRs) engage (auto)antigens. Here, using a peptide phage display library of enhanced size and diverse composition, we examined the binding specificity of a recombinant monoclonal antibody (mAb) constructed with the heavy chain and light chain variable domains of a CLL BCR that does not exhibit somatic mutations. As determined by testing the peptides identified in the selected peptide phage pool, this CLL-associated unmutated mAb bound a diverse set of sequences, some of which clustered in families based on amino acid sequence. Synthesis of these peptides and characterization of binding with the CLL-associated mAb revealed that mAb-peptide interactions were generally specific. Moreover, the mAb-peptide interactions were of lower affinities (micromolar KD), as measured by surface plasmon resonance, than those observed with a CLL mAb containing somatic mutations (nanomolar KD) and with immunoglobulin heavy chain variable (IGHV)-mutated antibodies selected by environmental antigens. This information may be of value in identifying and targeting B lymphocytes expressing specific BCRs in CLL patients and healthy subjects with monoclonal B lymphocytosis.

In vitro evolution of an HIV integrase binding protein from a library of C-terminal domain γS-crystallin variants.

A protein without natural binding functions was engineered to bind HIV-1 integrase. Phage display selections applied a library of variants based on the C-terminal domain of the eye lens protein human γS-crystallin. Multiple loop regions were altered to encode libraries with ≈3.6 × 10(11) different variants. A crystallin variant, termed integrase binding protein-10 (IBP-10), inhibits integrase catalysis with nanomolar K(i) values. IBP-10 interacts with the integrase C-terminal domain and inhibits integrase substrate affinity. This allosteric mechanism allows IBP-10 to inhibit drug-resistant integrase variants. The results demonstrate the applicability of the crystallin scaffold for the discovery of binding partners and enzyme inhibitors.

Phage wrapping with cationic polymers eliminates nonspecific binding between M13 phage and high pI target proteins.

M13 phage have provided scaffolds for nanostructure synthesis based upon self-assembled inorganic and hard materials interacting with phage-displayed peptides. Additionally, phage display has been used to identify binders to plastic, TiO(2), and other surfaces. However, synthesis of phage-based materials through the hybridization of soft materials with the phage surface remains unexplored. Here, we present an efficient "phage wrapping" strategy for the facile synthesis of phage coated with soluble, cationic polymers. Polymers bearing high positive charge densities demonstrated the most effective phage wrapping, as shown by assays for blocking nonspecific binding of the anionic phage coat to a high pI target protein. The results establish the functional group requirements for hybridizing phage with soft materials and solve a major problem in phage display-nonspecific binding by the phage to high pI target proteins.

Protein engineering with biosynthesized libraries from Bordetella bronchiseptica bacteriophage.

Phage display offers a powerful approach to engineer protein affinity. A naturally occurring analog to phage display, the Bordetella bronchiseptica bacteriophage (BP) employs a highly variable protein termed the major tropism determinant (Mtd) to recognize its dynamic host. Propagation of BP provides a self-made phage library (SMPL) with vast numbers of phage particles, each displaying a single Mtd variant. We report applying the diversity of the BP-SMPL to access a tyrosine-rich library of Mtd variants. Expression of the SMPL-engineered Mtd variant as a GST-bound fusion protein demonstrated specific binding to the target T4 lysozyme with dissociation constants in the sub-micromolar range. The results guide future experiments with SMPLs applied to protein engineering.

Self-made phage libraries with heterologous inserts in the Mtd of Bordetella bronchiseptica.

Phage display libraries are widely used as tools for identifying, dissecting and optimizing ligands. Development of a simple method to access greater library diversities could expedite and expand the technique. This paper reports progress toward harnessing the naturally occurring diversity generating retroelement used by Bordetella bronchiseptica bacteriophage to alter its tail-fiber protein. Mutagenesis and testing identified four sites amenable to the insertion of <19-residue heterologous peptides within the variable region. Such sites allow auto-generation of peptide libraries surrounded by a scaffold with additional variations. The resultant self-made phage libraries were used successfully for selections targeting anti-FLAG antibody, immobilized metal affinity chromatography microtiter plates and HIV-1 gp41. The reported experiments demonstrate the utility of the major tropism determinant protein of B.bronchiseptica as a natural scaffold for diverse, phage-constructed libraries with heterologous self-made phage libraries.

Virus electrodes for universal biodetection.

A dense virus layer, readily tailored for recognition of essentially any biomarker, was covalently attached to a gold electrode surface through a self-assembled monolayer. The resistance of this "virus electrode", Z(Re), measured in the frequency range from 2 to 500 kHz in a salt-based pH 7.2 buffer, increased when the phage particles selectively bound either an antibody or prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), a biomarker for prostate cancer. In contrast to prior results, we show the capacitive impedence of the virus electrode, Z(Im), is both a noisier and a less sensitive indicator of this binding compared to Z(Re). The specificity of antibody and PSMA binding, and the absence of nonspecific binding to the virus electrode, was confirmed using quartz crystal microbalance gravimetry.