Protein fragment complementation assays (PCA) rely on a proximity-driven reconstitution of a split reporter protein activity, typically via interaction between bait and prey units separately fused to the reporter protein halves. The PCA principle can also be formatted for use in immunossays for analyte detection, e.g., via the use of small immunoglobulin binding proteins (IgBp) as fusion partners to split-reporter protein fragments for conversion of pairs of antibodies into split-protein half-probes. However, the non-covalent binding between IgBp and antibodies is not ideal for development of robust assays. Here, the authors describe how split-enzyme reporter halves can be both site-specifically and covalently photoconjugated at antibody Fc-parts for use in homogeneous dual-antibody in vitro immunoassays based on analyte-dependent split-enzyme fragment complementation. The half-probes consist of parts of a beta-lactamase split-protein reporter fused to an immunoglobulin Fc binding domain equipped with a unique cysteine residue at which a photoactivable maleimide benzophenone group (MBP) is attached. Using such antibody conjugates the authors obtain an analyte-driven complementation of the reporter enzyme fragments monitored via conversion of a chromogenic substrate. Results from detection of human interferon-gamma and the extracellular domain of HER2 is shown. The described principles for site-specific conjugation of proteins to antibodies should be broadly applicable.

In inflammatory disease conditions, the regulation of the cytokine system is impaired, leading to tissue damages. Here, we used protein engineering to develop biologicals suitable for blocking a combination of inflammation driving cytokines by a single construct. From a set of interleukin (IL)-6-binding affibody molecules selected by phage display, five variants with a capability of blocking the interaction between complexes of soluble IL-6 receptor a (sIL-6R alpha) and IL6 and the co-receptor gp130 were identified. In cell assays designed to analyze any blocking capacity of the classical or the alternative (trans) signaling IL-6 pathways, one variant, Z(IL-6_13) with an affinity (K-D) for IL-6 of similar to 500 pM, showed the best performance. To construct fusion proteins ("AffiMabs") with dual cytokine specificities, Z(IL-6_13) was fused to either the N-or C-terminus of both the heavy and light chains of the anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) monoclonal antibody adalimumab (Humira (R)). One AffiMab construct with Z(IL-6_13) positioned at the N-terminus of the heavy chain, denoted Z(IL-6_13)-HCAda, was determined to be the most optimal, and it was subsequently evaluated in an acute Serum Amyloid A (SAA) model in mice. Administration of the AffiMab or adalimumab prior to challenge with a mix of IL-6 and TNF reduced the levels of serum SAA in a dose-dependent manner. Interestingly, the highest dose (70 mg/kg body weight) of adalimumab only resulted in a 50% reduction of SAA-levels, whereas the corresponding dose of the Z(IL-6_13)-HCAda AffiMab with combined IL-6/TNF specificity, resulted in SAA levels below the detection limit.

Affinity proteins binding to antibody constant regions have proved to be invaluable tools in biotechnology. Here, protein engineering was used to expand the repertoire of available immunoglobulin binding proteins via improvement of the binding strength between the widely used staphylococcal protein A-derived Z domain and the important immunoglobulin isotype mouse IgG(1) (mIgG(1)). Addressing seven positions in the 58-residue three-helix bundle Z domain by single or double amino acid substitutions, a total of 170 variants were individually constructed, produced in E. coli and tested for binding to a set of mouse IgG(1) monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). The best variant, denoted Z(F5I) corresponding to a Phe to Ile substitution at position 5, showed a typical ten-fold higher affinity than the wild-type as determined by biosensor technology. Eight amino acid positions in the Z(F5I) variant were separately mutated to cysteine for incorporation of a photoactivable maleimide-benzophenone (MBP) group as a probe for site-specific photoconjugation to Fc of mIgG(1), The best photocoupling efficiency to mIgG(1) Fc was seen when the MBP group was coupled to Cys at position 32, resulting in adduct formation to more than 60% of all heavy chains, with no observable non-selective conjugation to the light chains. A similar coupling yield was obtained for a panel of 19 different mIgG(1) mAbs, indicating a general characteristic. To exemplify functionalization of a mIgG(1) antibody via site-specific biotinylation, the Z(F5I-Q32C-MBP) protein was first biotinylated using an amine reactive reagent and subsequently photoconjugated to an anti-human interferon-gamma mIgG(1) mAb. When comparing the specific antigen binding ability of the probe-biotinylated mAb to that of the directly biotinylated mAb, a significantly h`igher bioactivity was observed for the sample biotinylated using the Z(F5I-Q32C-MBP) probe. This result indicates that the use of a site-specific and affinity probe-mediated conjugation strategy can result in antibody reagents with increased assay sensitivity.

Affinity reagents recognizing constant parts of antibody molecules are invaluable tools in immunotechnology applications, including purification, immobilization, and detection of immunoglobulins. In this article, murine IgG(1), the primary isotype of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) was used as target for selection of novel binders from a combinatorial ribosome display (RD) library of 10(11) affibody molecules. Four rounds of selection using three different mouse IgG(1) mAbs as alternating targets resulted in the identification of binders with broad mIgG(1) recognition and dissociation constants (K (D)) in the low nanomolar to low micromolar range. For one of the binders, denoted Z(mab25), competition in binding to full length mIgG(1) by a streptococcal protein G (SPG) fragment and selective affinity capture of mouse IgG(1) Fab fragments after papain cleavage of a full mAb suggest that an epitope functionally overlapping with the SPG-binding site in the CH1 domain of mouse IgG(1) had been addressed. Interestingly, biosensor-based binding experiments showed that neither human IgG(1) nor bovine Ig, the latter present in fetal bovine serum (FBS) was recognized by Z(mab25). This selective binding profile towards murine IgG(1) was successfully exploited in species selective recovery of two different mouse mAbs from complex samples containing FBS, resembling a hybridoma culture supernatant.

Development of molecules with the ability to selectively inhibit particular protein-protein interactions is important in providing tools for understanding cell biology In this work, we describe efforts to select small Ras- and Raf-specific three-helix bundle affibody binding proteins capable of inhibiting the interaction between H-Ras and Raf-1, from a combinatorial library displayed on bacteriophage Target-specific variants with typically high nanomolar or low micromolar affinities (K-D) could be selected successfully against both proteins, as shown by dot blot, ELISA and real-time biospecific interaction analyses Affibody molecule variants selected against H-Ras were shown to bind epitopes overlapping each other at a site that differed from that at which H-Ras interacts with Raf-1 In contrast, an affibody molecule isolated during selection against Raf-1 was shown to effectively inhibit the interaction between H-Ras and Raf-1 in a dose-dependent manner Possible intracellular applications of the selected affibody molecules are discussed