Patent Application
20210363265
The instant application contains a Sequence Listing which has been submitted via EFS-Web and is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Said ASCII copy, created on Month XX, 2018, is named XXXXXUS_sequencelisting.txt, and is X,XXX,XXX bytes in size.
The tumor necrosis factor receptor family (TNFR) is a protein superfamily of cytokine receptors involved in virtually every biological system, ranging from immune system physiology to neurobiology. Antagonists of the TNF/TNFR signaling axis are among the most successful drugs ever commercialized, and include receptor:Fc fusion constructs, such as etanercept (Enbrel), anti-TNFα antibodies, such as infliximab (Remicade), adalimumab (Humira) and golimumab (Simponi), and pegylated Fab′ constructs, such as Certolizumab pegol (Cimzia).
Agonists of the TNF/TNFR signaling axis also have therapeutic potential. Croft et al., Nature Rev. Drug Discovery 12:147-168 (2013). However, agonists of the TNFR have been much less successful: effective TNFR activation is much more difficult to achieve than blocking of the TNF and TNFR interactions, because activation of TNFR generally requires specific oligomerization (clustering the receptor trimers) and immobilization.
Fusion proteins comprising two ligand trimers (a pseudo-hexamer) can be effective oligomerizing agonists, but the ligands are small cysteine-rich domains and their oligomers generally possess poor biophysical properties, making them inferior drugs compared to antibodies. Conventional TNFR mAbs—which are bivalent and monospecific for a single TNFR epitope—typically possess low-to moderate TNFR agonist activity. Accordingly, additional crosslinking of the TNFR mAbs is required to potentiate agonistic activity. Various approaches to higher order oligomerization of anti-TNFR mAb have been pursued. In vitro, secondary antibodies that crosslink the agonistic antibody have been used, but an approach that requires co-localization of two exogenously administered antibodies is not suitable for therapy. Other approaches have relied on adventitious Fc engagement by FcγR on the surface of cells encountered in vivo. Problems with this approach include the need for cells with FcγR to be in close proximity to the antibody-decorated cell, and inherent competition for FcγR binding between the therapeutic antibody and endogenous antibodies. A recent approach uses cross-linking to tumor cells to drive the higher level oligomerization. See US Pub. No. 2017/0114141. Various constructs using Fc variants that hexamerize have also been proposed to increase the valency of crosslinking. However, these engineered constructs require customized expression and purification approaches.
A recent approach has also described use of tetravalent antibodies to stimulate T cells in the absence of a crosslinking reagent (see US Pub. No. 2018/0057598). However, use of tetravalent constructs can impact expression and, given the symmetry required in the system described, limit further optimization using non-symmetrical formats. In addition, antibody architectures other than tetravalent formats, e.g., bivalent bispecific formats, were determined to lack agonist activity.
There is, therefore, a need for an antibody construct capable of (i) binding a cell surface receptor target that requires clustering for agonist activity, and (ii) clustering the receptor target on the cell surface in the absence of an independent cross-linking agent. There is a further need for antibody constructs having these characteristics and that are also capable of high level expression, such as bivalent and trivalent constructs, with high fidelity pairing of cognate heavy chain pairs and cognate heavy and light chain pairs and that can be readily purified.
We have developed multivalent antibody constructs, including multispecific antibody constructs, that are readily expressed to high levels in standard transient transfection systems with high fidelity pairing of cognate heavy chain pairs and cognate heavy and light chain pairs, and that can be purified in a single step to purity levels sufficient to allow in vitro assay.
Following a standard library panning campaign to identify phage-displayed human Fabs that bind the TNFRSF member OX40, we identified antigen binding sites for monovalent binding to OX40. Because our constructs are suitable for high throughput expression and assay, we then recloned antigen binding sites having specificity for different OX40 epitopes into a wide variety of monospecific bivalent, bispecific bivalent, monospecific trivalent, bispecific trivalent and trispecific trivalent combinations. We expressed and tested these multivalent constructs in high throughput assays for OX40 agonist activity, both in the absence and the presence of an agent that further cross-links the antibody construct. Mechanisms for antibody mediated receptor clustering both in the presence (
Our constructs demonstrated a wide range of agonist activity in the absence of a crosslinking agent; some have agonist activity in the absence of cross-linker greater than that of crosslinked OX40 ligand. The best constructs exhibited agonist activity in the absence of independent crosslinking agent superior to that observed with three known mAb clinical candidates. A number of our constructs also demonstrated a wide range of increased activity upon further crosslinking.
Accordingly, in a first aspect, multivalent antibody constructs are provided. The constructs are capable of (i) binding a cell surface receptor target that requires clustering for agonist activity, and (ii) clustering the receptor target on the cell surface in the absence of an independent cross-linking agent or one or more Fc mutations that drive hexamer formation. In these constructs, each of the target receptor-binding antigen binding sites of the construct is contributed by antibody variable region binding domains.
In some aspects, the multivalent construct is monospecific.
In some aspects, the multivalent construct is multispecific. In some aspects, the multispecific multivalent comprises a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor, and a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigenic target. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor. In some aspects, the target cell surface receptor and the second cell surface receptor are commonly expressed on the surface of at least some mammalian cells.
In some aspects, the target receptor is a TNF Receptor superfamily (TNFRSF) member. In some aspects, the target receptor is OX40 (TNFRSF4), CD40 (TNFRSF5), or 4-1BB (TNFRSF9). In some aspects, the target receptor is a human TNFRSF. In some aspects, the target receptor is human OX40, human CD40, or human 4-1BB. In some aspects, the target receptor is human OX40.
In some aspects, the multivalent construct is bivalent. In some aspects, the bivalent construct is a bivalent (1×1) construct. In some aspects, the construct is monospecific. In some aspects, the construct is bispecific. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor in the bivalent bispecific construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some aspects, the multivalent construct is trivalent. In some aspects, the construct is a trivalent (2×1) construct. In some aspects, the trivalent construct is monospecific. In some aspects, the trivalent is bispecific.
In some aspects, the bispecific trivalent construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some aspects, the bispecific trivalent construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
In some aspects, the trivalent construct is trispecific. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site in the trispecific construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site in the trispecific construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the trispecific construct. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a first epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a third epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a second epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the first epitope of the second protein and the second epitope of the second protein are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a first epitope of a third protein in the trispecific construct. In some aspects, the second protein or third protein is a second or third cell surface receptor.
In some aspects, the trivalent construct is a trivalent (1×2) construct. In some aspects, the trivalent construct is monospecific. In some aspects, the trivalent construct is bispecific. In some aspects, the bispecific trivalent contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct.
In some aspects, the bispecific trivalent construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the bispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the second protein is a second cell surface.
In some aspects, the trivalent construct is trispecific. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site in the trispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site in the trispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site in the trispecific trivalent construct. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the second antigenic target is a first epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a third epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a second epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the first epitope of the second protein and the second epitope of the second protein are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the third antigenic target is a first epitope of a third protein. In some aspects, the second protein or third protein is a second or third cell surface receptor.
In some aspects, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent does not increase agonist activity in vitro above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent. In some aspects, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent increases agonist activity in vitro above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent. In some aspects, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent increases agonist in vitro activity 50% above activity observed in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent.
In some aspects, the bivalent (1×1) antibody constructs comprises a first, second, third, and fourth polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the first polypeptide chain comprises a domain A, a domain B, a domain D, and a domain E, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a A-B-D-E orientation, and domain A has a VL amino acid sequence, domain B has a CH3 amino acid sequence, domain D has a CH2 amino acid sequence, and domain E has a constant region domain amino acid sequence; (b) the second polypeptide chain comprises a domain F and a domain G, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a F-G orientation, and wherein domain F has a VH amino acid sequence and domain G has a CH3 amino acid sequence; (c) the third polypeptide chain comprises a domain H, a domain I, a domain J, and a domain K, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a H-I-J-K orientation, and wherein domain H has a variable region domain amino acid sequence, domain I has a constant region domain amino acid sequence, domain J has a CH2 amino acid sequence, and K has a constant region domain amino acid sequence; (d) the fourth polypeptide chain comprises a domain L and a domain M, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a L-M orientation, and wherein domain L has a variable region domain amino acid sequence and domain M has a constant region domain amino acid sequence; (e) the first and the second polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the A and the F domains and an interaction between the B and the G domains; (f) the third and the fourth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the H and the L domains and an interaction between the I and the M domains; and (g) the first and the third polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the D and the J domains and an interaction between the E and the K domains to form the binding molecule.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the B and the G domains are identical, wherein the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the B and the G domains are different and separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the B domain interacts with the G domain, and wherein neither the B domain nor the G domain interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between domain B and G. In some aspects, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a S354C mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a 349C in the other domain. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise knob-in-hole mutations. In some aspects, the knob-in hole mutations are a T366W mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in the other domain. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise charge-pair mutations. In some aspects, the charge-pair mutations are a T366K mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a L351D mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, the domain E has a CH3 amino acid sequence. In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E and K domains are identical, wherein the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E and K domains are different. In some aspects, the different sequences separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the E domain interacts with the K domain, and wherein neither the E domain nor the K domain interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between domain E and K. In some aspects, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a S354C mutation in one of the E domain and K domain, and a 349C in the other domain. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the E and K domains comprise knob-in-hole mutations. In some aspects, the knob-in hole mutations are a T366W mutation in one of the E domain or K domain and a T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in the other domain. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise charge-pair mutations. In some aspects, the charge-pair mutations are a T366K mutation in one of the E domain or K domain and a corresponding L351D mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E domain and the K domain are endogenous sequences of two different antibody domains, the domains selected to have a specific interaction that promotes the specific association between the first and the third polypeptides. In some aspects, the two different amino acid sequences are a CH1 sequence and a CL sequence. In some aspects, the domain I has a CL sequence and domain M has a CH1 sequence.
In some aspects, the domain H has a VL sequence and domain L has a VH sequence.
In some aspects, domain H has a VL amino acid sequence; domain I has a CL amino acid sequence; domain K has a CH3 amino acid sequence; domain L has a VH amino acid sequence; and domain M has a CH1 amino acid sequence.
In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs further comprise a sixth polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the third polypeptide chain further comprises a domain R and a domain S, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a R-S-H-I-J-K orientation, and wherein domain R has a VL amino acid sequence and domain S has a constant domain amino acid sequence; (b) the binding molecule further comprises a sixth polypeptide chain, comprising: a domain T and a domain U, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a T-U orientation, and wherein domain T has a VH amino acid sequence and domain U has a constant domain amino acid sequence; and (c) the third and the sixth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the R and the T domains and an interaction between the S and the U domains to form the binding molecule.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R and domain A are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain H is different from domain R and A, the amino acid sequences of domain S and domain B are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain I is different from domain S and B, the amino acid sequences of domain T and domain F are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain L is different from domain T and F, the amino acid sequences of domain U and domain G are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain M is different from domain U and G and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the domain R and domain T form a third antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R and domain H are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain A is different from domain R and H, the amino acid sequences of domain S and domain I are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain B is different from domain S and I, the amino acid sequences of domain T and domain L are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain F is different from domain T and L, the amino acid sequences of domain U and domain M are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain G is different from domain U and M and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the domain R and domain T form a third antigen binding site specific for the second antigen.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R, domain A, and domain H are different, the amino acid sequences of domain S, domain B, and domain I are different, the amino acid sequences of domain T, domain F, and domain L are different, and the amino acid sequences of domain U, domain G, and domain M are different; and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the domain R and domain T form a third antigen binding site specific for a third antigen.
In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs further comprise a fifth polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the first polypeptide chain further comprises a domain N and a domain O, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a N-O-A-B-D-E orientation, and wherein domain N has a VL amino acid sequence, domain O has a CH3 amino acid sequence; (b) the binding molecule further comprises a fifth polypeptide chain, comprising: a domain P and a domain Q, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a P-Q orientation, and wherein domain P has a VH amino acid sequence and domain Q has a CH3 amino acid sequence; and (c) the first and the fifth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the N and the P domains and an interaction between the O and the Q domains to form the binding molecule.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain N and domain A are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain H is different from domains N and A, the amino acid sequences of domain O and domain B are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain I is different from domains O and B, the amino acid sequences of domain P and domain F are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain L is different from domains P and F, the amino acid sequences of domain Q and domain G are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain M is different from domains Q and G; and (b) wherein the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the domain N and domain P form a third antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain N, domain A, and domain H are different, the amino acid sequences of domain O, domain B, and domain I are different, the amino acid sequences of domain P, domain F, and domain L are different, and the amino acid sequences of domain Q, domain G, and domain M are different; and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the domain N and domain P form a third antigen binding site specific for a third antigen.
In some aspects, the sequence that links the A domain and the B domain is IKRTPREP or IKRTVREP. In some aspects, the sequence that links the F domain and the G domain is SSASPREP. In some aspects, at least one CH3 amino acid sequence has a C-terminal tripeptide insertion linking the CH3 amino acid sequence to a hinge amino acid sequence, wherein the tripeptide insertion is selected from the group consisting of PGK, KSC, and GEC.
In some aspects, the sequences are human sequences. In some aspects, at least one CH3 amino acid sequence is an IgG sequence. In some aspects, the IgG sequences are IgG1 sequences.
In some aspects, at least one CH3 amino acid sequence has one or more isoallotype mutations. In some aspects, the isoallotype mutations are D356E and L358M. In some aspects, the CL amino acid sequence is a Ckappa sequence.
Also described herein are OX40 binding molecules, comprising a first antigen binding site specific for an OX40 antigen, wherein the first antigen binding site comprises: A) a CDR1, a CDR2, and a CDR3 amino acid sequences of a specific light chain variable region (VL), wherein the CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 VL sequences are selected from Table 4 corresponding to a specific OX40 antigen binding site (ABS); and B) a CDR1, a CDR2, and a CDR3 amino acid sequences of a specific heavy chain variable region (VH), wherein the CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 VH sequences are selected from Table 3 corresponding to the specific OX40 ABS.
In some aspects, the first antigen binding site is specific for a first epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the OX40 antigen comprises an OX40 domain selected from the group consisting of: OX40 amino acids 2-214, OX40 amino acids 66-214, OX40 amino acids 108-214, and OX40 amino acids 127-214. In some aspects, the OX40 antigen comprises a human OX40 antigen.
In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:203, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:227, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule further comprises a second antigen binding site. In some aspects, the second antigen binding site is specific for the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen binding site is specific for the first epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen binding site is specific for a second epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:203, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the second antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:227, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the second antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150.
In some aspects, the second antigen binding site is specific for a second antigen different from the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen is a second cell surface receptor.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule comprises an antibody format selected from the group consisting of: full-length antibodies, Fab fragments, Fvs, scFvs, tandem scFvs, Diabodies, scDiabodies, DARTs, tandAbs, and minibodies.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule comprises: a first and a second polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the first polypeptide chain comprises a domain A, a domain B, a domain D, and a domain E, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a A-B-D-E orientation, wherein domain A has a variable region domain amino acid sequence, and wherein domain B, domain D, and domain E have a constant region domain amino acid sequence; (b) the second polypeptide chain comprises a domain F and a domain G, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a F-G orientation, and wherein domain F has a variable region domain amino acid sequence and domain G has a constant region domain amino acid sequence c) the first and the second polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the A and the F domain and an interaction between the B domain and the G domain to form the OX40 antigen binding molecule, and wherein the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule further comprises: a third and a fourth polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the third polypeptide chain comprises a domain H, a domain I, a domain J, and a domain K, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a H-I-J-K orientation, and wherein domain H has a variable region domain amino acid sequence, and domains I, J, and K have a constant region domain amino acid sequence; (b) the fourth polypeptide chain comprises a domain L and a domain M, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a L-M orientation, and wherein domain L has a variable region domain amino acid sequence and domain M has a constant region amino acid sequence; (c) the third and the fourth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the H and the L domains and an interaction between the I and the M domains; and (d) the first and the third polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the D domain and the J domain and an interaction between the E domain and the K domain to form the OX40 antigen binding molecule, and wherein the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site.
In some aspects, the first antigen binding site is specific for the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen binding site is specific for the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site is specific for a first epitope of the OX40 antigen and the second antigen binding site is specific for a second epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes.
In some aspects, domain B and domain G have a CH3 amino acid sequence. In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the B domain and the G domain are identical, wherein the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence. In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the B domain and the G domain are different and separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the B domain interacts with the G domain, and wherein neither the B domain nor the G domain significantly interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications of the B domain and the G domain comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between the B domain and the G domain. In some aspects, the mutations of the B domain and the G domain that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a S354C mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a 349C in the other domain.
In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications of the B domain and the G domain comprise knob-in-hole mutations. In some aspects, the knob-in hole mutations of the B domain and the G domain are a T366W mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications of the B domain and the G domain comprise charge-pair mutations. In some aspects, the charge-pair mutations of the B domain and the G domain are a T366K mutation in one of the B domain and G domain, and a L351D mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, domain B and domain G have an IgM CH2 amino acid sequence or an IgE CH2 amino acid sequence. In some aspects, the IgM CH2 amino acid sequence or the IgE CH2 amino acid sequence comprise orthogonal modifications.
In some aspects, domain I has a CL sequence and domain M has a CH1 sequence. In some aspects, domain I has a CH1 sequence and domain M has a CL sequence. In some aspects, the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence each comprise one or more orthogonal modifications, wherein a domain having the CH1 sequence does not significantly interact with a domain having a CL sequence lacking the orthogonal modification. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between the at least one CH1 domain and a CL domain, the mutations selected from the group consisting of: an engineered cysteine at position 138 of the CH1 sequence and position 116 of the CL sequence; an engineered cysteine at position 128 of the CH1 sequence and position 119 of the CL sequence, and an engineered cysteine at position 129 of the CH1 sequence and position 210 of the CL sequence. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between the at least one CH1 domain and a CL domain, wherein the mutations comprise and engineered cysteines at position 128 of the CH1 sequence and position 118 of a CL Kappa sequence. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between the at least one CH1 domain and a CL domain, the mutations selected from the group consisting of: a F118C mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141C in the CH1 sequence; a F118C mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding L128C in the CH1 sequence; and a S162C mutations in the CL sequence with a corresponding P171C mutation in the CH1 sequence. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence comprise charge-pair mutations between the at least one CH1 domain and a CL domain, the charge-pair mutations selected from the group consisting of: a F118S mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141L in the CH1 sequence; a F118A mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141L in the CH1 sequence; a F118V mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141L in the CH1 sequence; and a T129R mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding K147D in the CH1 sequence. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the CH1 sequence and the CL sequence comprise charge-pair mutations between the at least one CH1 domain and a CL domain, the charge-pair mutations selected from the group consisting of: a N138K mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding G166D in the CH1 sequence, and a N138D mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding G166K in the CH1 sequence.
In some aspects, domain A has a VL amino acid sequence and domain F has a VH amino acid sequence. In some aspects, domain A has a VH amino acid sequence and domain F has a VL amino acid sequence. In some aspects, domain H has a VL amino acid sequence and domain L has a VH amino acid sequence. In some aspects, domain H has a VH amino acid sequence and domain L has a VL amino acid sequence.
In some aspects, domain D and domain J have a CH2 amino acid sequence.
In some aspects, the E domain has a CH3 amino acid sequence.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E domain and the K domain are identical, wherein the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence. In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E domain and the K domain are different. In some aspects, the different sequences separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the E domain interacts with the K domain, and wherein neither the E domain nor the K domain significantly interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between the E domain and the K domain. In some aspects, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a S354C mutation in one of the E domain and the K domain, and a 349C in the other domain. In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the E domain and the K domain comprise knob-in-hole mutations. In some aspects, the knob-in hole mutations are a T366W mutation in one of the E domain or the K domain and a T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, the orthogonal modifications in the E domain and the K domain comprise charge-pair mutations. In some aspects, the charge-pair mutations are a T366K mutation in one of the E domain or the K domain and a corresponding L351D mutation in the other domain.
In some aspects, the amino acid sequences of the E domain and the K domain are endogenous sequences of two different antibody domains, the domains selected to have a specific interaction that promotes the specific association between the first and the third polypeptides. In some aspects, the two different amino acid sequences are a CH1 sequence and a CL sequence.
The In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule further comprises a third antigen binding site. In some aspects, the third antigen binding site is specific for an OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site and the third antigen binding site are specific for the same OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:203, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:227, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150.
In some aspects, the first antigen binding site and the third antigen binding site are specific for a different OX40 antigens. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:203, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the third antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150. In some aspects, the third antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:203, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150. In some aspects, the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:227, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the third antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150. In some aspects, the third antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:227, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:83, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:123, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:163; and the first antigen binding site comprises a VL CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:220, a VL CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:221, and a VL CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:190, and a VH CDR1 comprising SEQ ID NO:70, a VH CDR2 comprising SEQ ID NO:110, and a VH CDR3 comprising SEQ ID NO:150.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule comprises a fifth polypeptide chain, wherein (a) the first polypeptide chain further comprises a domain N and a domain O, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a N-O-A-B-D-E orientation, and wherein domain N has a variable region domain amino acid sequence, domain O has a constant region amino acid sequence; (b) the fifth polypeptide chain comprises a domain P and a domain Q, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a P-Q orientation, and wherein domain P has a variable region domain amino acid sequence and domain Q has a constant region amino acid sequence; and (c) the first and the fifth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the N and the P domains and an interaction between the O and the Q domains to form the OX40 antigen binding molecule.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain N and domain A are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain H is different from the sequence of domain N and domain A, the amino acid sequences of domain O and domain B are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain I is different from the sequence of domain O and domain B, the amino acid sequences of domain P and domain F are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain L is different from the sequence of domain P and domain F, the amino acid sequences of domain Q and domain G are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain M is different from the sequence of domain Q and domain G; and (b) wherein the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the interaction between the N domain and the P domain form a third antigen binding site specific for the first antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen is a first epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen is a second epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain N, domain A, and domain H are different, the amino acid sequences of domain O, domain B, and domain I are different, the amino acid sequences of domain P, domain F, and domain L are different, and the amino acid sequences of domain Q, domain G, and domain M are different; and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the interaction between the N domain and the P domain form a third antigen binding site specific for a third antigen.
In some aspects, the OX40 antigen binding molecule comprises a sixth polypeptide chain, wherein: (a) the third polypeptide chain further comprises a domain R and a domain S, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a R-S-H-I-J-K orientation, and wherein domain R has a variable region amino acid sequence and domain S has a constant domain amino acid sequence; (b) the sixth polypeptide chain comprises: a domain T and a domain U, wherein the domains are arranged, from N-terminus to C-terminus, in a T-U orientation, and wherein domain T has a variable region amino acid sequence and domain U has a constant domain amino acid sequence; and (c) the third and the sixth polypeptides are associated through an interaction between the R and the T domains and an interaction between the S and the U domains to form the OX40 antigen binding molecule.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R and domain A are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain H is different from the sequence of domain R and domain A, the amino acid sequences of domain S and domain B are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain I is different from the sequence of domain S and domain B, the amino acid sequences of domain T and domain F are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain L is different from the sequence of domain T and domain F, the amino acid sequences of domain U and domain G are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain M is different from the sequence of domain U and domain G, and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the interaction between the R domain and the T domain form a third antigen binding site specific for the first antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen is a first epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen is a second epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R and domain H are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain A is different from the sequence of domain R and domain H, the amino acid sequences of domain S and domain I are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain B is different from the sequence of domain S and domain I, the amino acid sequences of domain T and domain L are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain F is different from the sequence of domain T and domain L, the amino acid sequences of domain U and domain M are identical, the amino acid sequences of domain G is different from the sequence of domain U and domain M, and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the interaction between the R domain and the T domain form a third antigen binding site specific for the second antigen. In some aspects, the second antigen is a first epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first antigen is a second epitope of the OX40 antigen. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes.
In some aspects, (a) the amino acid sequences of domain R, domain A, and domain H are different, the amino acid sequences of domain S, domain B, and domain I are different, the amino acid sequences of domain T, domain F, and domain L are different, and the amino acid sequences of domain U, domain G, and domain M are different; and (b) the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen, and the interaction between the R domain and the T domain form a third antigen binding site specific for a third antigen.
Also described herein are purified binding molecules comprising any of the multivalent antibody constructs or the OX40 antigen binding molecules described herein. In some aspects, the purified binding molecule is purified by a purification method comprising a CH1 affinity purification step. In some aspects, the purified binding molecule is purified by a single-step purification method.
In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise a biophysical property selected from the group consisting of high yield, high purity, homogeneity, stability, long-term stability, acid stability, thermostability, low antibody cross-interaction, low antibody self-interaction, low hydrophobic binding, and cyno crossreactivity. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of high yield. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of high purity. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of homogeneity. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of stability. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of long-term stability. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of acid stability. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of thermostability. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of low antibody cross-interaction. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of low antibody self-interaction. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of low hydrophobic binding. In some aspects, the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein comprise the biophysical property of cyno crossreactivity.
Also described herein are pharmaceutical compositions comprising any of the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein, and a pharmaceutically acceptable diluent.
Also described herein are methods of treating cancer, comprising administering a therapeutically effective amount of any of the pharmaceutical compositions described herein to a patient in need thereof.
Also described herein are isolated polynucleotides encoding an amino acid sequence comprising any of the multivalent antibody constructs, the OX40 antigen binding molecules, or the purified binding molecules described herein.
Also described herein are vectors comprising any of the isolated polynucleotides described herein.
Also described herein are host cells comprising any of the vectors described herein.
The figures depict various embodiments of the present invention for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the invention described herein.
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the meaning commonly understood by a person skilled in the art to which this invention belongs. As used herein, the following terms have the meanings ascribed to them below.
By “antigen binding site” is meant a region of a binding molecule, that specifically recognizes or binds to a given antigen or epitope. “B-Body,” as used herein and with reference to
As used herein, the terms “treat” or “treatment” refer to both therapeutic treatment and prophylactic or preventative measures, wherein the object is to prevent or slow down (lessen) an undesired physiological change or disorder, such as the progression of multiple sclerosis, arthritis, or cancer. Beneficial or desired clinical results include, but are not limited to, alleviation of symptoms, diminishment of extent of disease, stabilized (i.e., not worsening) state of disease, delay or slowing of disease progression, amelioration or palliation of the disease state, and remission (whether partial or total), whether detectable or undetectable. “Treatment” can also mean prolonging survival as compared to expected survival if not receiving treatment. Those in need of treatment include those already with the condition or disorder as well as those prone to have the condition or disorder or those in which the condition or disorder is to be prevented.
By “subject” or “individual” or “animal” or “patient” or “mammal,” is meant any subject, particularly a mammalian subject, for whom diagnosis, prognosis, or therapy is desired. Mammalian subjects include humans, domestic animals, farm animals, and zoo, sports, or pet animals such as dogs, cats, guinea pigs, rabbits, rats, mice, horses, cattle, cows, and so on.
The term “sufficient amount” means an amount sufficient to produce a desired effect, e.g., an amount sufficient to modulate protein aggregation in a cell.
The term “therapeutically effective amount” is an amount that is effective to ameliorate a symptom of a disease. A therapeutically effective amount can be a “prophylactically effective amount” as prophylaxis can be considered therapy.
Unless otherwise specified, all references to sequences herein are to amino acid sequences.
Unless otherwise specified, antibody constant region residue numbering is according to the Eu index as described at
www.imgt.org/IMGTScientificChart/Numbering/Hu_IGHGnber.html#refs
(accessed Aug. 22, 2017) and in Edelman et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. USA, 63:78-85 (1969), which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties, and identifies the residue according to its location in an endogenous constant region sequence regardless of the residue's physical location within a chain of the binding molecules described herein. By “endogenous sequence” or “native sequence” is meant any sequence, including both nucleic acid and amino acid sequences, which originates from an organism, tissue, or cell and has not been artificially modified or mutated.
Polypeptide chain numbers (e.g., a “first” polypeptide chains, a “second” polypeptide chain. etc. or polypeptide “chain 1,” “chain 2,” etc.) are used herein as a unique identifier for specific polypeptide chains that form a binding molecule and is not intended to connote order or quantity of the different polypeptide chains within the binding molecule.
In this disclosure, “comprises,” “comprising,” “containing,” “having,” “includes,” “including,” and linguistic variants thereof have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S. patent law, permitting the presence of additional components beyond those explicitly recited.
Ranges provided herein are understood to be shorthand for all of the values within the range, inclusive of the recited endpoints. For example, a range of 1 to 50 is understood to include any number, combination of numbers, or sub-range from the group consisting of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, and 50.
Unless specifically stated or apparent from context, as used herein the term “or” is understood to be inclusive. Unless specifically stated or apparent from context, as used herein, the terms “a”, “an”, and “the” are understood to be singular or plural.
Unless specifically stated or otherwise apparent from context, as used herein the term “about” is understood as within a range of normal tolerance in the art, for example within 2 standard deviations of the mean. About can be understood as within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.1%, 0.05%, or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless otherwise clear from context, all numerical values provided herein are modified by the term about.
We have developed multivalent antibody constructs that are readily expressed to high level in standard transient transfection systems with high fidelity pairing of cognate heavy chain pairs and cognate heavy and light chain pairs, and that can be purified in a single step to purity levels sufficient to allow in vitro assay. Following a standard library panning campaign to identify phage-displayed human Fabs that bind the TNFRSF member OX40, we used our novel multivalent constructs to assess the identified antigen binding sites for monovalent binding to OX40. See Example 1.
Because our constructs are suitable for high throughput expression and assay, we then recloned antigen binding sites having specificity for different OX40 epitopes into a wide variety of monospecific and bispecific bivalent and trivalent combinations. We expressed and tested these multivalent constructs in high throughput assays for OX40 agonist activity, both in the absence and presence of an agent that further cross-links the antibody construct. Our constructs demonstrated a wide range of agonist activity in the absence of independent crosslinking agent; some have agonist activity in the absence of cross-linker greater than that of crosslinked OX40 ligand. The best constructs exhibited agonist activity in the absence of independent crosslinking agent superior to that observed with three known mAb clinical candidates. A number of our constructs also demonstrated a wide range of increased activity upon further crosslinking.
Accordingly, in a first aspect, multivalent antibody constructs are provided. The construct is capable of (i) binding a cell surface receptor target that requires clustering for agonist activity, and (ii) clustering the receptor target on the cell surface in the absence of an independent cross-linking agent. Each of the target receptor-binding antigen binding sites of the construct is contributed by antibody variable region binding domains.
In various embodiments, the multivalent construct is monospecific.
In various embodiments, the construct is multispecific.
In embodiments of the multivalent antibody construct that are multispecific, the construct comprises a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor, and a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigenic target.
In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein.
In particular embodiments, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein, wherein the second protein is a second cell surface receptor. In certain embodiments, the target cell surface receptor and the second cell surface receptor are commonly expressed on the surface of at least some mammalian cells.
In typical embodiments, whether monospecific or multispecific, the target receptor is a TNF Receptor superfamily (TNFRSF) member.
In various embodiments, the TNFRSF member is TNFR1 (also known as CD120a and TNFRSF1A), TNFR2 (also known as CD120b and TNFRSF1B), TNFRSF3 (also known as LTβR), TNFRSF4 (also known as OX40 and CD134), TNFRSF5 (also known as CD40), TNFRSF6 (also known as FAS and CD95), TNFRSF6B (also known as DCR3), TNFRSF7 (also known as CD27), TNFRSF8 (also known as CD30), TNFRSF9 (also known as 4-1BB), TNFRSF10A (also known as TRAILR1, DR4, and CD26), TNFRSF10B (also known as TRAILR2, DR5, and CD262), TNFRSF10C (also known as TRAILR3, DCR1, CD263), TNFRSF10D (also known as TRAILR4, DCR2, and CD264), TNFRSF11A (also known as RANK and CD265), TNFRSF11B (also known as OPG), TNFRSF12A (also known as FN14, TWEAKR, and CD266), TNFRSF13B (also known as TACI and CD267), TNFRSF13C (also known as BAFFR, BR3, and CD268), TNFRSF14 (also known as HVEM and CD270), TNFRSF16 (also known as NGFR, p75NTR, and CD271), or TNFRSF17 (also known as BCMA and CD269), TNFRSF18 (also known as GITR and CD357), TNFRSF19 (also known as TROY, TAJ, and TRADE), TNFRSF21 (also known as CD358), TNFRSF25 (also known as Apo-3, TRAMP, LARD, or WS-1), EDA2R (also known as XEDAR).
In some embodiments, the target receptor is OX40 (TNFRSF4), CD40 (TNFRSF5), or 4-1BB (TNFRSF9). In particular embodiments, the target receptor is OX40. In particular embodiments, the target receptor is CD40. In certain embodiments, the target receptor is 4-1BB.
In typical embodiments, the target receptor is a human TNFRSF. In certain of these embodiments, the target receptor is human OX40, human CD40, or human 4-1BB. In particular embodiments, the target receptor is human OX40. In particular embodiments, the target receptor is human CD40. In particular embodiments, the target receptor is human 4-1BB.
In other embodiments, the target receptor is not a TNFRSF member. In certain embodiments, the target receptor is CD20. In a particular embodiment, the target receptor is human CD20.
In various embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent does not increase agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent. In certain embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent does not increase agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent when tested in vitro. In particular embodiments in which the independent cross-linking agent is cross-linked natural ligand of the target receptor, the presence of cross-linked ligand for the target receptor does not increase in vitro agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the cross-linked ligand. In certain embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent does not increase agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent when the multivalent antibody construct is administered in vivo.
In various embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent increases agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent. In certain embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent increases agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent when tested in vitro. In particular embodiments in which the independent cross-linking agent is cross-linked natural ligand of the target receptor, the presence of cross-linked ligand for the target receptor increases in vitro agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the cross-linked ligand. In certain embodiments, cross-linked target receptor ligand increases in vitro agonist activity 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 100%, 200%, 300% or even 400% above that achieved in the absence of the cross-linked ligand. In specific embodiments, cross-linked target receptor ligand increases in vitro agonist activity more than 2-fold above that achieved in the absence of the cross-linked ligand. In certain embodiments, cross-linked target receptor ligand increases in vitro agonist activity more than 3-fold above that achieved in the absence of the cross-linked ligand
In certain embodiments, the presence of an independent cross-linking agent increases agonist activity above that achieved in the absence of the independent cross-linking agent when the multivalent construct is administered in vivo.
In some embodiments, the multivalent construct is bivalent.
In various embodiments, the bivalent construct is a bivalent (1×1) construct. The basic architecture of bivalent (1×1) constructs is included among the architectures schematized in
With reference to
In some embodiments, the bivalent binding molecules comprise a native antibody architecture, wherein the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein domains A and H comprise VH amino acid sequences, domains F and L comprise VL amino acid sequences, domains B and I comprise CH1, domains G and M comprise CL, domains D and J comprise CH2, and domains E and K comprise CH3.
In preferred embodiments, the binding molecule is a B-Body™. B-Body™ binding molecules are described in International Patent Application No. PCT/US2017/057268. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein domains A and H comprise VL, domains B and G comprise CH3, domain I comprises CL or CH1, domain M comprises CH1 or CL, domains D and J comprise CH2, and domains E and K comprise CH3. In some embodiments, domain I comprises CL and domain M comprises CH1. In some embodiments, domain I comprises CH1 and domain M comprises CL.
In some embodiments, the binding molecule is a CrossMab™. CrossMab™ antibodies are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,242,247; 9,266,967; and 8,227,577, U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 20120237506, U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. US20090162359, WO2016016299, WO2015052230. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is a bivalent, bispecific antibody, comprising: a) the light chain and heavy chain of an antibody specifically binding to a first antigen; and b) the light chain and heavy chain of an antibody specifically binding to a second antigen, wherein constant domains CL and CH1 from the antibody specifically binding to a second antigen are replaced by each other. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein A is VH, B is CH1, D is CH2, E is CH3, F is VL, G is CL, H is VL or VH, I is CL, J is CH2, K is CH3, L is VH or VL, and M is CH1.
In some embodiments, the binding molecule is an antibody having a general architecture described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,871,912 and WO2016087650. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is a domain-exchanged antibody comprising a light chain (LC) composed of VL-CH3, and a heavy chain (HC) comprising VH-CH3-CH2-CH3, wherein the VL-CH3 of the LC dimerizes with the VH-CH3 of the HC thereby forming a domain-exchanged LC/HC dimer comprising a CH3LC/CH3HC domain pair. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein A is VH, B is CH3, D is CH2, E is CH3, F is VL, G is CH3, H is VH, I is CH1, J is CH2, K is CH3, L is VL, and M is CL.
In some embodiments, the binding molecule is as described in WO2017011342. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein A is VH or VL, B is CH2 from IgM or IgE, D is CH2, E is CH3, F is VL or VH, G is CH2 from IgM or IgE, H is VH, I is CH1, J is CH2, K is CH3, L is VL, and M is CL.
In some embodiments, the binding molecule is as described in WO2006093794. In some embodiments, the binding molecule is structured as described in Section 6.4.1 wherein A is VH, B is CH1, D is CH2, E is CH3, F is VL, G is CL, H is VL, I is CL or CH1, J is CH2, K is CH3, L is VH, and M is CH1 or CL.
In various embodiments, the first and third polypeptide chains are identical in sequence to one another, and the second and fourth polypeptide are identical in sequence to one another. In these embodiments, association of the first and third polypeptide chains through interactions between domains E & K (see Section 6.4.1.16 below) form a bivalent monospecific antibody construct.
In other embodiments, the first and third polypeptide chains are non-identical in sequence to one another, and the second and fourth polypeptide are non-identical in sequence to one another. In these embodiments, association of the first and third polypeptide chains through interactions between domains E & K (see Section 6.4.1.16 below) is capable of forming a bivalent bispecific antibody construct.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules described herein, domain A has a variable region domain amino acid sequence. Variable region domain amino acid sequences, as described herein, are variable region domain amino acid sequences of an antibody including VL and VH antibody domain sequences. VL and VH sequences are described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.1 and 6.4.1.2.2, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain A has a VL antibody domain sequence and domain F has a VH antibody domain sequence. In some embodiments, domain A has a VH antibody domain sequence and domain F has a VL antibody domain sequence.
The VL amino acid sequences in the binding molecules described herein are typically sequences of a native antibody light chain variable domain. In a typical arrangement in both natural antibodies and the antibody constructs described herein, a specific VL amino acid sequence associates with a specific VH amino acid sequence to form an antigen-binding site. In various embodiments, the VL amino acid sequences are mammalian sequences, including human sequences, synthesized sequences, or combinations of human, non-human mammalian, mammalian, and/or synthesized sequences, as described in further detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.3 and 6.4.1.2.4.
In particular embodiments, the VL amino acid sequences are human antibody light chain sequences. In certain embodiments, the VL amino acid sequences are lambda (λ) light chain variable domain sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the VL amino acid sequences are kappa (κ) light chain variable domain sequences.
In various embodiments, VL amino acid sequences are mutated sequences of naturally occurring (e.g., “native”) sequences.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules described herein, the C-terminus of domain A is connected to the N-terminus of domain B. In certain embodiments, domain A has a VL amino acid sequence that is mutated at its C-terminus at the junction between domain A and domain B, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.
The VH amino acid sequences in the binding molecules described herein are typically sequences of a native antibody heavy chain variable domain. In a typical antibody arrangement in both nature and in the binding molecules described herein, a specific VH amino acid sequence associates with a specific VL amino acid sequence to form an antigen-binding site. In various embodiments, VH amino acid sequences are mammalian sequences, including human sequences, synthesized sequences, or combinations of non-human mammalian, mammalian, and/or synthesized sequences, as described in further detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.3 and 6.4.1.2.4. In various embodiments, VH amino acid sequences are mutated sequences of naturally occurring (e.g., “native”) sequences.
VH and VL amino acid sequences may comprise highly variable sequences termed “complementarity determining regions” (CDRs), typically three CDRs (CDR1, CD2, and CDR3). In a variety of embodiments, the CDRs are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to, mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the CDRs are human sequences. In various embodiments, the CDRs are naturally occurring sequences. In various embodiments, the CDRs are naturally occurring sequences that have been mutated to alter the binding affinity of the antigen-binding site for a particular antigen or epitope. In certain embodiments, the naturally occurring CDRs have been mutated in an in vivo host through affinity maturation and somatic hypermutation. In certain embodiments, the CDRs have been mutated in vitro through methods including, but not limited to, PCR-mutagenesis and chemical mutagenesis. In various embodiments, the CDRs are synthesized sequences including, but not limited to, CDRs obtained from random sequence CDR libraries and rationally designed CDR libraries.
VH and VL amino acid sequences may comprise “framework region” (FR) sequences. FRs are generally conserved sequence regions that act as a scaffold for interspersed CDRs (see Section 6.4.1.2.3), typically in a FR1-CDR1-FR2-CDR2-FR3-CDR3-FR4 arrangement (from N-terminus to C-terminus). In a variety of embodiments, the FRs are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the FRs are human sequences. In various embodiments, the FRs are naturally occurring sequences. In particular embodiments, the FRs are human FR sequences. In various embodiments, the FRs are synthesized sequences including, but not limited, rationally designed sequences.
In a variety of embodiments, the FRs and the CDRs are both from the same naturally occurring variable domain sequence. In a variety of embodiments, the FRs and the CDRs are from different variable domain sequences, wherein the CDRs are grafted onto the FR scaffold with the CDRs providing specificity for a particular antigen. In certain embodiments, the grafted CDRs are all derived from the same naturally occurring variable domain sequence. In certain embodiments, the grafted CDRs are derived from different variable domain sequences. In certain embodiments, the grafted CDRs are synthesized sequences including, but not limited to, CDRs obtained from random sequence CDR libraries and rationally designed CDR libraries. In certain embodiments, the grafted CDRs and the FRs are from the same species. In certain embodiments, the grafted CDRs and the FRs are from different species. In a preferred grafted CDR embodiment, an antibody is “humanized”, wherein the grafted CDRs are non-human mammalian sequences including, but not limited to, mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, and goat sequences, and the FRs are human sequences. Humanized antibodies are discussed in more detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,407,213, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all it teaches. In various embodiments, portions or specific sequences of FRs from one species are used to replace portions or specific sequences of another species' FRs.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules, domain B has a constant region domain sequence. Constant region domain amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of a constant region domain of a native antibody.
In a variety of embodiments, the constant region sequences are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to, mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the constant region sequences are human sequences. In certain embodiments, the constant region sequences are from an antibody light chain. In particular embodiments, the constant region sequences are from a lambda or kappa light chain. In certain embodiments, the constant region sequences are from an antibody heavy chain. In particular embodiments, the constant region sequences are an antibody heavy chain sequence that is an IgA1, IgA2, IgD, IgE, IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, or IgM isotype. In a specific embodiment, the constant region sequences are from an IgG isotype. In a preferred embodiment, the constant region sequences are from an IgG1 isotype. In preferred specific embodiments, the constant region sequence is a CH3 sequence. CH3 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1. In other preferred embodiments, the constant region sequence is an orthologous CH2 sequence. Orthologous CH2 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.2.
In some embodiments, domain B has a CH1 sequence. In some embodiments, domain B has a CH2 sequence from IgE. In some embodiments, domain B has a CH2 sequence from IgM.
In particular embodiments, the constant region sequence has been mutated to include one or more orthogonal mutations. In a preferred embodiment, domain B has a constant region sequence that is a CH3 sequence comprising knob-hole (synonymously, “knob-in-hole,” “KIH”) orthogonal mutations, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.2, and either a S354C or a Y349C mutation that forms an engineered disulfide bridge with a CH3 domain containing an orthogonal mutation, as described in in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.1. In some preferred embodiments, the knob-hole orthogonal mutation is a T366W mutation.
CH3 amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of the C-terminal domain of a native antibody heavy chain.
In a variety of embodiments, the CH3 sequences are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to, mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the CH3 sequences are human sequences. In certain embodiments, the CH3 sequences are from an IgA1, IgA2, IgD, IgE, IgM, IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4 isotype or CH4 sequences from an IgE or IgM isotype. In a specific embodiment, the CH3 sequences are from an IgG isotype. In a preferred embodiment, the CH3 sequences are from an IgG1 isotype.
In certain embodiments, the CH3 sequences are endogenous sequences. In particular embodiments, the CH3 sequence is UniProt accession number P01857 amino acids 224-330. In various embodiments, a CH3 sequence is a segment of an endogenous CH3 sequence. In particular embodiments, a CH3 sequence has an endogenous CH3 sequence that lacks the N-terminal amino acids G224 and Q225. In particular embodiments, a CH3 sequence has an endogenous CH3 sequence that lacks the C-terminal amino acids P328, G329, and K330. In particular embodiments, a CH3 sequence has an endogenous CH3 sequence that lacks both the N-terminal amino acids G224 and Q225 and the C-terminal amino acids P328, G329, and K330. In preferred embodiments, a binding molecule has multiple domains that have CH3 sequences, wherein a CH3 sequence can refer to both a full endogenous CH3 sequence as well as a CH3 sequence that lacks N-terminal amino acids, C-terminal amino acids, or both.
In certain embodiments, the CH3 sequences are endogenous sequences that have one or more mutations. In particular embodiments, the mutations are one or more orthogonal mutations that are introduced into an endogenous CH3 sequence to guide specific pairing of specific CH3 sequences, as described in more detail in Sections 6.4.1.15.1-6.4.1.15.3.
In certain embodiments, the CH3 sequences are engineered to reduce immunogenicity of the antibody by replacing specific amino acids of one allotype with those of another allotype and referred to herein as isoallotype mutations, as described in more detail in Stickler et al. (Genes Immun. 2011 April; 12(3): 213-221), which is herein incorporated by reference for all that it teaches. In particular embodiments, specific amino acids of the G1m1 allotype are replaced. In a preferred embodiment, isoallotype mutations D356E and L358M are made in the CH3 sequence.
In a preferred embodiment, domain B has a human IgG1 CH3 amino acid sequence with the following mutational changes: P343V; Y349C; and a tripeptide insertion, 445P, 446G, 447K. In other preferred embodiments, domain B has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with the following mutational changes: T366K; and a tripeptide insertion, 445K, 446S, 447C. In still other preferred embodiments, domain B has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with the following mutational changes: Y349C and a tripeptide insertion, 445P, 446G, 447K.
In certain embodiments, domain B has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with a 447C mutation incorporated into an otherwise endogenous CH3 sequence.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules described herein, the N-terminus of domain B is connected to the C-terminus of domain A. In certain embodiments, domain B has a CH3 amino acid sequence that is mutated at its N-terminus at the junction between domain A and domain B, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.1.
In the binding molecules, the C-terminus of domain B is connected to the N-terminus of domain D. In certain embodiments, domain B has a CH3 amino acid sequence that is extended at the C-terminus at the junction between domain B and domain D, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.3.
CH2 amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of the third domain of a native antibody heavy chain, with reference from the N-terminus to C-terminus. CH2 amino acid sequences, in general, are discussed in more detail in Section 6.4.1.4. In a series of embodiments, a binding molecule has more than one paired set of CH2 domains that have CH2 sequences, wherein a first set has CH2 amino acid sequences from a first isotype and one or more orthologous sets of CH2 amino acid sequences from another isotype. The orthologous CH2 amino acid sequences, as described herein, are able to interact with CH2 amino acid sequences from a shared isotype, but not significantly interact with the CH2 amino acid sequences from another isotype present in the binding molecule. In particular embodiments, all sets of CH2 amino acid sequences are from the same species. In preferred embodiments, all sets of CH2 amino acid sequences are human CH2 amino acid sequences. In other embodiments, the sets of CH2 amino acid sequences are from different species. In particular embodiments, the first set of CH2 amino acid sequences is from the same isotype as the other non-CH2 domains in the binding molecule. In a specific embodiment, the first set has CH2 amino acid sequences from an IgG isotype and the one or more orthologous sets have CH2 amino acid sequences from an IgM or IgE isotype. In certain embodiments, one or more of the sets of CH2 amino acid sequences are endogenous CH2 sequences. In other embodiments, one or more of the sets of CH2 amino acid sequences are endogenous CH2 sequences that have one or more mutations. In particular embodiments, the one or more mutations are orthogonal knob-hole mutations, orthogonal charge-pair mutations, or orthogonal hydrophobic mutations. Orthologous CH2 amino acid sequences useful for the binding molecules are described in more detail in international PCT applications WO2017/011342 and WO2017/106462, herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules described herein, domain D has a constant region amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in more detail herein, for example in Section and 6.4.1.3.
In a preferred series of embodiments, domain D has a CH2 amino acid sequence. CH2 amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of the third domain of a native antibody heavy chain, with reference from the N-terminus to C-terminus. In a variety of embodiments, the CH2 sequences are mammalian sequences, including but not limited to mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the CH2 sequences are human sequences. In certain embodiments, the CH2 sequences are from a IgA1, IgA2, IgD, IgE, IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, or IgM isotype. In a preferred embodiment, the CH2 sequences are from an IgG1 isotype.
In certain embodiments, the CH2 sequences are endogenous sequences. In particular embodiments, the sequence is Uniprot accession number P01857 amino acids 111-223. In a preferred embodiment, the CH2 sequences have an N-terminal hinge region peptide that connects the N-terminal variable domain-constant domain segment to the CH2 domain, as discussed in more detail in Sections 6.4.4.3 and 6.4.4.4. In some embodiments, the CH2 sequence comprises one or more mutations that reduce effector function, as discussed in more detail in Section 6.6.4.
In the binding molecules, the N-terminus of domain D is connected to the C-terminus of domain B. In certain embodiments, domain B has a CH3 amino acid sequence that is extended at the C-terminus at the junction between domain D and domain B, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.3.
In the binding molecules, the C-terminus of domain D is connected to the N-terminus of domain E. In particular embodiments, domain D is connected to the N-terminus of domain E that has a CH1 amino acid sequence or CL amino acid sequence, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules, domain E has a constant region domain amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.
In certain embodiments, the constant region sequence is a CH3 sequence. CH3 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1.
In particular embodiments, the constant region sequence has been mutated to include one or more orthogonal mutations. In a preferred embodiment, domain E has a constant region sequence that is a CH3 sequence comprising knob-hole (synonymously, “knob-in-hole,” “KIH”) orthogonal mutations, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.2, and either a S354C or a Y349C mutation that forms an engineered disulfide bridge with a CH3 domain containing an orthogonal mutation, as described in in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.1. In some preferred embodiments, the knob-hole orthogonal mutation is a T366W mutation.
In certain embodiments, the constant region domain sequence is a CH1 sequence. CH1 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.9.1. In certain embodiments, the N-terminus of the CH1 domain is connected to the C-terminus of a CH2 domain, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5.
In certain embodiments, the constant region sequence is a CL sequence. CL sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.9.2. In certain embodiments, the N-terminus of the CL domain is connected to the C-terminus of a CH2 domain, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules, domain F has a variable region domain amino acid sequence. Variable region domain amino acid sequences, as discussed in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.2, are variable region domain amino acid sequences of an antibody including VL and VH antibody domain sequences. VL and VH sequences are described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.1 and 6.4.1.2.2, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain F has a VH antibody domain sequence. In some embodiments, domain F has a VL antibody domain sequence.
In the binding molecules, domain G has a constant region amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.
In preferred embodiments, domain G has a CH3 amino acid sequence. CH3 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1. In other preferred embodiments, the constant region sequence is an orthologous CH2 sequence. Orthologous CH2 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.2.
In certain preferred embodiments, domain G has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with the following mutational changes: S354C; and a tripeptide insertion, 445P, 446G, 447K. In some preferred embodiments, domain G has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with the following mutational changes: S354C; and 445P, 446G, 447K tripeptide insertion. In some preferred embodiments, domain G has a human IgG1 CH3 sequence with the following changes: L351D, and a tripeptide insertion of 445G, 446E, 447C.
In the binding molecules, domain H has a variable region domain amino acid sequence. Variable region domain amino acid sequences, discussed in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.2, are variable region domain amino acid sequences of an antibody including VL and VH antibody domain sequences. VL and VH sequences are described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.1 and 6.4.1.2.2, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain H has a VL antibody domain sequence. In some embodiments, domain H has a VH antibody domain sequence.
In the binding molecules, domain I has a constant region domain amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3. In a series of preferred embodiments of the binding molecules, domain I has a CL amino acid sequence. In another series of embodiments, domain I has a CH1 amino acid sequence. CH1 and CL amino acid sequences are described in further detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.1 and 6.4.1.9.2, respectively.
CH1 amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of the second domain of a native antibody heavy chain, with reference from the N-terminus to C-terminus. In certain embodiments, the CH1 sequences are endogenous sequences. In a variety of embodiments, the CH1 sequences are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the CH1 sequences are human sequences. In certain embodiments, the CH1 sequences are from an IgA1, IgA2, IgD, IgE, IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, or IgM isotype. In a preferred embodiment, the CH1 sequences are from an IgG1 isotype. In preferred embodiments, the CH1 sequence is Uniprot accession number P01857 amino acids 1-98.
CL amino acid sequences, as described herein, are typically sequences of the second domain of a native antibody light chain, with reference from the N-terminus to C-terminus. In certain embodiments, the CL sequences are endogenous sequences. In a variety of embodiments, the CL sequences are mammalian sequences, including, but not limited to mouse, rat, hamster, rabbit, camel, donkey, goat, and human sequences. In a preferred embodiment, CL sequences are human sequences.
In certain embodiments, the CL amino acid sequences are lambda (λ) light chain constant domain sequences. In particular embodiments, the CL amino acid sequences are human lambda light chain constant domain sequences. In preferred embodiments, the lambda (λ) light chain sequence is UniProt accession number P0CG04.
In certain embodiments, the CL amino acid sequences are kappa (κ) light chain constant domain sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the CL amino acid sequences are human kappa (κ) light chain constant domain sequences. In a preferred embodiment, the kappa light chain sequence is UniProt accession number P01834.
In the bivalent (1×1) binding molecules described herein, domain J has a constant region amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in more detail herein, for example in Section 6.4.1.3. In a preferred series of embodiments, domain J has a CH2 amino acid sequence. CH2 amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.4. In a preferred embodiment, the CH2 amino acid sequence has an N-terminal hinge region that connects domain J to domain I, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.4.
In the binding molecules, the C-terminus of domain J is connected to the N-terminus of domain K. In particular embodiments, domain J is connected to the N-terminus of domain K that has a CH1 amino acid sequence or CL amino acid sequence, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5.
In the binding molecules, domain K has a constant region domain amino acid sequence. Constant region domain amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3. In certain embodiments, the constant region sequence is a CH3 sequence. CH3 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1. In a preferred embodiment, domain K has a constant region sequence that is a CH3 sequence comprising knob-hole orthogonal mutations, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.2, isoallotype mutations, as described in more detail in 6.4.1.3.1., and either a S354C or a Y349C mutation that forms an engineered disulfide bridge with a CH3 domain containing an orthogonal mutation, as described in in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.15.1. In some preferred embodiments, the knob-hole orthogonal mutations combined with isoallotype mutations are the following mutational changes: D356E, L358M, T366S, L368A, and Y407V.
In certain embodiments, the constant region domain sequence is a CH1 sequence. In certain embodiments, the N-terminus of the CH1 domain is connected to the C-terminus of a CH2 domain, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5. In certain embodiments, the constant region sequence is a CL sequence. In certain embodiments, the N-terminus of the CL domain is connected to the C-terminus of a CH2 domain, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4.5. CH1 and CL amino acid sequences are described in further detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.1 and 6.4.1.9.2, respectively.
In the binding molecules, domain L has a variable region domain amino acid sequence. Variable region domain amino acid sequences, discussed in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.2, are variable region domain amino acid sequences of an antibody including VL and VH antibody domain sequences. VL and VH sequences are described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.2.1 and 6.4.1.2.2, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain L has a VH antibody domain sequence. In some embodiments, domain L has a VL antibody domain sequence.
In the binding molecules, domain M has a constant region domain amino acid sequence. Constant region amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3. In a series of preferred embodiments of the binding molecules, domain I has a CH1 amino acid sequence and domain M has a CL amino acid sequence. In another series of preferred embodiments, domain I has a CL amino acid sequence and domain M has a CH1 amino acid sequence. CH1 and CL amino acid sequences are described in further detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.1 and 6.4.1.9.2, respectively.
In the binding molecules, a domain A VL or VH amino acid sequence and a cognate domain F VH or VL amino acid sequence are associated and form an antigen binding site (ABS). The A:F antigen binding site (ABS) is capable of specifically binding an epitope of an antigen. Antigen binding by an ABS is described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.14.1.
In a variety of multivalent embodiments, the ABS formed by domains A and F (A:F) is identical in sequence to one or more other ABSs within the binding molecule and therefore has the same recognition specificity as the one or more other sequence-identical ABSs within the binding molecule.
In a variety of multivalent embodiments, the A:F ABS is non-identical in sequence to one or more other ABSs within the binding molecule. In certain embodiments, the A:F ABS has a recognition specificity different from that of one or more other sequence-non-identical ABSs in the binding molecule. In particular embodiments, the A:F ABS recognizes a different antigen from that recognized by at least one other sequence-non-identical ABS in the binding molecule. In particular embodiments, the A:F ABS recognizes a different epitope of an antigen that is also recognized by at least one other sequence-non-identical ABS in the binding molecule. In these embodiments, the ABS formed by domains A and F recognizes an epitope of antigen, wherein one or more other ABSs within the binding molecule recognizes the same antigen but not the same epitope.
An ABS, and the binding molecule comprising such ABS, is said to “recognize” the epitope (or more generally, the antigen) to which the ABS specifically binds, and the epitope (or more generally, the antigen) is said to be the “recognition specificity” or “binding specificity” of the ABS.
The ABS is said to bind to its specific antigen or epitope with a particular affinity.
As described herein, “affinity” refers to the strength of interaction of non-covalent intermolecular forces between one molecule and another. The affinity, i.e. the strength of the interaction, can be expressed as a dissociation equilibrium constant (KD), wherein a lower KD value refers to a stronger interaction between molecules. KD values of antibody constructs are measured by methods well known in the art including, but not limited to, bio-layer interferometry (e.g. Octet/FORTEBIO®), surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology (e.g. Biacore®), and cell binding assays. For purposes herein, affinities are dissociation equilibrium constants measured by bio-layer interferometry using Octet/FORTEBIO®.
“Specific binding,” as used herein, refers to an affinity between an ABS and its cognate antigen or epitope in which the KD value is below 10-6M, 10-7M, 10-8M, 10-9M, or 10-10M.
The number of ABSs in a binding molecule as described herein defines the “valency” of the binding molecule. As schematized in
In various multivalent embodiments, all of the plurality of ABSs have the same recognition specificity. As schematized in
In multivalent embodiments in which the ABSs collectively have a plurality of recognition specificities for different epitopes present on the same antigen, the binding molecule is “multiparatopic.” Multivalent embodiments in which the ABSs collectively recognize two epitopes on the same antigen are “biparatopic.”
In various multivalent embodiments, multivalency of the binding molecule improves the avidity of the binding molecule for a specific target. As described herein, “avidity” refers to the overall strength of interaction between two or more molecules, e.g. a multivalent binding molecule for a specific target, wherein the avidity is the cumulative strength of interaction provided by the affinities of multiple ABSs. Avidity can be measured by the same methods as those used to determine affinity, as described above. In certain embodiments, the avidity of a binding molecule for a specific target is such that the interaction is a specific binding interaction, wherein the avidity between two molecules has a KD value below 10−6M, 10−7M, 10−8M, 10−9M, or 10−10M. In certain embodiments, the avidity of a binding molecule for a specific target has a KD value such that the interaction is a specific binding interaction, wherein the one or more affinities of individual ABSs do not have has a KD value that qualifies as specifically binding their respective antigens or epitopes on their own. In certain embodiments, the avidity is the cumulative strength of interaction provided by the affinities of multiple ABSs for separate antigens on a shared specific target or complex, such as separate antigens found on an individual cell. In certain embodiments, the avidity is the cumulative strength of interaction provided by the affinities of multiple ABSs for separate epitopes on a shared individual antigen.
In the binding molecules described herein, a domain B constant region amino acid sequence and a domain G constant region amino acid sequence are associated. Constant region domain amino acid sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.
In a series of preferred embodiments, domain B and domain G have CH3 amino acid sequences. CH3 sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1. The sequence may be a CH3 sequence from human IgG1.
In various embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the B and the G domains are identical. In certain of these embodiments, the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the B and the G domains are different, and separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the B domain interacts with the G domain, and wherein neither the B domain nor the G domain significantly interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification.
“Orthogonal modifications” or synonymously “orthogonal mutations” as described herein are one or more engineered mutations in an amino acid sequence of an antibody domain that alter the affinity of binding of a first domain having orthogonal modification for a second domain having a complementary orthogonal modification, as compared to binding of the first and second domains in the absence of the orthogonal modifications. In some embodiments, the orthogonal modifications decrease the affinity of binding of the first domain having the orthogonal modification for the second domain having the complementary orthogonal modification, as compared to binding of the first and second domains in the absence of the orthogonal modifications. In preferred embodiments, the orthogonal modifications increase the affinity of binding of the first domain having the orthogonal modification for the second domain having the complementary orthogonal modification, as compared to binding of the first and second domains in the absence of the orthogonal modifications. In certain preferred embodiments, the orthogonal modifications decrease the affinity of a domain having the orthogonal modifications for a domain lacking the complementary orthogonal modifications.
In certain embodiments, orthogonal modifications are mutations in an endogenous antibody domain sequence. In a variety of embodiments, orthogonal modifications are modifications of the N-terminus or C-terminus of an endogenous antibody domain sequence including, but not limited to, amino acid additions or deletions. In particular embodiments, orthogonal modifications include, but are not limited to, engineered disulfide bridges, knob-in-hole mutations, and charge-pair mutations, as described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.15.1-6.4.1.15.3. In particular embodiments, orthogonal modifications include a combination of orthogonal modifications selected from, but not limited to, engineered disulfide bridges, knob-in-hole mutations, and charge-pair mutations. In particular embodiments, the orthogonal modifications can be combined with amino acid substitutions that reduce immunogenicity, such as isoallotype mutations, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1.
In a variety of embodiments, the orthogonal modifications comprise mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges between a first and a second domain. As described herein, “engineered disulfide bridges” are mutations that provide non-endogenous cysteine amino acids in two or more domains such that a non-native disulfide bond forms when the two or more domains associate. Engineered disulfide bridges are described in greater detail in Merchant et al. (Nature Biotech (1998) 16:677-681), the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all it teaches. In certain embodiments, engineered disulfide bridges improve orthogonal association between specific domains. In a particular embodiment, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a K392C mutation in one of a first or second CH3 domains, and a D399C in the other CH3 domain. In a preferred embodiment, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a S354C mutation in one of a first or second CH3 domains, and a Y349C in the other CH3 domain. In another preferred embodiment, the mutations that generate engineered disulfide bridges are a 447C mutation in both the first and second CH3 domains that are provided by extension of the C-terminus of a CH3 domain incorporating a KSC tripeptide sequence.
In a variety of embodiments, orthogonal modifications comprise knob-hole (synonymously, knob-in-hole) mutations. As described herein, knob-hole mutations are mutations that change the steric features of a first domain's surface such that the first domain will preferentially associate with a second domain having complementary steric mutations relative to association with domains without the complementary steric mutations. Knob-hole mutations are described in greater detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,821,333 and 8,216,805, each of which is incorporated herein in its entirety. In various embodiments, knob-hole mutations are combined with engineered disulfide bridges, as described in greater detail in Merchant et al. (Nature Biotech (1998) 16:677-681)), incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In various embodiments, knob-hole mutations, isoallotype mutations, and engineered disulfide mutations are combined.
In certain embodiments, the knob-in-hole mutations are a T366Y mutation in a first domain, and a Y407T mutation in a second domain. In certain embodiments, the knob-in-hole mutations are a F405A in a first domain, and a T394W in a second domain. In certain embodiments, the knob-in-hole mutations are a T366Y mutation and a F405A in a first domain, and a T394W and a Y407T in a second domain. In certain embodiments, the knob-in-hole mutations are a T366W mutation in a first domain, and a Y407A in a second domain. In certain embodiments, the combined knob-in-hole mutations and engineered disulfide mutations are a S354C and T366W mutations in a first domain, and a Y349C, T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in a second domain. In a preferred embodiment, the combined knob-in-hole mutations, isoallotype mutations, and engineered disulfide mutations are a S354C and T366W mutations in a first domain, and a Y349C, D356E, L358M, T366S, L368A, and a Y407V mutation in a second domain.
In a variety of embodiments, orthogonal modifications are charge-pair mutations. As described herein, “charge-pair mutations” are mutations that affect the charge of an amino acid in a domain's surface such that the domain will preferentially associate with a second domain having complementary charge-pair mutations relative to association with domains without the complementary charge-pair mutations. In certain embodiments, charge-pair mutations improve orthogonal association between specific domains. Charge-pair mutations are described in greater detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,592,562, 9,248,182, and 9,358,286, each of which is incorporated by reference herein for all they teach. In certain embodiments, charge-pair mutations improve stability between specific domains. In a preferred embodiment, the charge-pair mutations are a T366K mutation in a first domain, and a L351D mutation in the other domain.
In various embodiments, the E domain has a CH3 amino acid sequence.
In various embodiments, the K domain has a CH3 amino acid sequence.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the E and K domains are identical, wherein the sequence is an endogenous CH3 sequence. CH3 sequences are described in Section 6.4.1.3.1. In some embodiments, the CH3 sequences of domains E and K are IgG-CH3 sequences.
In a variety of embodiments, the sequences of the E and K domains are different. In a variety of embodiments, the different sequences separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous CH3 sequence, wherein the E domain interacts with the K domain, and wherein neither the E domain nor the K domain significantly interacts with a CH3 domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In certain embodiments, the orthogonal modifications include, but are not limited to, engineered disulfide bridges, knob-in-hole mutations, and charge-pair mutations, as described in greater detail in sections 6.4.1.15.1-6.4.1.15.3. In particular embodiments, orthogonal modifications include a combination of orthogonal modifications selected from, but not limited to, engineered disulfide bridges, knob-in-hole mutations, and charge-pair mutations. In particular embodiments, the orthogonal modifications can be combined with amino acid substitutions that reduce immunogenicity, such as isoallotype mutations, as described in greater detail in Section 6.4.1.3.1.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the E domain and the K domain are endogenous sequences of two different antibody domains, the domains selected to have a specific interaction that promotes the specific association between the first and the third polypeptides. In various embodiments, the two different amino acid sequences are a CH1 sequence and a CL sequence. CH1 sequences and CL sequences are described in greater detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.1 and 6.4.1.9.2, respectively. Use of CH1 and CL sequences at the C-terminus of a heavy chain to promote specific heavy chain association is described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,242,247, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all it teaches. In certain embodiments, the CH1 sequence and the CL sequences are both endogenous sequences. In certain embodiments, the CH1 sequence and the CL sequences separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in endogenous CH1 and CL sequences. In particular embodiments, the orthogonal modifications in endogenous CH1 and CL sequences are an engineered disulfide bridge selected from engineered cysteines at position 138 of the CH1 sequence and position 116 of the CL sequence, at position 128 of the CH1 sequence and position 119 of the CL sequence, or at position 129 of the CH1 sequence and position 210 of the CL sequence, as numbered and discussed in more detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,053,562 and 9,527,927, each incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. In a preferred embodiment, the engineered cysteines are at position 128 of the CH1 sequence and position 118 of the CL Kappa sequence, as numbered by the Eu index.
In a variety of embodiments, domain I has a CL sequence and domain M has a CH1 sequence. In a variety of embodiments, domain H has a VL sequence and domain L has a VH sequence. In a preferred embodiment, domain H has a VL amino acid sequence, domain I has a CL amino acid sequence, domain L has a VH amino acid sequence, and domain M has a CH1 amino acid sequence. In another preferred embodiment, domain H has a VL amino acid sequence, domain I has a CL amino acid sequence, domain L has a VH amino acid sequence, domain M has a CH1 amino acid sequence, and domain K has a CH3 amino acid sequence.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the I domain and the M domain separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous sequence, wherein the I domain interacts with the M domain, and wherein neither the I domain nor the M domain significantly interacts with a domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In a series of embodiments, the orthogonal mutations in the I domain are in a CL sequence and the orthogonal mutations in the M domain are in CH1 sequence. Orthogonal mutations are described in more detail in Sections 6.4.1.15.1-6.4.1.15.3. In a variety of embodiments, the orthogonal mutations in the CL sequence and the CH1 sequence are charge-pair mutations. In specific embodiments the charge-pair mutations are a F118S, F118A or F118V mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141L in the CH1 sequence, or a T129R mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding K147D in the CH1 sequence, as numbered by the Eu index and described in greater detail in Bonisch et al. (Protein Engineering, Design & Selection, 2017, pp. 1-12), herein incorporated by reference for all that it teaches. In a series of preferred embodiments the charge-pair mutations are a N138K mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding G166D in the CH1 sequence, or a N138D mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding G166K in the CH1 sequence, as numbered by the Eu index.
In a variety of embodiments, the orthogonal mutations in the CL sequence and the CH1 sequence generate an engineered disulfide bridge. In a series of preferred embodiments, the mutations that provide non-endogenous cysteine amino acids are a F118C mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding A141C in the CH1 sequence, or a F118C mutation in the CL sequence with a corresponding L128C in the CH1 sequence, or a S162C mutations in the CL sequence with a corresponding P171C mutation in the CH1 sequence, as numbered by the Eu index.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the H domain and the L domain separately comprise respectively orthogonal modifications in an endogenous sequence, wherein the H domain interacts with the L domain, and wherein neither the H domain nor the L domain significantly interacts with a domain lacking the orthogonal modification. In a series of embodiments, the orthogonal mutations in the H domain are in a VL sequence and the orthogonal mutations in the L domain are in VH sequence. In specific embodiments, the orthogonal mutations are charge-pair mutations at the VH/VL interface. In preferred embodiments, the charge-pair mutations at the VH/VL interface are a Q39E in VH with a corresponding Q38K in VL, or a Q39K in VH with a corresponding Q38E in VL, as described in greater detail in Igawa et al. (Protein Eng. Des. Sel., 2010, vol. 23, 667-677), herein incorporated by reference for all it teaches.
In certain embodiments, the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, and the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen. In certain embodiments, the interaction between the A domain and the F domain form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, and the interaction between the H domain and the L domain form a second antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
In various embodiments, the bivalent construct is monospecific. In these embodiments, the bivalent construct comprises two copies of a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor.
In various embodiments, the bivalent construct is bispecific. In these embodiments, the construct comprises a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor, and a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigenic target. In some bispecific embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein.
In some bispecific bivalent embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In another series of embodiments, the binding molecules have three antigen binding sites and are therefore termed “trivalent.”
With reference to
With reference to
In a variety of embodiments, the domain O is connected to domain A through a peptide linker. In a variety of embodiments, the domain S is connected to domain H through a peptide linker. In a preferred embodiment, the peptide linker connecting either domain O to domain A or connecting domain S to domain H is a 6 amino acid GSGSGS peptide sequence, as described in more detail in Section 6.4.4.6.
With reference to
In various embodiments, the construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In various embodiments, the construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In certain embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In other embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is an epitope of a second protein. In particular embodiments, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In various embodiments, the construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In certain embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In other embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is an epitope of a second protein. In particular embodiments, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In various embodiments, the construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site. In certain embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In other embodiments, the second antigenic epitope is an epitope of a second protein. In particular embodiments, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In certain embodiments, domain O has a constant region sequence that is a CL from a kappa light chain and domain Q has a constant region sequence that is a CH1 from an IgG1 isotype, as discussed in more detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.2 and 6.4.1.9.1, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain O and domain Q have CH3 sequences such that they specifically associate with each other, as discussed in more detail in Section 6.4.1.15.
In various embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an N:P antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is a first epitope of a second protein. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a third epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a second epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the first epitope of the second protein and the second epitope of the second protein are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a first epitope of a third protein. In some embodiments, the second protein or third protein is a second cell surface receptor or third cell surface receptor.
With reference to
With reference to
With reference to
In various embodiments, the trivalent construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the bispecific trivalent construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In certain embodiments, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In particular embodiments, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In various embodiments, the trivalent construct contains one copy of the antigen binding site (ABS) specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site. In some embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the bispecific trivalent construct contains two copies of the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site. In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some embodiments, a first antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site and a second antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In various embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In certain embodiments, the second antigenic target is an epitope of a second protein. In particular embodiments, the second protein is a second cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In particular embodiments, domain S has a constant region sequence that is a CL from a kappa light chain and domain U has a constant region sequence that is a CH1 from an IgG1 isotype, as discussed in more detail in Sections 6.4.1.9.2 and 6.4.1.9.1, respectively. In a preferred embodiment, domain S and domain U have CH3 sequences such that they specifically associate with each other, as discussed in more detail in Section 6.4.1.15.
In various embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an A:F antigen binding site. In various embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an R:T antigen binding site. In various embodiments, the antigen binding site specific for a first epitope of the target receptor is an H:L antigen binding site.
In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is a second epitope of the target receptor. In some aspects, the first epitope and the second epitope are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the second antigenic target is a first epitope of a second protein. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a third epitope of the target receptor. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a second epitope of a second protein. In some aspects, the first epitope of the second protein and the second epitope of the second protein are non-overlapping epitopes. In some embodiments, the third antigenic target is a first epitope of a third protein.
In a variety of embodiments, the second protein or third protein is a second or third cell surface receptor.
With reference to
In a variety of embodiments, the binding molecules have 4 antigen binding sites and are therefore termed “tetravalent.”
With reference to
In a variety of embodiments, the domain O is connected to domain A through a peptide linker and the domain S is connected to domain H through a peptide linker. In a preferred embodiment, the peptide linker connecting domain O to domain A and connecting domain S to domain H is a 6 amino acid GSGSGS peptide sequence, as described in more detail in Section 6.4.4.6.
With reference to
With reference to
In a particular embodiment,
With reference to
With reference to
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequence that forms a junction between the C-terminus of a VL domain and the N-terminus of a CH3 domain is an engineered sequence. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added in the C-terminus of the VL domain. In certain embodiments, the junction connecting the C-terminus of a VL domain and the N-terminus of a CH3 domain is one of the sequences described in Table 1 below. In particular embodiments, A111 is deleted in the C-terminus of the VL domain. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, P343 is deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, P343 and R344 are deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added to both the C-terminus of the VL domain and the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, A111 is deleted in the C-terminus of the VL domain and P343 is deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In a preferred embodiment, A111 and V110 are deleted in the C-terminus of the VL domain. In another preferred embodiment, A111 and V110 are deleted in the C-terminus of the VL domain and the N-terminus of the CH3 domain has a P343V mutation.
In a variety of embodiments, the amino acid sequence that forms a junction between the C-terminus of a VH domain and the N-terminus of a CH3 domain is an engineered sequence. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added in the C-terminus of the VH domain. In certain embodiments, the junction connecting the C-terminus of a VH domain and the N-terminus of the CH3 domain is one of the sequences described in Table 2 below. In particular embodiments, K117 and G118 are deleted in the C-terminus of the VH domain. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, P343 is deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, P343 and R344 are deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In particular embodiments, P343, R344, and E345 are deleted in the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In certain embodiments, one or more amino acids are deleted or added to both the C-terminus of the VH domain and the N-terminus of the CH3 domain. In a preferred embodiment, T116, K117, and G118 are deleted in the C-terminus of the VH domain.
In the binding molecules described herein, the N-terminus of the CH2 domain has a “hinge” region amino acid sequence. As used herein, hinge regions are sequences of an antibody heavy chain that link the N-terminal variable domain-constant domain segment of an antibody (e.g., the segment corresponding to domain A connected to domain B) and a CH2 domain of an antibody. In addition, the hinge region typically provides both flexibility between the N-terminal variable domain-constant domain segment and CH2 domain, as well as amino acid sequence motifs that form disulfide bridges between heavy chains (e.g. the first and the third polypeptide chains). As used herein, the hinge region amino acid sequence is SEQ ID NO:18.
In embodiments wherein the constant region domain is a CH3 amino acid sequence, the CH3 amino acid sequence is extended at the C-terminus at the junction between the C-terminus of the CH3 domain and the N-terminus of a CH2 domain. In certain embodiments, a CH3 amino acid sequence is extended at the C-terminus at the junction between the C-terminus of the CH3 domain and a hinge region, which in turn is connected to the N-terminus of a CH2 domain. In a preferred embodiment, the CH3 amino acid sequence is extended by inserting a PGK tripeptide sequence followed by the DKTHT motif of an IgG1 hinge region.
In a particular embodiment, the extension at the C-terminus of the CH3 domain incorporates amino acid sequences that can form a disulfide bond with orthogonal C-terminal extension of another CH3 domain. In a preferred embodiment, the extension at the C-terminus of the CH3 domain incorporates a KSC tripeptide sequence that is followed by the DKTHT motif of an IgG1 hinge region that forms a disulfide bond with orthogonal C-terminal extension of another CH3 domain that incorporates a GEC motif of a kappa light chain.
In a variety of embodiments, a CL amino acid sequence is connected through its C-terminus to a hinge region, which in turn is connected to the N-terminus of a CH2 domain. Hinge region sequences are described in greater detail in Section 6.4.4. In a preferred embodiment, the hinge region amino acid sequence is SEQ ID NO:18.
In a variety of embodiments, a CH2 amino acid sequence is connected through its C-terminus to the N-terminus of a constant region domain. Constant regions are described in more detail in Section 6.4.1.5. In a preferred embodiment, the CH2 sequence is connected to a CH3 sequence via its endogenous sequence. In other embodiments, the CH2 sequence is connected to a CH1 or CL sequence. Examples discussing connecting a CH2 sequence to a CH1 or CL sequence are described in more detail in U.S. Pat. No. 8,242,247, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety.
In a variety of embodiments, heavy chains of antibodies (e.g. the first and third polypeptide chains) are extended at their N-terminus to include additional domains that provide additional ABSs. With reference to
In a variety of embodiments, light chains of antibodies (e.g. the second and fourth polypeptide chains) are extended at their N-terminus to include additional variable domain-constant domain segments of an antibody. In certain embodiments, the constant region domain is a CH1 amino acid sequence and the variable region domain is a VH amino acid sequence.
With reference to
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen.
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
In preferred embodiments, the first polypeptide chain has a scaffold sequence SEQ ID NO:23, the second polypeptide chain has a scaffold sequence SEQ ID NO:24, the third polypeptide chain has a scaffold sequence SEQ ID NO:25, and the fourth polypeptide chain has a scaffold sequence SEQ ID NO:26, as described in more details in Section 6.10.2.1.
With reference to
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen.
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
With reference to
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen.
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
With reference to
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for a second antigen.
In particular embodiments, domain A and domain F form a first antigen binding site specific for a first antigen, domain H and domain L form a second antigen binding site specific for the first antigen.
With reference to Section 6.4.5.1 and
1st polypeptide chain
5th polypeptide chain (=“BC1” chain 2)
2nd polypeptide chain (=“BC1” chain 2)
3rd polypeptide chain (=“BC1” chain 3)
4th polypeptide chain (=“BC1” chain 4)
With reference to Section 6.4.5.3. and
The various antibody platforms described above are not limiting. The antigen binding sites described herein, including specific CDR subsets, can be formatted into any binding molecule platform including, but not limited to, full-length antibodies, Fab fragments, Fvs, scFvs, tandem scFvs, Diabodies, scDiabodies, DARTs, tandAbs, minibodies, camelid VHH, and other antibody fragments or formats known to those skilled in the art. Exemplary antibody and antibody fragment formats are described in detail in Brinkmann et al. (MABS, 2017, Vol. 9, No. 2, 182-212), herein incorporated by reference for all that it teaches.
In a further series of embodiments, the binding molecules described herein have additional modifications.
In various embodiments, the binding molecule is conjugated to a therapeutic agent (i.e. drug) to form a binding molecule-drug conjugate. Therapeutic agents include, but are not limited to, chemotherapeutic agents, imaging agents (e.g. radioisotopes), immune modulators (e.g. cytokines, chemokines, or checkpoint inhibitors), and toxins (e.g. cytotoxic agents). In certain embodiments, the therapeutic agents are attached to the binding molecule through a linker peptide, as discussed in more detail in Section 6.6.3.
Methods of preparing antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) that can be adapted to conjugate drugs to the binding molecules disclosed herein are described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 8,624,003 (pot method), U.S. Pat. No. 8,163,888 (one-step), U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,020 (two-step method), U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,337,856, 5,773,001, 7,829,531, 5,208,020, 7,745,394, WO 2017/136623, WO 2017/015502, WO 2017/015496, WO 2017/015495, WO 2004/010957, WO 2005/077090, WO 2005/082023, WO 2006/065533, WO 2007/030642, WO 2007/103288, WO 2013/173337, WO 2015/057699, WO 2015/095755, WO 2015/123679, WO 2015/157286, WO 2017/165851, WO 2009/073445, WO 2010/068759, WO 2010/138719, WO 2012/171020, WO 2014/008375, WO 2014/093394, WO 2014/093640, WO 2014/160360, WO 2015/054659, WO 2015/195925, WO 2017/160754, Storz (MAbs. 2015 November-December; 7(6): 989-1009), Lambert et al. (Adv Ther, 2017 34: 1015), Diamantis et al. (British Journal of Cancer, 2016, 114, 362-367), Carrico et al. (Nat Chem Biol, 2007. 3: 321-2), We et al. (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 2009. 106: 3000-5), Rabuka et al. (Curr Opin Chem Biol., 2011 14: 790-6), Hudak et al. (Angew Chem Int Ed Engl., 2012: 4161-5), Rabuka et al. (Nat Protoc., 2012 7:1052-67), Agarwal et al. (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA., 2013, 110: 46-51), Agarwal et al. (Bioconjugate Chem., 2013, 24: 846-851), Barfield et al. (Drug Dev. and D., 2014, 14:34-41), Drake et al. (Bioconjugate Chem., 2014, 25:1331-41), Liang et al. (J Am Chem Soc., 2014, 136:10850-3), Drake et al. (Curr Opin Chem Biol., 2015, 28:174-80), and York et al. (BMC Biotechnology, 2016, 16(1):23), each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety for all that it teaches.
In various embodiments, the binding molecule has modifications that comprise one or more additional binding moieties. In certain embodiments the binding moieties are antibody fragments or antibody formats including, but not limited to, full-length antibodies, Fab fragments, Fvs, scFvs, tandem scFvs, Diabodies, scDiabodies, DARTs, tandAbs, minibodies, camelid VHH, and other antibody fragments or formats known to those skilled in the art. Exemplary antibody and antibody fragment formats are described in detail in Brinkmann et al. (MABS, 2017, Vol. 9, No. 2, 182-212), herein incorporated by reference for all that it teaches.
In particular embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the C-terminus of the first or third polypeptide chain. In particular embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the C-terminus of both the first and third polypeptide chain. In particular embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the C-terminus of both the first and third polypeptide chains. In certain embodiments, individual portions of the one or more additional binding moieties are separately attached to the C-terminus of the first and third polypeptide chains such that the portions form the functional binding moiety.
In particular embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the N-terminus of any of the polypeptide chains (e.g. the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth polypeptide chains). In certain embodiments, individual portions of the additional binding moieties are separately attached to the N-terminus of different polypeptide chains such that the portions form the functional binding moiety.
In certain embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are specific for a different antigen or epitope of the ABSs within the binding molecule. In certain embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are specific for the same antigen or epitope of the ABSs within the binding molecule. In certain embodiments, wherein the modification is two or more additional binding moieties, the additional binding moieties are specific for the same antigen or epitope. In certain embodiments, wherein the modification is two or more additional binding moieties, the additional binding moieties are specific for different antigens or epitopes.
In certain embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the binding molecule using in vitro methods including, but not limited to, reactive chemistry and affinity tagging systems, as discussed in more detail in Section 6.6.3. In certain embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the binding molecule through Fc-mediated binding (e.g. Protein A/G). In certain embodiments, the one or more additional binding moieties are attached to the binding molecule using recombinant DNA techniques, such as encoding the nucleotide sequence of the fusion product between the binding molecule and the additional binding moieties on the same expression vector (e.g. plasmid).
In various embodiments, the binding molecule has modifications that comprise functional groups or chemically reactive groups that can be used in downstream processes, such as linking to additional moieties (e.g. drug conjugates and additional binding moieties, as discussed in more detail in Sections 6.6.1. and 6.6.2.) and downstream purification processes.
In certain embodiments, the modifications are chemically reactive groups including, but not limited to, reactive thiols (e.g. maleimide based reactive groups), reactive amines (e.g. N-hydroxysuccinimide based reactive groups), “click chemistry” groups (e.g. reactive alkyne groups), and aldehydes bearing formylglycine (FGly). In certain embodiments, the modifications are functional groups including, but not limited to, affinity peptide sequences (e.g. HA, HIS, FLAG, GST, MBP, and Strep systems etc.). In certain embodiments, the functional groups or chemically reactive groups have a cleavable peptide sequence. In particular embodiments, the cleavable peptide is cleaved by means including, but not limited to, photocleavage, chemical cleavage, protease cleavage, reducing conditions, and pH conditions. In particular embodiments, protease cleavage is carried out by intracellular proteases. In particular embodiments, protease cleavage is carried out by extracellular or membrane associated proteases. ADC therapies adopting protease cleavage are described in more detail in Choi et al. (Theranostics, 2012; 2(2): 156-178.), the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all it teaches.
In certain embodiments, the binding molecule has one or more engineered mutations in an amino acid sequence of an antibody domain that reduce the effector functions naturally associated with antibody binding. Effector functions include, but are not limited to, cellular functions that result from an Fc receptor binding to an Fc portion of an antibody, such as antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC, also referred to as antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity), complement fixation (e.g. C1q binding), antibody dependent cellular-mediated phagocytosis (ADCP), and opsonization. Engineered mutations that reduce the effector functions are described in more detail in U.S. Pub. No. 2017/0137530, Armour, et al. (Eur. J. Immunol. 29(8) (1999) 2613-2624), Shields, et al. (J. Biol. Chem. 276(9) (2001) 6591-6604), and Oganesyan, et al. (Acta Cristallographica D64 (2008) 700-704), each herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
In specific embodiments, the binding molecule has one or more engineered mutations in an amino acid sequence of an antibody domain that reduce binding of an Fc portion of the binding molecule by FcR receptors. In some embodiments, the FcR receptors are FcRγ receptors. In particular embodiments, the FcR receptors are FcγRIIa and/or FcγRIIIA receptors.
In another aspect, pharmaceutical compositions are provided that comprise a binding molecule as described herein and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier or diluent. In typical embodiments, the pharmaceutical composition is sterile.
In various embodiments, the pharmaceutical composition comprises the binding molecule at a concentration of 0.1 mg/ml-100 mg/ml. In specific embodiments, the pharmaceutical composition comprises the binding molecule at a concentration of 0.5 mg/ml, 1 mg/ml, 1.5 mg/ml, 2 mg/ml, 2.5 mg/ml, 5 mg/ml, 7.5 mg/ml, or 10 mg/ml. In some embodiments, the pharmaceutical composition comprises the binding molecule at a concentration of more than 10 mg/ml. In certain embodiments, the binding molecule is present at a concentration of 20 mg/ml, 25 mg/ml, 30 mg/ml, 35 mg/ml, 40 mg/ml, 45 mg/ml, or even 50 mg/ml or higher. In particular embodiments, the binding molecule is present at a concentration of more than 50 mg/ml.
In various embodiments, the pharmaceutical compositions are described in more detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,961,964, 8,945,865, 8,420,081, 6,685,940, 6,171,586, 8,821,865, 9,216,219, U.S. application Ser. No. 10/813,483, WO 2014/066468, WO 2011/104381, and WO 2016/180941, each of which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
The binding molecules described herein can readily be manufactured by expression using standard cell free translation, transient transfection, and stable transfection approaches currently used for antibody manufacture. In specific embodiments, Expi293 cells (ThermoFisher) can be used for production of the binding molecules using protocols and reagents from ThermoFisher, such as ExpiFectamine, or other reagents known to those skilled in the art, such as polyethylenimine as described in detail in Fang et al. (Biological Procedures Online, 2017, 19:11), herein incorporated by reference for all it teaches.
As further described in the Examples below, the expressed proteins can be readily purified using a CH1 affinity resin, such as the CaptureSelect CH1 resin and provided protocol from ThermoFisher. Further purification can be effected using ion exchange chromatography as is routinely used in the art.
In another aspect, methods of treatment are provided. The methods comprise administering a therapeutically effective amount of the pharmaceutical compositions described herein to a patient in need thereof.
In typical embodiments, the target receptor is a member of the TNFRSF, and the disease to be treated is cancer. In certain embodiments, the target receptor is OX40 (TNFRSF4), CD40 (TNFRSF5), or 4-1BB (TNFRSF9), and the pharmaceutical construct is administered in an amount that is therapeutically effective in treating cancer.
The following examples are provided by way of illustration, not limitation.
Non-limiting, illustrative methods for the purification of the various antigen-binding proteins and their use in various assays are described in more detail below.
The various antigen-binding proteins tested were expressed using the Expi293 transient transfection system according to manufacturer's instructions. Briefly, four plasmids coding for four individual chains were mixed at 1:1:1:1 mass ratio, unless otherwise stated, and transfected with ExpiFectamine 293 transfection kit to Expi 293 cells. Cells were cultured at 37° C. with 8% CO2, 100% humidity and shaking at 125 rpm. Transfected cells were fed once after 16-18 hours of transfections. The cells were harvested at day 5 by centrifugation at 2000 g for 10 munities. The supernatant was collected for affinity chromatography purification.
Cleared supernatants containing the various antigen-binding proteins were separated using either a Protein A (ProtA) resin or an anti-CH1 resin on an AKTA Purifier FPLC. In examples where a head-to-head comparison was performed, supernatants containing the various antigen-binding proteins were split into two equal samples. For ProtA purification, a 1 mL Protein A column (GE Healthcare) was equilibrated with PBS (5 mM sodium potassium phosphate pH 7.4, 150 mM sodium chloride). The sample was loaded onto the column at 5 ml/min. The sample was eluted using 0.1 M acetic acid pH 4.0. The elution was monitored by absorbance at 280 nm and the elution peaks were pooled for analysis. For anti-CH1 purification, a 1 mL CaptureSelect™ XL column (ThermoFisher) was equilibrated with PBS. The sample was loaded onto the column at 5 ml/min. The sample was eluted using 0.1 M acetic acid pH 4.0. The elution was monitored by absorbance at 280 nm and the elution peaks were pooled for analysis.
Samples containing the various separated antigen-binding proteins were analyzed by reducing and non-reducing SDS-PAGE for the presence of complete product, incomplete product, and overall purity. 2 μg of each sample was added to 15 μL SDS loading buffer. Reducing samples were incubated in the presence of 10 mM reducing agent at 75° C. for 10 minutes. Non-reducing samples were incubated at 55° C. for 5 minutes without reducing agent. The reducing and non-reducing samples were loaded into a 4-15% gradient TGX gel (BioRad) with running buffer and run for 30 minutes at 250 volts. Upon completion of the run, the gel was washed with DI water and stained using GelCode Blue Safe Protein Stain (ThermoFisher). The gels were destained with DI water prior to analysis. Densitometry analysis of scanned images of the destained gels was performed using standard image analysis software to calculate the relative abundance of bands in each sample.
Samples containing the various separated antigen-binding proteins were analyzed by cation exchange chromatography for the ratio of complete product to incomplete product and impurities. Cleared supernatants were analyzed with a 5-ml MonoS column (GE Lifesciences) on an AKTA Purifier FPLC. The MonoS column was equilibrated with buffer A 10 mM MES pH 6.0. The samples were loaded onto the column at 2 ml/min. The sample was eluted using a 0-30% gradient with buffer B (10 mM MES pH 6.0, 1 M sodium chloride) over 6 CV. The elution was monitored by absorbance at 280 nm and the purity of the samples was calculated by peak integration to identify the abundance of the monomer peak and contaminants peaks. The monomer peak and contaminant peaks were separately pooled for analysis by SDS-PAGE as described above.
Samples containing the various separated antigen-binding proteins were analyzed by analytical size exclusion chromatography for the ratio of monomer to high molecular weight product and impurities. Cleared supernatants were analyzed with an industry standard TSK G3000SW×1 column (Tosoh Bioscience) on an Agilent 1100 HPLC. The TSK column was equilibrated with PBS. 25 μL of each sample at 1 mg/mL was loaded onto the column at 1 ml/min. The sample was eluted using an isocratic flow of PBS for 1.5 CV. The elution was monitored by absorbance at 280 nm and the elution peaks were analyzed by peak integration.
Samples containing the various separated antigen-binding proteins were analyzed by mass spectrometry to confirm the correct species by molecular weight. All analysis was performed by a third-party research organization. Briefly, samples were treated with a cocktail of enzymes to remove glycosylation. Samples were both tested in the reduced format to specifically identify each chain by molecular weight. Samples were all tested under non-reducing conditions to identify the molecular weights of all complexes in the samples. Mass spec analysis was used to identify the number of unique products based on molecular weight.
The NFκB Luc2 OX40 Jurkat T cell Stimulation Assay (Promega, Cat #CS197704, CS197707) was performed according to manufacturer's instructions. Briefly, the Thaw-and-Use Jurkat/OX40 cells were thawed at 37 deg C. and diluted in assay buffer as recommended. The Thaw-and-Use cells were dispensed into 96-well plates (50 uL/well) and incubated overnight in a CO2 incubator at 37 deg C. The next day, serial dilutions of the OX40 ligand are made as a standard control at 3× of the final concentration. 25 ul of the standards as well as test samples at 3× final concentration are added to the well and incubated in a CO2 incubator at 37 deg C. for 5 hours. Upon completion of the incubation period, 75 uL of the Bio-Glo reagent is added to each well and incubated at ambient room temperature for 5-10 minutes. The signal from each well is then read using a standard plate reader with glow-type luminescence.
T-cell stimulation was measured using multiple assays to follow the cytokine production as well as impact of T cell proliferation. Measurement of T cell activation through measurement of cytokine (IL-2, TNFα, and IFNγ) production was performed using the Cytokine Screen Opteia ELISA Kit (BD Cat #555212, 555190, & 555142) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Briefly, 96-well ELISA plates were coated with the specific capture antibody overnight using 100 uL/well according to instructions. The ELISA plates were blocked with 150 uL RPMI per well. Serial dilutions of the cytokine standards were prepared in RPMI+10% HI FBS to cover the indicated ranges (IL-2: 500-7.8 pg/mL, TNFα and IFNγ: 300-4.6 pg/mL). Supernantants of samples from the treated T cells as well as standards were added to the plate and incubated for 2 hours at room temperature. The wells were washed four times with 150 uL 0.5% PBST. The detection antibodies were added at 1:250 dilution in PBS and incubated for 1 hour at room temperature. The wells were washed four times with 150 uL 0.5% PBST. 100 uL/well of the TMB substrate was added and incubated until color change observed at which point 50 uL of 0.1M HCl was added to stop the reaction. The final signal was measured by reading the absorbance on plate reader at 450 nm.
To monitor T cell proliferation, 96 well plates were coated overnight with anti-CD3 antibody in PBS. Some wells were additionally coated with anti-OX40 antibodies in PBS. The next day, excess liquid was removed from the plate by flicking and naïve CD4+ T cells were plated in RPMI+10% FBS. Wells that were not coated overnight with anti-OX40 antibodies, received anti-OX40 antibodies in the media at the listed concentrations. Plates were incubated at 37° C./5% CO2 for 3-5 days. Following the incubation, the PrestoBlue assay (Thermo Fisher A13261) was carried out according to manufacturer's directions. Briefly, PrestoBlue reagent was added directly to the wells at 1/10th the volume of media within the wells. The plates were then incubated at 37° C./5% CO2 for 10 min-overnight. The fluorescence of each well was determined using a Safire plate reader (Tecan) with an excitation wavelength of 560 nm and an emission wavelength of 590 nm.
Real-time activation of T cells was monitored using the IncuCyte system (Sartorius). The kinetics of T cell activation were monitored for 3 to 6 days by microscopy in a controlled growth environment. T cell activation is charted using cell size measurement to track the growth and proliferation of T cell clusters.
Phage display of human Fab libraries was carried out using standard protocols. Biotinylated extracellular domain of human OX40 protein was purchased from Acro Biosystems. Phage clones were screened for the ability to bind human OX40 by phage ELISA using standard protocols. Briefly, Fab-formatted phage libraries were constructed using expression vectors capable of replication and expression in phage (also referred to as a phagemid). Both the heavy chain and the light chain were encoded for in the same expression vector, where the heavy chain was fused to a truncated variant of the phage coat protein pIII. The light chain and heavy chain are expressed as a separate polypeptides, and the light chain and heavy chain-pIII fusion assemble in the bacterial periplasm, where the redox potential enables disulfide bond formation, to form the antibody containing the candidate ABS
The library was created using sequences derived from a specific human heavy chain variable domain (VH3-23) and a specific human light chain variable domain (Vk-1). Light chain variable domains within the screened library were generated with diversity introduced into the VL CDR3 (L3) and where the light chain VL CDR1 (L1) and CDR2 (L2) remained the human germline sequence. For the screened library, all three CDRs of the VH domain were diversified to match the positional amino acid frequency by CDR length found in the human antibody repertoire. The phage display heavy chain (SEQ ID NO:19) and light chain (SEQ ID NO:20) scaffolds used in the library are listed below, where a lower case “x” represents CDR amino acids that were varied to create the library, and bold italic represents the CDR sequences that were constant.
Diversity was created through Kunkel mutagenesis using primers to introduce diversity into VL CDR3 and VH CDR1 (H1), CDR2 (H2) and CDR3 (H3) to mimic the diversity found in the natural antibody repertoire, as described in more detail in Kunkel, T A (PNAS Jan. 1, 1985. 82 (2) 488-492), herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. Briefly, single-stranded DNA were prepared from isolated phage using standard procedures and Kunkel mutagenesis carried out. Chemically synthesized DNA was then electroporated into TG1 cells, followed by recovery. Recovered cells were sub-cultured and infected with M13K07 helper phage to produce the phage library.
Phage panning was performed using standard procedures. Briefly, the first round of phage panning was performed with target immobilized on streptavidin magnetic beads which were subjected to ˜5×1012 phage from the prepared library in a volume of 1 mL in PBST-2% BSA. After a one-hour incubation, the bead-bound phage were separated from the supernatant using a magnetic stand. Beads were washed three times to remove non-specifically bound phage and were then added to ER2738 cells (5 mL) at OD600˜0.6. After 20 minutes, infected cells were sub-cultured in 25 mL 2×YT+Ampicillin and M13K07 helper phage and allowed to grow overnight at 37° C. with vigorous shaking. The next day, phage were prepared using standard procedures by PEG precipitation. Pre-clearance of phage specific to SAV-coated beads was performed prior to panning. The second round of panning was performed using the KingFisher magnetic bead handler with 100 nM bead-immobilized antigen using standard procedures. In total, 3-4 rounds of phage panning were performed to enrich in phage displaying Fabs specific for the target antigen. Target-specific enrichment was confirmed using polyclonal and monoclonal phage ELISA. DNA sequencing was used to determine isolated Fab clones containing a candidate ABS.
To measure binding affinity in discovery campaigns, the VL and VH domains were formatted into a bivalent monospecific native human full-length IgG1 architecture and immobilized to a biosensor on an Octet (Pall ForteBio) biolayer interferometer. Soluble antigens were then added to the system and binding measured.
For experiments performed using the B-Body format, VL variable regions of individual clones were formatted into Domain A and/or H, and VH region into Domain F and/or L of a bivalent 1×1 B-Body “BC1” scaffold shown below and with reference to
In a first discovery campaign, the VL and VH domains were formatted only into Domain H and L, respectively, and the constructs each contained the same A:F antigen binding site with a known expression profile for an unrelated target. The sequence of the common first polypeptide and common second polypeptide chain are provided, respectively, in SEQ ID NO:1 and SEQ ID NO:2. In subsequent discovery campaigns, the VL and VH domains were formatted into a bivalent monospecific native IgG architecture.
“BC1” Scaffold:
For BC1 2×1 formats (see
In the first discovery campaign, the B-Body plasmids coding for OX40 antigen binding sites (ABS) in Domains H and L (H:L) and a common antigen binding site with a known expression profile in domains A and F (A:F) were transfected into cells using the Expi 293 expression system at 1.5 mL scale and the antibody constructs expressed in 96-well deep well block following standard protocols.
The B-Body protein was purified in 96-well format using CaptureSelect CH1 affinity resin (ThermoFisher) and average yield was ˜50 μg B-Body/mL culture. The bispecific 1×1 B-Body proteins—each containing one OX40 antigen binding site—were evaluated for overall yield, protein purity, affinity for OX40, and cell binding. As shown in
In subsequent discovery campaigns, the VL and VH domains were formatted into a bivalent monospecific native IgG architecture. As shown in
In total, the antibody discovery campaigns identified 40 OX40 clones. Table 3 lists the VH CDR1/2/3 sequences identified. Table 4 lists the VL CDR3 sequences identified, and the constant CDR1 and CDR2 sequences used in the screen.
The OX40 antigen binding site of each of the initial 17 clones we identified was then recloned into a bivalent (1×1) B-Body construct, as either antigen binding site A:F or H:L. 96 unique bispecific bivalent 1×1 B-Body proteins were constructed, each construct having two OX40 antigen binding specificities.
Each construct was expressed and purified. The purity was normally >85% as estimated by SDS PAGE. The concentration of purified antibodies was ˜1 mg/mL on average after one-step affinity purification using CH1 affinity resin and neutralization. The proteins were directly used for activation assay at 1 μg/mL after ˜1000× dilution in DMEM media.
Luminescent-based reporter cell lines were generated to assay the NFκb pathway activation by OX40. In brief, a plasmid coding the full-length human OX40 under a CMV promotor with hygromycin resistance was transfected into NFκB/293/GFP-Luc (catalog number: TR860A-1, SystemBio) cells. Selection was performed with 200 μg/mL Hygromycin B for three weeks. The pool was detached, labeled with anti-human OX40-phycoerythrin antibody, and sorted for PE positive and GFP negative cells by FACS. The ˜106 collected cells were expanded for two weeks under DMEM+200 μg/mL Hygromycin B and sorted again for GFP negative. The 2nd sorted pool was annotated as NFκb/293/GFP-Luc-OX40 to assay NFkb activation.
For high throughput screening, activation assays were prepared in half-area 96-well plates containing 5×104NFkb/293/GFP-Luc-OX40 cells, 6 nM B-Body antibodies, with or without 20 nM Goat-anti-human (GAH) antibody. After a 6 hr incubation at 37° C., an equal volume of One-step BPS Luminescence Kit mix was added and the luminescence was measured. The luminescence intensity is proportional to agonist activity through OX40. An activation assay with an antibody titration (0.01-100 nM) was performed with candidates showing top potency from high throughput single point activation.
NFκb activation assay of the bivalent 1×1 B-Body constructs was set up at 1 μg/mL with NFκb/293/GFP-Luc-OX40 cells. The luminescence intensity was measured after 6 hrs of stimulation. The intensity was normalized by reference to blank cells without antibody (Luminescence=0) and cells exposed to OX40 ligand Fc fusion protein (“OX40L-Fc”) crosslinked using a goat anti-human Fc antibody (“OX40L-Fc+GAH”) (luminescence=1). The data are shown in
An initial screen tested approximately 150 bispecific bivalent 1×1 B-Body constructs and approximately 30 monospecific bivalent 1×1 B-Body constructs. As we hypothesized, in the absence of an independent crosslinking agent, the bivalent 1×1 B-Body constructs displayed a diverse range of agonist activity from 0 to 1. Some matched the potency of the cross-linked ligand (see
We also observed a wide range of sensitivity to additional crosslinking of the bivalent 1×1 B-Body construct by an independent crosslinking agent, goat anti-human Fc antibody (GAH), from no additional enhancement to 3-fold additional enhancement.
“OX-10×9” demonstrated the strongest agonist activity for the bispecific bivalent (1×1) candidates tested in this panel, exhibiting comparable agonist activity to cross-linked OX40L, with its activity enhanced an additional 2-fold with additional GAH crosslinking. The sequences of the polypeptide chains are provided as SEQ ID NO:3 (chain 1), SEQ ID NO:4 (chain 2), SEQ ID NO:5 (chain 3), and SEQ ID NO:6 (chain 4).
We also cloned the variable regions of the initial 17 OX40 agonist candidates we identified into antigen binding sites in the trivalent 2×1 B-Body format (see
The trivalent B-Body constructs were expressed at 1.5 mL scale in 96-well deep well blocks and purified with CH1 affinity resin.
High throughput screening was performed for OX40 agonist trivalent constructs essentially as described above for bivalent constructs. Data are shown in
Monospecific trivalent 2×1 B-Body, “OX40:2-2×2”, stood out as a potent OX40 agonist in the panel tested. The A:F, N:P, and H:L antigen binding sites are identical in this monospecific trivalent construct. The sequence of the polypeptide chains are provided as SEQ ID NO:7 (first polypeptide chain), SEQ ID NO:8 (second polypeptide chain), SEQ ID NO:9 (third polypeptide chain), SEQ ID NO:10 (fourth polypeptide chain), SEQ ID NO:11 (fifth polypeptide chain). The sequence of chain 2 and chain 5 are identical.
To understand better the therapeutic potential of our top agonists, we used published sequence to prepare three known clinical anti-OX40 monoclonal antibodies, Tavolixizumab (heavy chain, SEQ ID NO:14; light chain, SEQ ID NO:15), Pagolizumab (heavy chain, SEQ ID NO:12; light chain, SEQ ID NO:13) and GSK3174998 (heavy chain, SEQ ID NO:16; light chain, SEQ ID NO:17) and included them as benchmarks in our activation assays.
As expected, the agonist activities of the three clinical mAbs demonstrated minimal activity by themselves, but were comparable to the natural ligand, OX40L, in presence of cross-linking. As shown in
As discussed above, our two strongest OX40 agonists from this first discovery campaign were the bispecific bivalent (1×1) construct “10×9” and monospecific trivalent (2×1) construct “2×2×2”.
An expanded screen, performed essentially as described above, increased the number of identified candidate B-body OX40 agonists from 17 to 40. Briefly, B-Body candidate agonists were transiently expressed and purified using the one-step CH1 purification scheme. Candidates were added to HEK 293-NFkb-GFP/Luc-OX40 in soluble form without additional cross-linker or immobilization, and luminescence was read as agonistic activity from NFkB activation through OX40. The natural OX40 ligand Fc fusion protein (“OX40L-Fc”) was used to establish 100% agonism. Three clinical anti-OX40 monoclonal antibodies were also tested (arrows from left to right: Pogalizumab, Tavolixizumab, and GSK3174998)
As shown in
The three bivalent OX40 agonists tested displayed a large variation in EC50, maximum efficacy and sensitivity to cross-linking. The difference in the dose response curves highlight potential differences in the mechanism of agonism for each. Thus, bivalent OX40 agonists with varying agonist characteristics can be identified, and can be classified based on properties additional to simple affinity. The improved characterization of each OX40 agonist may identify potential beneficial properties that can be exploited in a clinical setting.
Two candidates with non-overlapping OX40 antigen binding sites (OX40:2 and OX40:8) identified in the screen as well as OX40L-Fc and clinical OX40 antibodies were investigated further to determine the specific OX40 epitope bound by each.
OX40L demonstrated binding only to immobilized full length fragment (OX40:2-214), indicating that OX40L only bound the first CRD (amino acids 2-66). The OX40:2 antigen binding site and the clinical antibody GSK3174998 demonstrated binding to the full length fragment (OX40:2-214) and partial binding to the first truncation (OX40:66-214), indicating that both bound the first and second CRD (amino acids 2-108). The other two clinical antibodies, Pogalizumab and Tavolixizumab, demonstrated the strongest binding to the fragment OX40:108-214, while binding was no longer present in the OX40:127-214 truncation, indicating that both bound the third CRD (amino acids 108-127). The OX40:8 antigen binding site demonstrated binding to all tested truncations of OX40, indicating binding to the fourth CRD (amino acids 127-214). Thus, our OX40 screen identified antigen binding sites that bind epitopes that did not overlap (OX40:2 binding an epitope within amino acids 2-108 and OX40:8 binding an epitope within amino acids 127-214), as well as an antigen binding site that binds an epitope different from that bound by the tested clinical monoclonal antibodies (OX40:8 binding an epitope within amino acids 127-214).
Candidate OX40 antigen binding sites identified in the screen were tested in combination for simultaneous binding to OX40. As shown in
Candidate OX40 agonists were screened in CD4+/CD45RA+/CD25 naive T cell assays. Soluble candidates were directly applied to the primary cell assay and a clinical mAB GSK3174998 was applied in both soluble and plate-coated forms as controls. The T cell proliferation was assayed by PrestoBlue and IL-2 secretion was quantified by ELISA. As shown in
Candidates of interest identified in the screen are:
OX40:24-24×11
OX40: 24-24×10
OX40: 24-24×6
OX40: 24-24×4
Real-time activation of T cells was monitored using the Incucyte system (Sartorius). The kinetics of T cell activation were monitored by microscopy and charted using cell size measurement to track the growth and proliferation of T cell clusters. As shown in
Candidate OX40 agonists and clinical monoclonal antibodies were purified using a two-step purification process. OX40:2-2×8, OX40:3-3×25, and OX40:33×25 were purified by CH1 and anion exchange chromatography, while the clinical antibodies were purified by Protein A and anion exchange chromatography.
Activation of T cells using OX40 agonist candidates in a soluble 2×1 format was monitored by cytokine secretion (see
OX40: 24-11×11
As shown in
As shown in
Also shown in
A modified version of OX40:24-11×11, termed “OX40:24(WEE)-11×11,” was also constructed (see SEQ ID NO:58 for Chain 1, all other chains equivalent).
The kinetics of cytokine secretion were also tested. As shown in
Activation of T cells using OX40 agonist candidates in a soluble 2×1 format was also monitored by proliferation. As shown in
Various B-body constructs with different valencies using ABS OX40:24 and OX40:11 were tested for agonist activity. As shown in
Monospecific bivalent 1×1 candidates OX40:24 and OX40:11 formatted in a native IgG architecture were compared alone and in combination against a bispecific bivalent 1×1 candidate (OX40:11×24) and various bispecific trivalent 2×1 candidates. As shown in
Notably, the bispecific trivalent 2×1 candidates demonstrated increased agonist activity compared to the bispecific bivalent 1×1 candidate as measured by TNFα secretion (
Various B-body constructs using ABS OX40:24 and OX40:11 were tested for agonist activity in combination with cross-linking. As shown in
Various B-body constructs using ABS OX40:24 and OX40:11 were tested for agonist activity in an NFκB Luc2 OX40 Jurkat T cell stimulation assay. As shown in
Bispecific trivalent OX40 agonist candidates OX40:24-24×11 and OX40:24-11×11 were assessed for biophysical properties, such as those relevant for production of antibodies in a clinical setting or on an industrial scale. As shown in Table 5, the candidates OX40:24-24×11 and OX40:24-11×11 demonstrated biophysical properties useful in manufacturing for clinical and industrial settings. Properties were assessed using standard assays. Examples of biophysical properties and methods to assess the same are described in more detail in Jain et al. (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2017 Jan. 31; 114(5):944-949.), herein incorporated by reference for all it teaches. Properties assessed were yield, purity, homogeneity, stability, long-term stability, acid stability, thermostability, low antibody cross-interaction, low antibody self-interaction, low hydrophobic binding, and cyno crossreactivity.
OX40 mAbs require cross-linking to generate observable agonistic activities, as we demonstrated in our cellular assay with Tavolixizumab, Pagolizumab and GSK3174998. The clinical trials of these known clinical-stage antibodies therefore rely on the Fc receptor engagement to effect agonist activity, which may contribute to the low response rate that has been observed so far. The only clinical trial with significant efficacy (12/30 with tumor shrinkage) was conducted with a mouse anti-human OX40 antibody, and all responders were demonstrated to have significant amount of mouse-anti-human-antibody (MAHA), which likely act as cross-linkers, increasing in vivo efficacy of the OX40 antibody.
The B-Body platform, described in detail in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/787,640, filed Oct. 18, 2017, incorporated herein by reference, provides superior orthogonality, dramatically decreased incomplete pairing, and increased yield to ˜100 μg antibody construct/mL cell culture in various valency formats. Together with standardized cloning protocols, high throughput protein expression, and single-step purification, the B-Body platform allowed us to perform high throughput cellular assay screening for multivalent agonist antibodies.
Using this system, we successfully demonstrated that multivalent antibodies can be potent OX40 agonists by themselves, in the absence of an independent crosslinking agent, such as cellular FcγR or MAHA. Our antibody constructs were capable of clustering a TNFR superfamily member on the cell membrane through multivalent binding to the extracellular domain of TNFR. Our best performing candidates were superior to 3 known mAb clinical candidates, and offer a solution to the current challenge of low efficacy of human OX40 agonists in clinical trials.
This strategy is generally applicable to all TNFR superfamily members, and to certain other receptors that analogously require clustering for agonist activity. For example, this approach should be effective in producing agonists of CD20; it has been shown the efficacy of the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, rituximab, is largely due to CD20 cross-linking. Although standard bivalent monospecific mAbs can cluster receptors in principle, their potential is far less than that of our multivalent, multispecific, antibody constructs. We believe the combination of the high throughput discovery power of our B-Body platform and the strategy of using “multivalent agonist by clustering receptors” can open the door to treatment of new disease indications.
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All publications, patents, patent applications and other documents cited in this application are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties for all purposes to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent, patent application or other document were individually indicated to be incorporated by reference for all purposes.
While various specific embodiments have been illustrated and described, the above specification is not restrictive. It will be appreciated that various changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention(s). Many variations will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of this specification.
This application claims priority to Provisional Application No. 62/646,321, filed Mar. 21, 2018, and to Provisional Application No. 62/549,913, filed Aug. 24, 2017, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2018/047819 | 8/23/2018 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62549913 | Aug 2017 | US | |
| 62646321 | Mar 2018 | US |
