The use of proteins and peptides-based therapy in managing and preventing pathogenic viruses

Esmail M El-Fakharany; Hamada El-Gendi; Ahmed K Saleh; Mohamed H El-Sayed; Adel I Alalawy; Rasha Jame; Mahmoud A Abdelaziz; Shareefa Ahmed Alshareef; Yousra A El-Maradny

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.132254

The use of proteins and peptides-based therapy in managing and preventing pathogenic viruses

Int J Biol Macromol. 2024 May 9;270(Pt 2):132254. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.132254. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Esmail M El-Fakharany¹, Hamada El-Gendi², Ahmed K Saleh³, Mohamed H El-Sayed⁴, Adel I Alalawy⁵, Rasha Jame⁶, Mahmoud A Abdelaziz⁶, Shareefa Ahmed Alshareef⁷, Yousra A El-Maradny⁸

Affiliations

¹ Protein Research Department, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute GEBRI, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA city), New Borg El-Arab, Alexandria 21934, Egypt; Pharmaceutical and Fermentation Industries Development Centre (PFIDC), City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), New Borg Al-Arab, Alexandria, Egypt. Electronic address: esmailelfakharany@yahoo.co.uk.
² Bioprocess Development Department, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA city), New Borg El-Arab, Alexandria 21934, Egypt.
³ Cellulose and Paper Department, National Research Centre, El-Tahrir St., Dokki 12622, Giza, Egypt.
⁴ Department of Biology, College of Science and Arts, Northern Border University, Arar, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71491, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71491, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ Department of Chemistry, Alwajh College, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71491, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Pharmaceutical and Fermentation Industries Development Centre (PFIDC), City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), New Borg Al-Arab, Alexandria, Egypt; Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT), Alamein 51718, Egypt.

PMID: 38729501
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.132254

Abstract

Therapeutic proteins have been employed for centuries and reached approximately 50 % of all drugs investigated. By 2023, they represented one of the top 10 largest-selling pharma products ($387.03 billion) and are anticipated to reach around $653.35 billion by 2030. Growth hormones, insulin, and interferon (IFN α, γ, and β) are among the leading applied therapeutic proteins with a higher market share. Protein-based therapies have opened new opportunities to control various diseases, including metabolic disorders, tumors, and viral outbreaks. Advanced recombinant DNA biotechnology has offered the production of therapeutic proteins and peptides for vaccination, drugs, and diagnostic tools. Prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression host systems, including bacterial, fungal, animal, mammalian, and plant cells usually applied for recombinant therapeutic proteins large-scale production. However, several limitations face therapeutic protein production and applications at the commercial level, including immunogenicity, integrity concerns, protein stability, and protein degradation under different circumstances. In this regard, protein-engineering strategies such as PEGylation, glycol-engineering, Fc-fusion, albumin conjugation, and fusion, assist in increasing targeting, product purity, production yield, functionality, and the half-life of therapeutic protein circulation. Therefore, a comprehensive insight into therapeutic protein research and findings pave the way for their successful implementation, which will be discussed in the current review.

Keywords: Biopharmaceuticals; Biotechnology; Medical applications; Therapeutic proteins.

Publication types

Review