Name: laboratory scale production and purification of a therapeutic antibody
Uploaded: 2017-01-24T13:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Laboratory Scale Production and Purification of a Therapeutic Antibody at JoVE.com

The research was supported by the University of Sydney. pVITRO1-Trastuzumab-IgG1/&#954; was a gift from Andrew Beavil (Addgene plasmid # 61883). We thank Tihomir S. Dodev for useful discussions regarding pVITRO1-Trastuzumab-IgG1/&#954;.

NOTE: A suitable mammalian expression vector must be used for this protocol. Here, a single construct containing two expression cassettes is used (i.e. heavy and light chain expression is driven by separate promoters). Trastuzumab heavy and light chains were previously cloned into the vector. This vector was a gift from Andrew Beavil, obtained through a not-for-profit plasmid repository 13.
1. Recovery and Scale-up of Vector DNA
NOTE: Vector DNA was received as a soft agar sta...

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This protocol details the transfection, stable expression and purification of a therapeutic antibody in HEK-293 cells. Stable expression of antibody genes is the first step in generating an antibody-producing cell line for the development and manufacture of a therapeutic antibody. While Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells remain the expression platform of choice for therapeutic proteins, the HEK-293 cell line is gaining prominence with the realization that proteins produced in these cells are a closer match to naturally oc...

The success of therapeutic antibodies continues to drive substantial investment into antibody development as a wave of next generation therapeutics begins. The antibody market is expected to be reshaped by antibody fragments 1, antibody-drug conjugates 2, bispecific antibodies 3 and engineered antibodies with favorable properties 4. Another class gaining pharmaceutical interest are biosimilars. Biosimilar antibodies are &#39;highly similar&#39; replicate products of a therapeutic antibody that has already received regulatory approval. A proposed biosimilar must be comparable with the originator antibody with respect to its structure, function, animal toxicity, clinical safety and effectiveness, human pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD) and immunogenicity 5,6.
The approval rates of biosimilar antibodies have been slow due to the strict constraints on the final quality of the product. The exact manufacturing processes such as specific cell lines and culturing conditions through to the final processing steps can remain proprietary. What is more, the manufacturing of antibodies inherently involves a degree of variability which can add to the challenge of producing a highly similar product. A comprehensive physiochemical and biophysical characterization and comparison is quite difficult, yet a number of studies demonstrating the characteristics of biosimilar antibodies are emerging in the literature 7,8,9.
Generating a therapeutic antibody begins with transfection of mammalian host cells with a vector carrying the genes for the respective antibody. Vector design, cell line and culture conditions are key considerations for setting up the expression system.
The DNA sequences of antibodies can be sourced from Drug Bank (www.drugbank.ca), IMGT (www.igmt.org) or research publications including patents. For example, the sequence of trastuzumab is available through Drug Bank (DB ID: DB00072). The amino acid sequence of the variable regions can undergo gene design and optimization for synthesis in the desired host species. It is important for a biosimilar antibody that no modification is made to the amino acid sequence. Once synthesized, antibody genes can be subcloned into the appropriate vector of choice.
Human IgG antibodies consist of two identical heavy chains and two identical light chains. Tightly regulated expression of both chains is essential for optimal production of heterologous IgG protein in mammalian cells 10. Intra- as well as inter-chain disulfide bonds have to be formed and a number of post-translational modifications have to be introduced during protein biosynthesis. A number of vectors are available that have been designed specifically to express antibody genes (refer to Table of Materials). These antibody-specific vectors usually express the constant regions for both heavy and light chains so only the variable regions of each chain require cloning.
Transfection of cells with two independent constructs (co-transfection) is the most common approach for delivering heavy and light chain-encoding genes. That is, each gene is driven by its own promoter and transcribed as separate antibody chains before being assembled in the endoplasmic reticulum. On the other hand, multi-cistronic vectors have internal ribosome entry site (IRES) elements incorporated that allow expression of multiple genes as a single mRNA transcript with translation permitted from internal regions of the mRNA 11. In this instance, the heavy and light chain-encoding genes are coupled in an arrangement to achieve co-expression of both antibody chains 10,12.
While transiently transfected cells yield sufficient protein to perform a limited number of experiments, stably transfected cell lines that have undergone selection for genome integration can deliver higher yields. Higher protein amounts allow for assay development relating to in vitro characterization and can provide an indication of antibody quality in consideration for downstream applications such as clonal cell line and lead candidate selection.
The goal of this article is to describe the stable expression and purification of a therapeutic antibody produced in a mammalian expression system. Indeed, this method can be applied to the expression of a biosimilar antibody. The method can be used for the initial characterization of antibodies before proceeding on to the critical, albeit time-consuming steps of identifying a desirable clone for larger scale manufacturing. Moreover, this method can be used to express other proteins and not just antibodies.
The following detailed protocol describes the expression of therapeutic antibody trastuzumab. This consists of preparation of vector DNA followed by stable transfection in HEK-293 cell line and purification of antibody protein by an automated chromatographic method.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="1730">
	<colgroup>
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
	</colgroup>
	<tbody>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:348px;">pFUSE vector series</td>
			<td style="width:189px;">N/A</td>
			<td style="width:191px;">InvivoGen</td>
			<td style="width:1003px;">Heavy and light antibody genes expressed in separate vectors that require co-transfection.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">mAbXpress vector series</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>ACYTE Biotech Pty Ltd.</td>
			<td>Heavy and light antibody genes expressed in separate vectors that require co-transfection. Refer to: Jones, M. L. et al. A method for rapid, ligation-independent reformatting of recombinant monoclonal antibodies. J Immunol Methods. 354 (1-2), 85-90, doi:10.1016/j.jim.2010.02.001, (2010).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">pVITRO1 vector</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Heavy and light antibody genes are each driven by a separate promoter in a single vector.&#160; Refer to: Dodev, T. S. et al. A tool kit for rapid cloning and expression of recombinant antibodies. Sci Rep. 4 5885, doi:10.1038/srep05885, (2014).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">GS vector series</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Lonza</td>
			<td>Multi-cistronic vector with heavy and light antibody genes co-expressed and translated as single transcript.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Multi-cistronic vector series 1</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Multi-cistronic vector with heavy and light antibody genes co-expressed and translated as single transcript. Refer to: Li, J. et al. A comparative study of different vector designs for the mammalian expression of recombinant IgG antibodies. J Immunol Methods. 318 (1-2), 113-124, doi:10.1016/j.jim.2006.10.010, (2007).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Multi-cistronic vector series 2</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td>Multi-cistronic vector with heavy and light antibody genes co-expressed and translated as single transcript. Refer to: Ho, S. C. et al. IRES-mediated Tricistronic vectors for enhancing generation of high monoclonal antibody expressing CHO cell lines. J Biotechnol. 157 (1), 130-139, doi:10.1016/j.jbiotec.2011.09.023, (2012).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">pVITRO1-Trastuzumab-IgG1/&#954;</td>
			<td>61883</td>
			<td>Addgene</td>
			<td>Mammalian expression vector containing trastuzumab antibody genes with hygromycin resistance gene; pVITRO1-Trastuzumab-IgG1/&#954; was a gift from Andrew Beavil.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Fast-Media Hygro Agar</td>
			<td>fas-hg-s</td>
			<td>Jomar Life Research</td>
			<td>Used to prepare low salt LB agar containing 75 &#181;g/ml hygromycin.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Fast-Media Hygro TB</td>
			<td>fas-hg-l</td>
			<td>Jomar Life Research</td>
			<td>Used to prepare low salt TB broth containing 75 &#181;g/ml hygromycin.&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Glycerol, BioXtra, &#8805;99%</td>
			<td>G6279</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>Prepare to 80% with water and autoclave. Store at room temperature.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Jestar 2.0/LFU Plasmid Maxi Kit</td>
			<td>G221020</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td>Plasmid Maxi Prep Kit; elute or resuspend DNA in water (pH 7.0-8.5).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">FreeStyle 293-F Cells</td>
			<td>R790-07</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td>HEK-293 cell line adapted to suspension culture in serum-free media.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">FreeStyle 293 Expression Medium</td>
			<td>12338-018</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td>Serum-free media specially formulated for maintaing 293-F cell line and high protein expression.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="24">
			<td height="24" style="height:24px;">Kolliphor P188</td>
			<td>K4894</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td>Non-ionic surfactant; pluronic F-68; prepare to 10% in water and filter-sterilize using 0.22 &#956;m filter. Store at 4oC.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">DMEM, high glucose&#160;</td>
			<td>11995-065</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Heat-Inactivated Foetal Bovine Serum</td>
			<td>10082-147</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="24">
			<td height="24" style="height:24px;width:348px;">Polyethylenimine, Linear, MW 25,000&#160;</td>
			<td>23966</td>
			<td>Polysciences, Inc.</td>
			<td>Prepare to 1 mg/ml in water. Adjust to pH 7.0 with 1 M HCl (solution becomes clear) and filter-sterilize using 0.22 &#956;m filter. Store at -80oC until use.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">OptiPro SFM</td>
			<td>12309-050</td>
			<td>Life Technologies</td>
			<td>Transfection formulated serum-free media</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Hygromycin B Solution</td>
			<td>ant-hg-1</td>
			<td>Jomar Life Research</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO)</td>
			<td>AJA2225</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="24">
			<td height="24" style="height:24px;">Tryptone (casein peptone)</td>
			<td>LP0042B</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>Prepare to 20% in PBS and filter-sterilize using 0.22 &#956;m filter. Store at 4oC.&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) Tablets, pH 7.4, 100 ml</td>
			<td>09-2051-100</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">HiTrap Protein A High Performance, 1 x 5 ml column</td>
			<td>GE17-0403-01</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">AKTApurifier 100</td>
			<td>28406266</td>
			<td>GE Healthcare</td>
			<td>Automated FPLC system, which can include a P-960 sample pump and Frac-920 fraction collector.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Glycine-HCl</td>
			<td>G2879</td>
			<td>Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Citric Acid, monohydrate</td>
			<td>BIOC2123</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Sodium Citrate, trisodium salt dihydrate&#160;</td>
			<td>BIOCB0035</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">1 M Tris-HCl solution pH 9.0</td>
			<td>BIOSD8146</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Amicon Ultra Centrifugal Filters (30 MWCO)</td>
			<td>UFC803008/UFC903008</td>
			<td>Merck Millipore</td>
			<td>Used to buffer exchange and concentrate purified protein.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Pierce Bicinchoninic Acid (BCA) Assay Kit</td>
			<td>23227</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">BLItz System</td>
			<td>45-5000</td>
			<td>fort&#233;BIO</td>
			<td>Instrument used for bio-layer interferometry (BLI) measurements.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Protein A biosensors</td>
			<td>18-5010</td>
			<td>fort&#233;BIO</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Acrylamide/Bisacrylamide (37.5:1), 40% solution</td>
			<td>786-502</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Ammonium Persulfate (APS)</td>
			<td>AM0486</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">TEMED</td>
			<td>AM0761</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Coomassie Brilliant Blue R-250</td>
			<td>786-498</td>
			<td>Astral Scientific</td>
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			<td height="20" style="height:20px;">Precision Plus Dual-Color Protein Standard</td>
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laboratory scale production and purification of a therapeutic antibody

Ensuring the successful production of a therapeutic antibody begins early on in the development process. The first stage is vector expression of the antibody genes followed by stable transfection into a suitable cell line. The stable clones are subjected to screening in order to select those clones with desired production and growth characteristics. This is a critical albeit time-consuming step in the process. This protocol considers vector selection and sourcing of antibody sequences for the expression of a therapeutic antibody. The methods describe preparation of vector DNA for stable transfection of a suspension variant of human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK-293) cell line, using polyethylenimine (PEI). The cells are transfected as adherent cells in serum-containing media to maximize transfection efficiency, and afterwards adapted to serum-free conditions. Large scale production, setup as batch overgrow cultures is used to yield antibody protein that is purified by affinity chromatography using an automated fast protein liquid chromatography (FPLC) instrument. The antibody yields produced by this method can provide sufficient protein to begin initial characterization of the antibody. This may include in vitro assay development or physicochemical characterization to aid in the time-consuming task of clonal screening for lead candidates. This method can be transferable to the development of an expression system for the production of biosimilar antibodies.

Stable production of trastuzumab by transfected HEK-293 cells was confirmed using bio-layer interferometry (BLI) as presented in Figure 1. An IgG standard curve was generated by measuring the binding rate between an IgG antibody standard and Protein A biosensor (Figure 1A). The crude supernatant sample was similarly measured, then its concentration interpolated from the standard curve (Figure 1B). The supernatant concentration was measure...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Laboratory Scale Production and Purification of a Therapeutic Antibody at JoVE.com

Laboratory Scale Production and Purification of a Therapeutic Antibody

This protocol describes the production of a therapeutic antibody in a mammalian expression system. The methods described include preparation of vector DNA, stable transfection and serum-free adaptation of a human embryonic kidney 293 cell line, set up of large scale cultures and purification using affinity chromatography.

Ensuring the successful production of a therapeutic antibody begins early on in the development process. The first stage is vector expression of the ...

Research

JoVE Journal

Biochemistry

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