Abstract 3001: Isolation of large and diverse monoclonal antibody panels against difficult targets in oncology

Abstract

Abstract Although monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) are a well-established treatment approach in oncology, multipass membrane proteins are largely inaccessible as targets for MAb discovery due to their poor expression, membrane-dependent structure, small extracellular regions, and high sequence conservation between humans and rodents. We have developed a platform, MPS Antibody Discovery, that specifically addresses these challenges. We will present case studies of our successful isolation of large and diverse panels of MAbs, including functional (agonist/antagonist) MAbs, against oncology targets, including claudins, GLUT4, CXCR5, CCR7, and other chemokine receptors. Several key features of our MPS platform enabled our ability to isolate MAb panels against these targets. Antigen engineering allowed us to increase the expression levels of the target protein. Immunizing divergent animal species with a combination of DNA and Lipoparticles (high-concentration membrane proteins) allowed us to obtain high-titer immune responses against the native form of the membrane protein. Performing phage display with Lipoparticles allowed us to isolate diverse panels of MAbs with a success rate >95%. Our technology offers the potential for discovering MAbs against difficult targets in cancer, including neoantigens. Citation Format: Joseph Rucker. Isolation of large and diverse monoclonal antibody panels against difficult targets in oncology [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2019; 2019 Mar 29-Apr 3; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3001.