Design and Synthesis of Megamolecule Mimics of a Therapeutic Antibody

J Am Chem Soc. 2020 Aug 12;142(32):13657-13661. doi: 10.1021/jacs.0c05093. Epub 2020 Jul 29.

Abstract

This communication describes the design, synthesis, and biological activity of a megamolecule mimic of an anti-HER2 antibody. The antibody mimic was prepared by linking two Fabs from the therapeutic antibody trastuzumab, which are fused through the heavy chain variable domain to either cutinase or SnapTag, with a linker terminated in an irreversible inhibitor for each enzyme. This mimic binds HER2 with comparable avidity to trastuzumab, has similar activity in a cell-based assay, and can arrest tumor growth in a mouse xenograft BT474 tumor model. A panel of 16 bivalent anti-HER2 antibodies were prepared wherein each varied in the orientation of the fusion domain on the Fabs. The analogs displayed a range of cytotoxic activity, and surprisingly, the most active mimic binds to cells with a 10-fold lower avidity than the least active variant suggesting that structure plays a large role in their efficacy. This work suggests that the megamolecule approach can be used to prepare antibody mimics having a broad structural diversity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological / chemical synthesis
  • Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological / chemistry
  • Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological / pharmacology*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Drug Design*
  • Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / drug therapy
  • Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental / pathology
  • Mice
  • Mice, SCID
  • Molecular Structure
  • Receptor, ErbB-2 / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Trastuzumab / chemistry
  • Trastuzumab / pharmacology*

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological
  • Receptor, ErbB-2
  • Trastuzumab