APPLICATIONS OF TECHNOLOGY:
- Biopharmaceuticals
- Cancer immunotherapy
ADVANTAGES:
- Capable of interchanging antibodies, therefore, multi-functional
- Modular, available for use by human IgG1 and rabbit IgG antibodies
- Potential uses increase as more monoclonal antibody products developed
ABSTRACT:
Researchers at the Berkeley Lab have developed a Self-Assembling Protein Nanocage decorated with Antibodies (SAPNA) – a chimeric protein assembly composed of one or more antibodies and an engineered protein that provides a scaffold on which to array the antibodies. The SAPNA structure has a range of possible applications as a therapeutic or research tool.
Potential SAPNA applications include modulation of the immune system by binding / blocking cell-surface and soluble receptor / ligands in humans or research models; enforcement of external cell-surface receptor/ligand oligomerization; diagnostics for the presence of combinations of targets; improvement of the targeting of cargo; activation of cellular pathways; and enhancement of antibody functionality. The SAPNA structure can also enable extensive pre-clinical candidates to test within the field of cancer immunology research (i.e. antibody-staining based flow cytometry).
Since SAPNAs may be assembled and disassembled based on buffer conditions, such a characteristic can be utilized to initially capture or release cargo. Additionally, the researchers’ ability to create SAPNAs with a diverse set of antibodies on their surface enables the interchanging of antibodies, as well as potentially initiating signals that operate through multi-chain immune recognition receptors (MIRRs). SAPNAs are also capable of altering cellular behavior without cargo, with the result being a much finer control of cellular activity.
DEVELOPMENT STAGE: Proven principle
STATUS: Patent pending. Available for licensing or collaborative research.
SEE THESE OTHER BERKELEY LAB TECHNOLOGIES IN THIS FIELD: