The Grizzly, September 22, 1992

It\u27s That Time Again: 1992 Sorority Pledging Gets Under Way at Ursinus • Dean Kane: On Alcohol Policy • The Axe Falls on Underage Drinking at Ursinus • Koester Named Head of SAC • Freshman Officers Elected • Freshman Facts • Rushing Views • Author Victor Hernandez Cruz to Read and Speak at Ursinus • Ursinus Radio WVOU • Jazz Great Dazzles Ursinus • Christ on Campus • Movie Review: Sneakers • Letters to the Editor • Lady Bears Play Tough • Volleyball Team Working to Improve • Intramurals • Youthful Soccer Squad Struggles • Grizzlies Split: Defense Shines • U.C. on the Sea • X-Country Runs Awayhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1298/thumbnail.jp

Designing proteins for therapeutic applications

Protein design is becoming an increasingly useful tool for optimizing protein drugs and creating novel biotherapeutics. Recent progress includes the engineering of monoclonal antibodies, cytokines, enzymes and viral fusion inhibitors

A novel bispecific antibody format enables simultaneous bivalent and monovalent co-engagement of distinct target antigens

Bispecific antibodies based on full-length antibody structures are more optimal than fragment-based formats because they benefit from the favorable properties of the Fc region. However, the homodimeric nature of Fc effectively imposes bivalent binding on all current full-length bispecific antibodies, an attribute that can result in nonspecific activation of cross-linked receptors. We engineered a novel bispecific format, referred to as mAb-Fv, that utilizes a heterodimeric Fc region to enable monovalent co-engagement of a second target antigen in a full-length context. mAb-Fv constructs co-targeting CD16 and CD3 were expressed and purified as heterodimeric species, bound selectively to their co-target antigens and mediated potent cytotoxic activity by NK cells and T cells, respectively. The capacity to co-engage distinct target antigens simultaneously with different valencies is an improved feature for bispecific antibodies with promising therapeutic implications