Peptide Mimotope-Enabled Quantification of Natalizumab Arm Exchange During Multiple Sclerosis Treatment.

BACKGROUND: Natalizumab, a therapeutic antibody used to treat multiple sclerosis, undergoes in vivo Fab arm exchange to form a monovalent bispecific antibody. Although highly efficacious, the immunosuppressive activity of natalizumab has been associated with JC polyomavirus-driven progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). Development of assays that can distinguish between and quantify bivalent (unexchanged) and monovalent (exchanged) forms of natalizumab in clinical samples may be useful for optimizing extended interval dosing and reducing the risk of PML. METHODS: In vitro natalizumab arm exchange was conducted, along with peptide mimotope and anti-idiotype surface capture chemistry, to enable the development of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. RESULTS: An assay using a unique peptide Veritope TM was developed, which can exclusively bind to bivalent natalizumab. In combination with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays that quantifies total natalizumab, the assay system allows quantification of both natalizumab forms. CONCLUSIONS: In this article, a novel assay for the quantification of unexchanged and exchanged natalizumab variants in clinical samples was developed. This assay will enable investigations into the clinical significance of the relationship of PK/PD with the monovalent-to-bivalent ratio, as it relates to the efficacy of the drug and risk of PML.

Selection of DNA nanoparticles with preferential binding to aggregated protein target.

High affinity and specificity are considered essential for affinity reagents and molecularly-targeted therapeutics, such as monoclonal antibodies. However, life's own molecular and cellular machinery consists of lower affinity, highly multivalent interactions that are metastable, but easily reversible or displaceable. With this inspiration, we have developed a DNA-based reagent platform that uses massive avidity to achieve stable, but reversible specific recognition of polyvalent targets. We have previously selected these DNA reagents, termed DeNAno, against various cells and now we demonstrate that DeNAno specific for protein targets can also be selected. DeNAno were selected against streptavidin-, rituximab- and bevacizumab-coated beads. Binding was stable for weeks and unaffected by the presence of soluble target proteins, yet readily competed by natural or synthetic ligands of the target proteins. Thus DeNAno particles are a novel biomolecular recognition agent whose orthogonal use of avidity over affinity results in uniquely stable yet reversible binding interactions.

Enhanced anti-tumor immune responses and delay of tumor development in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 mice immunized with an immunostimulatory peptide in poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic) acid nanoparticles.

INTRODUCTION: Cancer vaccines have the potential to induce curative anti-tumor immune responses and better adjuvants may improve vaccine efficacy. We have previously shown that Hp91, a peptide derived from the B box domain in high-mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1), acts as a potent immune adjuvant. METHOD: In this study, Hp91 was tested as part of a therapeutic vaccine against human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer. RESULTS: Free peptide did not significantly augment immune responses but, when delivered in poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic) acid nanoparticles (PLGA-NPs), robust activation of dendritic cells (DCs) and increased activation of HER2-specific T cells was observed in vitro. Vaccination of HER2/neu transgenic mice, a mouse breast cancer model that closely mimics the immune modulation and tolerance in some breast cancer patients, with Hp91-loaded PLGA-NPs enhanced the activation of HER2-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses, delayed tumor development, and prolonged survival. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together these findings demonstrate that the delivery of the immunostimulatory peptide Hp91 inside PLGA-NPs enhances the potency of the peptide and efficacy of a breast cancer vaccine.

Dual-porosity hollow nanoparticles for the immunoprotection and delivery of nonhuman enzymes.

Although enzymes of nonhuman origin have been studied for a variety of therapeutic and diagnostic applications, their use has been limited by the immune responses generated against them. The described dual-porosity hollow nanoparticle platform obviates immune attack on nonhuman enzymes paving the way to in vivo applications including enzyme-prodrug therapies and enzymatic depletion of tumor nutrients. This platform is manufactured with a versatile, scalable, and robust fabrication method. It efficiently encapsulates macromolecular cargos filled through mesopores into a hollow interior, shielding them from antibodies and proteases once the mesopores are sealed with nanoporous material. The nanoporous shell allows small molecule diffusion allowing interaction with the large macromolecular payload in the hollow center. The approach has been validated in vivo using l-asparaginase to achieve l-asparagine depletion in the presence of neutralizing antibodies.

TLR4-dependent activation of dendritic cells by an HMGB1-derived peptide adjuvant.

High mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) acts as an endogenous danger molecule that is released from necrotic cells and activated macrophages. We have previously shown that peptide Hp91, whose sequence corresponds to an area within the B-Box domain of HMGB1, activates dendritic cells (DCs) and acts as an adjuvant in vivo. Here we investigated the underlying mechanisms of Hp91-mediated DC activation. Hp91-induced secretion of IL-6 was dependent on clathrin- and dynamin-driven endocytosis of Hp91 and mediated through a MyD88- and TLR4-dependent pathway involving p38 MAPK and NFκB. Endosomal TLR4 has been shown to activate the MyD88-independent interferon pathway. Hp91-induced activation of pIRF3 and IL-6 secretion was reduced in IFNαßR knockout DCs, suggesting an amplification loop via the IFNαßR. These findings elucidate the mechanisms by which Hp91 acts as immunostimulatory peptide and may serve as a guide for the future development of synthetic Th1-type peptide adjuvants for vaccines.

Intact natalizumab pharmacokinetics is impacted by endogenous IgG4 concentration.

BACKGROUND: Natalizumab (NAT) pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics are complicated by arm exchange with endogenous IgG4, resulting in a mixture of a more potent intact, bivalent form and a less potent, functionally monovalent form. Total NAT and endogenous IgG4 concentrations vary considerably across patients. This study assessed the concentration of intact NAT, and how it relates to total NAT and endogenous IgG4 levels in blood and saliva. METHODS: Paired serum and saliva samples from a small cohort of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients were measured for levels of intact NAT, total NAT, IgG and IgG4. RESULTS: Intact NAT concentration was dependent on both total NAT and endogenous IgG4 levels. Low endogenous IgG4 led to a higher ratio of intact NAT to total NAT, while the opposite was observed in subjects with high endogenous IgG4. Serum and saliva measurements show good concordance. CONCLUSIONS: Intact NAT concentration is influenced by both NAT pharmacokinetics and endogenous IgG4 levels. Patients with low IgG4 levels can have high concentrations of intact NAT even with lower levels of total NAT, which may explain cases of NAT-associated progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) in such patients. Monitoring both forms of NAT could better guide dosing, maximizing drug efficacy and safety.

A phase I study of escalated dose subcutaneous alemtuzumab given weekly with rituximab in relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma.

This study assessed the safety and preliminary efficacy of escalated dose subcutaneous alemtuzumab in combination with rituximab in chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Twenty-eight patients with relapsed refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia were treated on four dosing cohorts of weekly rituximab at 375 mg/m(2) and alemtuzumab doses that started at 30 mg three times per week and escalated to weekly dosing over four weeks, culminating with 90 mg weekly. One dose limiting toxicity of a rituximab infusion reaction was seen in cohort 2, but the regimen was otherwise well tolerated without evidence of differential toxicity by cohort. The overall response rate by National Cancer Institute-Working Group criteria was 61%, and the rate of complete bone marrow response was 43%, most of whom were negative for minimal residual disease. The addition of CT scan evaluation per International Workshop on Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia 2008 criteria reduced the overall response rate to 14%. Median overall survival was 35 months, with 12 patients able to proceed to stem cell transplantation. Pharmacokinetic studies showed that chronic lymphocytic leukemia involving more than 80% of the bone marrow at study start was associated with lower trough concentrations of alemtuzumab and rituximab, and that higher trough serum concentrations of alemtuzumab were associated with complete bone marrow clearance. We conclude that escalated subcutaneous doses of alemtuzumab given weekly are well tolerated and result in excellent bone marrow clearance of chronic lymphocytic leukemia, helping patients to proceed to stem cell transplantation. This study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier:00330252).

Accurate prediction of serum antibody levels from noninvasive saliva/nasal samples.

The importance of easily accessible, noninvasive samples, such as saliva, to effectively monitor serum antibody levels has been underscored by the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic. Although a correlation between saliva and serum antibody titers has been observed, the ability to predict serum antibody levels from measurements in saliva is not well established. Herein, the authors demonstrate that measurements of SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels in both saliva and nasal specimens can be used to accurately determine serum levels by utilizing endogenous total IgG as an internal calibrator. They postulate that this method can be extended to the measurement of many different antibody analytes, making it of high interest for antibody therapeutic drug monitoring applications.

Turning antibodies off and on again using a covalently tethered blocking peptide.

In their natural form, antibodies are always in an "on-state" and are capable of binding to their targets. This leads to undesirable interactions in a wide range of therapeutic, analytical, and synthetic applications. Modulating binding kinetics of antibodies to turn them from an "off-state" to an "on-state" with temporal and spatial control can address this. Here we demonstrate a method to modulate binding activity of antibodies in a predictable and reproducible way. We designed a blocking construct that uses both covalent and non-covalent interactions with the antibody. The construct consisted of a Protein L protein attached to a flexible linker ending in a blocking-peptide designed to interact with the antibody binding site. A mutant Protein L was developed to enable photo-triggered covalent crosslinking to the antibody at a specific location. The covalent bond anchored the linker and blocking peptide to the antibody light chain keeping the blocking peptide close to the antibody binding site. This effectively put the antibody into an "off-state". We demonstrate that protease-cleavable and photocleavable moieties in the tether enable controlled antibody activation to the "on-state" for anti-FLAG and cetuximab antibodies. Protein L can bind a range of antibodies used therapeutically and in research for wide applicability.

Multiple distinct sets of stereotyped antigen receptors indicate a role for antigen in promoting chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Previous studies suggest that the diversity of the expressed variable (V) region repertoire of the immunoglobulin (Ig)H chain of B-CLL cells is restricted. Although limited examples of marked constraint in the primary structure of the H and L chain V regions exist, the possibility that this level of restriction is a general principle in this disease has not been accepted. This report describes five sets of patients, mostly with unmutated or minimally mutated IgV genes, with strikingly similar B cell antigen receptors (BCRs) arising from the use of common H and L chain V region gene segments that share CDR3 structural features such as length, amino acid composition, and unique amino acid residues at recombination junctions. Thus, a much more striking degree of structural restriction of the entire BCR and a much higher frequency of receptor sharing exists among patients than appreciated previously. The data imply that either a significant fraction of B-CLL cells was selected by a limited set of antigenic epitopes at some point in their development and/or that they derive from a distinct B cell subpopulation with limited Ig V region diversity. These shared, stereotyped Ig molecules may be valuable probes for antigen identification and important targets for cross-reactive idiotypic therapy.

Silica cloaking of adenovirus enhances gene delivery while reducing immunogenicity.

Viral gene therapy is a means of delivering genes to replace malfunctioning ones, to kill cancer cells, or to correct genetic mutations. This technology is emerging as a powerful clinical tool; however, it is still limited by viral tropism, uptake and clearance by the liver, and most importantly an immune response. To overcome these challenges, we sought to merge the robustness of viral gene expression and the versatility of nanoparticle technology. Here, we describe a method for cloaking adenovirus (Ad) in silica (SiAd) as a nanoparticle formulation that significantly enhances transduction. Intratumoral injections in human glioma xenografts revealed SiAd expressing luciferase improved tumor transduction while reducing liver uptake. In immune-competent mice SiAd induced no inflammatory cytokines and reduced production of neutralizing antibodies. Finally, SiAd expressing TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand inhibited tumor growth of glioma xenografts. These results reveal that silica cloaking of Ad can enhance viral gene delivery while reducing immunogenicity.

Unmutated and mutated chronic lymphocytic leukemias derive from self-reactive B cell precursors despite expressing different antibody reactivity.

B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a disease of expanding monoclonal B cells whose B cell receptor (BCR) mutational status defines 2 subgroups; patients with mutated BCRs have a more favorable prognosis than those with unmutated BCRs. CLL B cells express a restricted BCR repertoire including antibodies with quasi-identical complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR3), which suggests specific antigen recognition. The antigens recognized by CLL antibodies may include autoantigens since about half of CLL B cells produce autoreactive antibodies. However, the distribution of autoreactive antibodies between Ig heavy-chain variable-unmutated (IgV-unmutated) CLL (UM-CLL) and IgV-mutated CLL (M-CLL) is unknown. To determine the role of antibody reactivity and the impact of somatic hypermutation (SHM) on CLL antibody specificity, we cloned and expressed in vitro recombinant antibodies from M- and UM-CLL B cells and tested their reactivity by ELISA. We found that UM-CLL B cells expressed highly polyreactive antibodies whereas most M-CLL B cells did not. When mutated nonautoreactive CLL antibody sequences were reverted in vitro to their germline counterparts, they encoded polyreactive and autoreactive antibodies. We concluded that both UM-CLLs and M-CLLs originate from self-reactive B cell precursors and that SHM plays an important role in the development of the disease by altering original BCR autoreactivity.

In vivo measurements document the dynamic cellular kinetics of chronic lymphocytic leukemia B cells.

Due to its relatively slow clinical progression, B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) is classically described as a disease of accumulation rather than proliferation. However, evidence for various forms of clonal evolution suggests that B-CLL clones may be more dynamic than previously assumed. We used a nonradioactive, stable isotopic labeling method to measure B-CLL cell kinetics in vivo. Nineteen patients drank an aliquot of deuterated water (2H2O) daily for 84 days, and 2H incorporation into the deoxyribose moiety of DNA of newly divided B-CLL cells was measured by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, during and after the labeling period. Birth rates were calculated from the kinetic profiles. Death rates were defined as the difference between calculated birth and growth rates. These analyses demonstrated that the leukemic cells of each patient had definable and often substantial birth rates, varying from 0.1% to greater than 1.0% of the entire clone per day. Those patients with birth rates greater than 0.35% per day were much more likely to exhibit active or to develop progressive disease than those with lower birth rates Thus, B-CLL is not a static disease that results simply from accumulation of long-lived lymphocytes. Rather, it is a dynamic process composed also of cells that proliferate and die, often at appreciable levels. The extent to which this turnover occurs has not been previously appreciated. A correlation between birth rates and disease activity and progression appears to exist, which may help identify patients at risk for worsening disease in advance of clinical deterioration.

Surface expression of Bcl-2 in chronic lymphocytic leukemia and other B-cell leukemias and lymphomas without a breakpoint t(14;18).

Since its discovery in follicular lymphoma cells at the breakpoint t(14;18), Bcl-2 has been studied extensively in many basic and clinical science settings. Bcl-2 can locate as an integral mitochondrial membrane component, where its primary role is to block apoptosis by maintaining membrane integrity. Here we show that Bcl-2 also can position on the outer cell surface membrane of B cells from patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) and certain other leukemias that do not classically possess the chromosomal breakpoint t(14;18). Although low levels of Bcl-2 can be detected on the surface membrane of apparently healthy leukemic and normal B cells, expression of Bcl-2 correlates best with spontaneous or induced apoptosis. Notably, upon induction of apoptosis, B-CLL cells were much more efficient in upregulating surface Bcl-2 than normal B cells. It is not clear if this surface membrane expression is a passive consequence of the apoptotic process or an active attempt by the B cell to abort cell death by stabilizing the plasma membrane.

Coupled rolling circle amplification loop-mediated amplification for rapid detection of short DNA sequences.

Circularizable oligonucleotide probes can detect short DNA sequences with single-base resolution at the site of ligation and can be amplified by rolling circle amplification (RCA) using strand displacing polymerases. A secondary amplification scheme was developed that uses the loop-mediated amplification reaction concurrent with RCA to achieve rapid signal development from the starting circular molecules. This isothermal reaction was found to be significantly faster than the comparable hyperbranching amplification method and could detect 100 circular copies in less than 1 h.

Individualized Dosing of Therapeutic Monoclonal Antibodies-a Changing Treatment Paradigm?

The introduction of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) was an important medical milestone. MAbs have been demonstrated as safe and efficacious treatments of IBD. However, a large percentage of patients either fail to respond initially or lose response to therapy after a period of treatment. Although there are factors associated with poor treatment outcomes in IBD, one cause for treatment failure may be low mAb exposure. Consequently, gastroenterologists have begun using therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) to guide dose adjustment. However, while beneficial, TDM does not provide sufficient information to effectively adjust doses. The pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of mAbs are complex, with numerous factors impacting on mAb PK and PD. The concept of dashboard-guided dosing based on Bayesian PK models allows physicians to combine TDM with factors influencing mAb PK to individualize therapy more effectively. One issue with TDM has been the slow turnaround of assay results, either necessitating an additional clinic visit for a sample or reacting to TDM results at a subsequent, rather than the current, dose. New point-of-care (POC) assays for mAbs are being developed that would potentially allow physicians to determine drug concentration quickly. However, work remains to understand how to determine what target exposure is needed for an individual patient, and whether the combination of POC assays and dashboards presents a safe approach with substantial outcome benefit over the current standard of care.

Identification of Peptide Mimotope Ligands for Natalizumab.

Mimotope peptides selected from combinatorial peptide libraries can be used as capture reagents for immunoassay detection of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). We report the use of phage display libraries to identify peptide ligands (VeritopesTM) that bind natalizumab, a therapeutic mAb indicated for use in multiple sclerosis. PKNPSKF is identified as a novel natalizumab-binding motif, and peptides containing this motif demonstrated utility as capture reagents in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs). A peptide containing the identified motif was shown to be competitive with the natural ligand (α4-integrin) and a neutralizing anti-idiotype antibody for natalizumab binding, indicating that VeritopesTM act as surrogate ligands that bind the antigen binding site of natalizumab. Affinity maturation further confirmed the motif sequence and yielded peptides with greater apparent affinity by ELISA. VeritopesTM are promising assay reagents for therapeutic drug level monitoring.

Enhanced touch preps improve the ease of interpretation of intraoperative breast cancer margins.

Positive margins and the resulting multiple operations are a major problem for breast conservation therapy. Accurate assessment of intraoperative tumor margins can limit multiple re-excision procedures. Intraoperative touch preparations have been used in the past but can be difficult to interpret without an experienced cytopathologist. The objective of this study is to examine the reliability of enhanced intraoperative touch preps (EIOTP) compared with final pathologic margins. We prospectively performed EIOTP on 20 tumors in women undergoing breast conservation therapy. Six margins and the main tumor were touched onto poly-L-lysine coated slides. The slides were stained with anti MUC1 and anti-E-cadherin antibodies, and Hoechst nuclear stain. A parallel set of slides were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for comparison. The EIOTP results were compared with pathologic interpretation of paraffin embedded permanent sections. A total of 120 margins underwent EIOTP in 20 patients. We found a sensitivity equal to 80 per cent, specificity 100 per cent, positive predictive value 100 per cent, and negative predictive value 99 per cent. EIOTP in conjunction with MUC-1 and E-cadherin by immunofluorescence is a sensitive and highly specific mechanism to identify cancer cells at breast tissue margins. The immunofluorescence stains may help the pathologist to identify cancer cells in fresh breast tissue and limit breast re-excisions in the future.

SAIVGeM: spreadsheet analysis of immunoglobulin VH gene mutations.

The analysis of mutations in immunoglobulin heavy chain variable (IGHV) region genes is a tedious process when performed by hand on multiple sequences. This report describes a set of linked Microsoft Excel files that perform several common analyses on large numbers of IGHV sequences. The spreadsheet analysis of immunoglobulin VH gene mutations (SAIVGeM) package determines the distribution of mutations among each nucleotide, the nature of the mutation at both the nucleotide and amino acid level, the frequency of mutation in the A/G G C/T A/T (RGYW) hotspot motifs of both strand polarity, and the distribution of replacement and silent mutations among the complementarity determining regions (CDRs) and the framework regions (FRs) of the immunoglobulin gene as defined by either the Kabat or IMGT conventions. These parameters are summarized and graphically presented where appropriate. In addition, the SAIVGeM package analyzes those mutations that occur in third positions of redundant codons. Because any nucleotide change in these positions is inherently silent, these positions can be used to study the mutational spectra without biases from the selection of protein structure.

A seven-gene expression panel distinguishing clonal expansions of pre-leukemic and chronic lymphocytic leukemia B cells from normal B lymphocytes.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a clonal disease of B lymphocytes manifesting as an absolute lymphocytosis in the blood. However, not all lymphocytoses are leukemic. In addition, first-degree relatives of CLL patients have an ~15 % chance of developing a precursor condition to CLL termed monoclonal B cell lymphocytosis (MBL), and distinguishing CLL and MBL B lymphocytes from normal B cell expansions can be a challenge. Therefore, we selected FMOD, CKAP4, PIK3C2B, LEF1, PFTK1, BCL-2, and GPM6a from a set of genes significantly differentially expressed in microarray analyses that compared CLL cells with normal B lymphocytes and used these to determine whether we could discriminate CLL and MBL cells from B cells of healthy controls. Analysis with receiver operating characteristics and Bayesian relevance determination demonstrated good concordance with all panel genes. Using a random forest classifier, the seven-gene panel reliably distinguished normal polyclonal B cell populations from expression patterns occurring in pre-CLL and CLL B cell populations with an error rate of 2 %. Using Bayesian learning, the expression levels of only two genes, FMOD and PIK3C2B, correctly distinguished 100 % of CLL and MBL cases from normal polyclonal and mono/oligoclonal B lymphocytes. Thus, this study sets forth effective computational approaches that distinguish MBL/CLL from normal B lymphocytes. The findings also support the concept that MBL is a CLL precursor.