Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
  • C07K—PEPTIDES
  • C07K16/00—Immunoglobulins [IGs], e.g. monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies
  • C07K16/18—Immunoglobulins [IGs], e.g. monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies against material from animals or humans
  • C07K16/24—Immunoglobulins [IGs], e.g. monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies against material from animals or humans against cytokines, lymphokines or interferons
  • C07K16/244—Interleukins [IL]
  • C07K16/245—IL-1
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
  • C07K—PEPTIDES
  • C07K14/00—Peptides having more than 20 amino acids; Gastrins; Somatostatins; Melanotropins; Derivatives thereof
  • C07K14/435—Peptides having more than 20 amino acids; Gastrins; Somatostatins; Melanotropins; Derivatives thereof from animals; from humans
  • C07K14/52—Cytokines; Lymphokines; Interferons
  • C07K14/54—Interleukins [IL]
  • C07K14/545—IL-1
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61K—PREPARATIONS FOR MEDICAL, DENTAL OR TOILETRY PURPOSES
  • A61K38/00—Medicinal preparations containing peptides
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
  • C07K—PEPTIDES
  • C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
  • C07K2317/20—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by taxonomic origin
  • C07K2317/21—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by taxonomic origin from primates, e.g. man

Definitions

• the present invention relates to human monoclonal antibodies against human cytokines and methods of making, identifying and using such antibodies, preferably human monoclonal antibodies against human cytokines or lymphokines such as IL-1 ⁇ , IL-1 ⁇ , IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF- ⁇ , etc.
• Human monoclonal antibodies especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially human monoclonal antibodies (HuMAbs), especially
• HuMAbs to human cytokines in therapy holds great promise; see, for example, Griffiths et al., EMBO J., 12 : 725-734 (1993) and the review in Larrick et al., J. Biol. Response Modif., 5: 379 (1986).
• the production of useful HuMAbs against human cytokines has proved difficult.
• the possible existence in human serum of autoantibodies to human cytokines is mentioned in numerous articles [Suzuki et al., J. Immunol., 145: 2140-2146 (1990) (IL-1 ⁇ ); Hansen et al., Immunol.
• Human monoclonal antibodies have huge potential for therapy, but are difficult to make by immortalizing B-lymphocytes. Furthermore, it is especially difficult to generate human mAbs directed against human antigens (anti-self antibodies), for example antibodies against soluble TNF to block septic shock, against membrane-bound carcinoembryonic antigen to image colorectal carcinoma, or against lymphocyte antigens to destroy tumour in lymphoma.
• anti-self antibodies for example antibodies against soluble TNF to block septic shock, against membrane-bound carcinoembryonic antigen to image colorectal carcinoma, or against lymphocyte antigens to destroy tumour in lymphoma.
• the present invention is directed to human monoclonal antibodies against a human cytokine and to fragments of such antibodies having an affinity for the cytokine of 10 8 M _1 or greater.
• the human monoclonal antibody (sometimes referred to herein as a HuMAb) or fragment preferably binds to a human lymphokine, more preferably to a human interleukin, e.g., human IL-1 ⁇ , IL-1 ⁇ , IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-11, IL-12, IL-13, especially IL-1 ⁇ .
• the human monoclonal antibody or fragment of the invention preferably has an affinity (K a ) to the human cytokine of greater than 10 9 M" 1 .
• the human monoclonal antibody or fragment preferably neutralizes the activity of the human cytokine.
• Human monoclonal antibodies of the IgG class are particularly preferred.
• Another aspect of the invention involves a human monoclonal antibody or a fragment thereof comprising at least one CDR (complementarity-determining region) of an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-122 of SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or of an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-108 of SEQ ID NO. 2; or one or more somatic variants of such sequences.
• CDR complementarity-determining region
• a preferred embodiment of the invention relates to a human monoclonal antibody or a human IL-1 ⁇ binding fragment comprising: a VH segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-122 of SEQ ID NO. 1 or by a CDR somatic variant thereof, and/or a VL segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-108 of SEQ ID NO. 2 or by a CDR somatic variant thereof.
• the antibody comprises a VH segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-122 of SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or a VL segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-108 of SEQ ID NO. 2.
• the antibody comprises VH and VL segments having the amino acid sequences defined by amino acid residues 1-122 of SEQ ID NO. 1 and by amino acid residues 1-108 of SEQ ID NO. 2, respectively, or comprises a CDR somatic variant of one or both of said amino acid sequences.
• Preferred fragments of the invention comprise a VH segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-122 of SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or a VL segment having an amino acid sequence defined by amino acid residues 1-108 of SEQ ID NO. 2, e.g., a Fv, single-chain Fv, Fab or F(ab')2 fragment.
• the IL-1 ⁇ binding fragment of the invention has an affinity of 10 7 M _1 or greater, more preferably of 10 8 M _1 or greater.
• Another aspect of the invention involves isolated nucleic acids (DNAs) which encode a human monoclonal antibody or fragment in accordance with the present invention.
• the isolated nucleic acid comprises: a nucleotide sequence defined by base numbers 58-423 of SEQ ID NO. 1 or by a CDR encoding somatic variant thereof, or a functional equivalent of such a nucleotide sequence, and/or a nucleotide sequence defined by base numbers 67-390 of SEQ ID NO. 2 or by a CDR encoding somatic variant thereof; or a functional equivalent of one or both of said nucleotide sequences.
• the isolated nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence defined by base numbers 58-423 of SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or base numbers 67-390 of SEQ ID NO. 2.
• Still other aspects of the invention relate to a pharmaceutical composition
• a pharmaceutical composition comprising at least one human monoclonal antibody or fragment in accordance with the invention and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, and to the use of an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb or IL-1 ⁇ binding fragment of the invention to treat inflammation.
• the invention also includes a method for screening a solution for a desired human monoclonal antibody against a human protein comprising
• the solution is a collection of supematants from a human
• the solution is screened using either polyclonal or monoclonal anti-human Ig coupled to a substrate or with protein G coupled to a substrate.
• These screening methods can be used to prepare and identify a purified mixture of human B cells or a single human B cell clone by the steps of serially diluting a human B cell mixture giving a positive result in the screen to provide a purified mixture of human B cells or single Bcell clones; culturing said purified mixture of human B cells or single human B cell clones; and screening supernatants from said cultured purified mixture of human B cells or single B cell clones by the above methods to determine if the desired human monoclonal antibody is present in the supernatants of said cultured purified mixture of human B cells or single B cell clones.
• Still another aspect of the invention involves a method of producing a cDNA library enriched in DNA encoding a VH and/or VL chain of a human monoclonal antibody against a desired antigen comprising the steps of: producing a CD40-crosslinked and EBV-transformed, immortalized and/or activated B cell population containing immortalized and/or activated B cells expressing said human monoclonal antibody; cloning subpopulations of said immortalized and/or activated B cell population and identifying a subpopulation which contains immortalized and/or activated B cells expressing said human monoclonal antibody; preparing a cDNA library using the mRNA from said subpopulation to create a repertoire of DNAs encoding at least the VH and/or VL chain of the human monoclonal antibodies expressed by said subpopulation of immortalized and/or activated B cells.
• this method further comprises: identifying DNA within said library that encodes at least the VH and/or VL chain of the desired human monoclonal antibody; and using said DNA to produce a human monoclonal antibody against the desired antigen or an antigen-binding fragment of such an antibody.
• a population or subpopulation which contains immortalized and/or activated B cells expressing said human monoclonal antibody is identified by the screening method described above.
• the repertoire of DNAs is incorporated into vectors capable of displaying said VH and/or VL chain on the surface of a host cell, host cells are transformed with said vectors, and host cells that display a VH and/or VL chain that binds to the desired antigen are identified by affinity binding to the desired antigen.
• the DNAs that encode said VH and VL chains that bind to the desired antigen can then be operatively linked to DNA encoding any necessary constant-region chains for a human immunoglobulin so as to create a DNA sequence encoding a heavy chain of a human monoclonal antibody against the desired antigen and a DNA sequence encoding a light chain of a human monoclonal antibody against the desired antigen.
• a human B cell line established by EBV-transformation and CD40-crosslinking which established cell line (preferably an antibody-producing clone) produces a human monoclonal antibody against a human cytokine
• a process for making a human monoclonal antibody against a human cytokine comprising the steps of establishing an immortalized and/or activated human B cell population from a patient having antibodies that bind to the human cytokine, said immortalization and/or activation comprising infecting the B cells with Epstein-Barr virus and crosslinking the CD40 of such B cells; culturing said immortalized and/or activated B cells; isolating multiple clones from such immortalized and/or activated B cells, each of which clones secretes a human monoclonal antibody that binds to the cytokine; and using one or more of such clones to produce one or more human monoclonal antibody or a fragment thereof.
• nucleic acid encoding the human monoclonal antibody or fragment is preferably used to produce the desired antibody or fragment.
• the clone produced in the process is hybridized with a myeloma or heteromyeloma cell to produce a hybridoma that proliferates in culture and produces the desired antibody.
• Figure 1 is a graphical representation showing the amount of bound 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ (cpm) versus the concentration of IL-1 ⁇ (pM) in the assay "X3 Affinity for Human IL-1 ⁇ ” described below.
• Figure 2 is a graphical representation showing the amount of 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ bound on EL4 cells (cpm) versus the concentration of HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ Receptor Binding" described below.
• Figure 3 is a graphical representation showing the amount of 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ precipitated (cpm) versus the concentration of HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Cross-Reactivity of the Human Monoclonal Antibody X3" described below using excess human IL-1 ⁇ , human IL-1 Ra or human IL-1 ⁇ to protect against immunoprecipitation by HuMAb X3.
• Figure 4A is a graphical representation showing the EL4/CTLL proliferation - [ 3 H]TdR uptake (cpm) versus the concentration of IL-1 ⁇ (pg/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-2 Secretion by EL4 Cells" described below.
• Figure 4B is a graphical representation showing the EL4/CTLL proliferation (% of response) in the presence of human IL-1 ⁇ or human IL-1 ⁇ versus the concentration of HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-2 Secretion by EL4 Cells" described below.
• Figure 5A is a graphical representation showing the IL-6 production
• Figure 5B is a graphical representation showing the IL-6 production (% of response) in the presence of either human IL-1 ⁇ or IL-1 ⁇ versus the concentration of HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ - induced IL-6 Production by Human Synoviocytes" described below.
• Figures 6A and 6B are graphical representations showing the EL4/CTLL proliferation (cpm x 10 -3 ) in the presence of rabbit anti-IL-1 ⁇ , rabbit anti-IL-1 ⁇ , or two concentrations of HuMAb X3 versus the amount of paraformaldehyde-fixed (PFA-fixed) Monocytes per well without and with LPS stimulation, respectively, in the assay "Inhibition of Membrane Associated Human IL-1 ⁇ Activity" described below.
• Figures 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D are graphical representations showing the production of IL-6 (ng/ml) in the presence of CTL lgG4/ ⁇ , IL-1 Ra or HuMAb X3 versus the amount of Monocytes/well, PFA-monocytes/well, LPS-Monocytes/well and PFA/LPS-Monocytes/well, respectively, in the assay "Inhibition of IL-6 production in cocultures of synoviocytes and monocytes" described below.
• Figure 8A is a graphical representation showing the amount of 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ (cpm) precipitated in the assay "Standard Immunoprecipitation Protocol with Protein G" described below with various antibody materials, including the natural HuMAb X3 and the recombinant light and heavy chains from the HuMAb X3.
• Figure 8B is a graphical representation showing the amount of 1 5 I-IL-1 ⁇ (cpm) precipitated in the assay "Cross-Reactivity of the Human Monoclonal Antibody X3" described below using excess human IL-1 ⁇ , human IL-1 Ra and human IL-1 ⁇ to protect against immunoprecipitation by natural HuMAb X3 or recombinant HuMAb X3.
• Figure 9A is a graphical representation showing EL4/CTLL proliferation - [ 3 H]TdR uptake(cpm) versus the concentration of purified natural HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-2 Secretion by EL4 cells” described below.
• Figure 9B is a graphical representation showing IL-6 production (ng/ml) versus the concentration of purified natural HuMAb X3 or the concentration of purified recombinant HuMAb X3 ( ⁇ g/ml) in the assay "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ - induced IL-6 production by Human Synoviocytes" described below.
• the invention may employ a B cell population including resting B cells which retain their surface bound immunoglobulin and/or activated B cells which secrete HuMAbs. If desired, the B cell population may be sorted to select for activated B cells or for resting B cells, e.g., as described below and in WO 91/091 15.
• a starting human B cell population for use in providing a human anti- cytokine HuMAb (or a subsequence thereof that binds to the cytokine) in accordance with the present invention can be identified by means conventional in the art, e.g., by the methods described in the articles listed in the Section "Background of the Invention" above.
• a small amount of blood can be taken from patients and tested for Ig against the desired cytokine, e.g., by ELISA, radioimmunoprecipitation assay, western blotting, etc.
• Patients who react positively are sources of B cells that can be used to immortalize and isolate a clone producing the desired HuMAb as described further below.
• a larger sample for cloning can then be taken from each patient identified by the above procedures.
• Suitable sources of B cells from a selected patient include peripheral blood, tonsils, adenoid tissue, spleen (in the case of removal for another medical necessity) or any other source of B cells from the body.
• peripheral blood is employed as the B cell source.
• the blood is first treated to separate the peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) from the red blood cells and platelets by means conventional in the art.
• the peripheral blood may be diluted with an appropriate isotonic medium, e.g., RPMI 1640 medium (cat. 041-01870 M. Gibco, USA).
• the diluted blood is loaded onto a suitable separation medium such as FICOLLTM (available from Pharmacia, Sweden).
• FICOLLTM available from Pharmacia, Sweden.
• the purified PBLs may be frozen in liquid nitrogen for later use.
• the plasma is then analyzed by conventional techniques such as radioimmunoprecipitation assay, ELISA, western blotting, etc., to confirm the presence of significant amounts of the desired antibody (e.g., lgG* ⁇ , lgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, IgD, IgM and/or IgE antibody) against the cytokine of interest.
• desired antibody e.g., lgG* ⁇ , lgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, IgD, IgM and/or IgE antibody
• the purified PBLs may be used directly or may be further enriched and/or sorted as discussed below.
• T-cells may be removed by rosetting with 2-aminoethylisothiouroniumbromide-treated sheep erythrocytes.
• Further selection for an antigen-specific B cell subpopulation can be carried out by a variety of techniques including panning, immunoadsorbent affinity chromato- graphy, fluorescent-activated cell sorting (FACS), etc. These techniques are described for example in Casali et al., Science, 234: 476-479 (1986); U.S. patent No. 4,325,706; and Mage, Hubbard et al., Parks et al. and Haegert, in Meth.
• the PBLs may also be treated with magnetic beads whose surface is coated with a material to selectively sort the desired B cells.
• Such beads may be coated, e.g., with anti-lg isotype for the desired Ig to be separated, with anti- surface antigen to select for non-naive B cells, or with a purified cytokine.
• the resulting enriched and/or sorted B cell population is then subjected to the B-cell immortalization and/or activation process described in WO 91/09115. Briefly, the B cells are transformed with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and their CD40 molecules are crosslinked.
• EBV Epstein-Barr virus
• the treated B cell population may be washed by an appropriate isotonic medium( e.g., with RPMI 1640), pelleted and then resuspended in medium.
• the cells are then transformed with EBV by the addition of a suitable EBV strain, preferably a strain such as the one released by the B95.8 cell line available from the ATCC (ATCC CRL 1612).
• a suitable EBV strain preferably a strain such as the one released by the B95.8 cell line available from the ATCC (ATCC CRL 1612).
• the amount of EBV used may vary depending on the strain of the virus and the number of B cells to be transformed. For example, with a sample containing 14 x 10 6 non-sorted PBLs, 200 ⁇ l of a suspension of a concentrated EBV (strain B95.8) is typically used. Incubation with the virus is typically carried out for about 1 to 24 hours, preferably for about 2 hours, at 37°C; but other conditions may be employed, if desired.
• the EBV-infected cells are preferably washed and resuspended in an appropriate enriched medium such as Yssel's modified Iscove's medium 15% Fetal Calf Serum (FCS) [Yssel et al., J. Immunol. Methods, 72: 219-227 (1984)].
• FCS Fetal Calf Serum
• concentration of the PBLs in the suspension may vary depending, for example, on whether a sorting step for antigen-specific B cells was performed as described above. Lower concentrations can be employed when PBLs have been enriched in the desired B cells. Typical concentrations for non-selected PBLs are from about 1 x 10 3 to about 5 x 10 4 cells/ml.
• the concentration may be decreased depending upon the efficiency of the sorting, e.g., up to about 1 x 10 2 cells/ml.
• An agent capable of crosslinking CD40 antigen is added to the suspended cells.
• the crosslinking agent may include T-cells, other transfected cells expressing CD40 ligand, or membranes therefrom. Other suitable agents are described in WO 91/09115.
• the agent is an immobilized monoclonal antibody specific for the CD40 antigen, e.g., immobilized on irradiated fibroblasts expressing the human or murine Fc-gamma receptor (ATCC CRL 10680).
• the monoclonal antibody to CD40 can be any which binds to the CD40 marker on the B cells of the suspension and also to the Fc-gamma receptor of the L-cells.
• the monoclonal antibody is selected from MAb 89 and G28-5. These antibodies are described in Valle et al., Eur. J. Immunol., 19: 1463-1467 (1989) and Ledbetter et al., J. Immunol., 138: 788-794 (1987), respectively.
• the hybridoma corresponding to MAb 89 has been deposited with the European Collection of Animal Cell Cultures, PHLS Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research, Porton Down, Salisbury Wilts. SP4 OJG, U.K.
• the CD40 antibody may be present in a concentration of from about 0.01 ⁇ g/ ml to about 50 ⁇ g/ml, preferably from about 0.1 ⁇ g/ml to about 5 ⁇ g/ml, more preferably about 0.5 ⁇ g/ml.
• the treated cell suspension is divided among an appropriate number of wells of a tissue microplate to provide a suitable cell concentration for amplification and screening. If enriched suspensions are employed as the result of an antigen-selective screening as discussed above, fewer cells per well may be used.
• the initial culture phase takes 10-20 days in the case of non- selected PBLs and 5 days or even less in the case of an antigen-specific enriched B cell population, which would allow an earlier detection of specific antibodies.
• fresh medium is added as necessary.
• the duration of this initial culture phase is adjusted to allow detection of the antigen- specific B cells, while preventing them from being overgrown by non-specific B cells.
• a sample of supernatant from each well is screened by an appropriate assay for the desired HuMAb positive characteristics, e.g., by radioimmunoprecipitation assay, ELISA, western blotting, etc.
• supernatants are contacted with a labeled protein (e.g., radiolabeled with 125 I) and polyclonal or monoclonal anti- human Ig coupled to a substrate or insoluble support.
• a labeled protein e.g., radiolabeled with 125 I
• polyclonal or monoclonal anti- human Ig coupled to a substrate or insoluble support.
• the anti-human Ig can be a mixture of isotypes (i.e., IgG-t, lgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, IgD, IgE and/or IgM) or an individual isotype (e.g., lgG4).
• IgG-t i.e., IgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, IgD, IgE and/or IgM
• an individual isotype e.g., lgG4
• the supernatants can be contacted with a labeled protein and protein G coupled to a substrate or insoluble support.
• the presence of the desired HuMAb is determined by detecting labeled protein in the immunoprecipitated product.
• the immunoprecipitation screens (with anti-human Ig and with protein G) may be employed serially.
• Cell lines which test positive for the desired HuMAb characteristics are cloned (3-10 cells/well) and subcloned (0.5-1.0 cells/well) by techniques well- known in the art, e.g., by culturing in limiting dilution conditions for 7-20 days in additional medium as needed. Supernatants of the clones are screened by the procedures described above.
• Positive clones are expanded in a larger volume and amplified by conventional incubation.
• HuMAb can be purified from the supernatant of the amplified clones by conventional immunoglobulin-purification methodology.
• the HuMAb may be precipitated with solid ammonium sulfate, reconstituted in sterile water, and dialyzed extensively against a buffer such as phosphate-buffered saline (PBS).
• PBS phosphate-buffered saline
• the dialysate may then be applied to an immunoaffinity column, e.g., a column having anti-human Ig or Protein G covalently coupled to Sepharose.
• an immunoaffinity column e.g., a column having anti-human Ig or Protein G covalently coupled to Sepharose.
• the desired HuMAb may be eluted from the column by any appropriate eluent, e.g., acidic buffer, chaotropic agents, etc. [for example, see Current Protocols in Immunology, edited by John E. Coligan et al., John Wiley
• human monoclonal antibody we mean to include HuMAbs that are isolated from human B cells as discussed above (e.g., whether the antibody is prepared by culturing the immortalized and/or activated human B cells or recombinantly from human B cell cDNAs encoding such a HuMAb and whether or not the antibody is bound to a molecule which can alter its biological activity, e.g., a receptor or ligand, an enzyme, a toxin, a carrier, etc.) and antibodies that are made by recombining the variable portions of a HuMAb of the present invention of one isotype (e.g., an lgG4) with the constant region of a human antibody of another isotype (e.g., a human lgG* ⁇ , lgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, IgD, IgM or IgE). Recombinant methods for making these HuMAbs are described below.
• fragment or “subsequence” of a HuMAb of the present invention, we mean an antibody fragment such as an Fab, F(ab')2, Fv, single- chain binding protein, or any other binding polypeptide which contains one or more complementarity determining regions (CDRs) of the variable region of a light or heavy chain of a HuMAb of the present invention (e.g., an Fab, Fv, CDR, etc. of a HuMAb in accordance with the present invention either alone or linked to any desired molecule which can alter its biological activity, e.g., a receptor or ligand, an enzyme, a toxin, a carrier, etc.).
• CDRs complementarity determining regions
• fragments can be made from the full-length HuMAb protein, e.g., by papain or pepsin cleavage, or by chemical oxidation, followed by separation of the resulting fragments.
• recombinant DNA technology may be used.
• cDNA encoding the variable regions of both heavy and light chains may be engineered to produce the Fv portion of the HuMAb of the invention. See, for example, the methodology of U.S. patent No. 4,642,334 which may be employed.
• CDR somatic variant and “CDR encoding somatic variant” as used herein we mean an amino acid or nucleic acid sequence corresponding to SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or SEQ ID NO. 2 or a subsequence of SEQ ID NO. 1 and/or SEQ ID NO. 2 containing at least one CDR or CDR-encoding region thereof, but having at least one mutation, addition and/or deletion in one or more of the CDRs or CDR-encoding region of the sequence or subsequence, such that an anti-IL-1 ⁇ human monoclonal antibody including said at least one mutation, addition and/or deletion has an IL-1 ⁇ binding affinity of 10 8 M *1 or greater, preferably 10 9 M _1 or greater.
• affinity we mean the measure of the binding strength between an antigenic determinant and an antigen binding site of a human monoclonal antibody of the invention or a fragment thereof as measured by the affinity constant (Ka), e.g., by the method described below.
• VH segment as used herein, we mean the variable region of the heavy chain of a human monoclonal antibody of the invention.
• VL segment we mean the variable region of the light chain of a human monoclonal antibody of the invention.
• Fv fragment we mean an antigen binding fragment of an antibody that contains the variable regions of the heavy (VH) and light (VL) chains. Those VH and VL regions can be linked to form a single-chain Fv (scFv).
• Fab fragment as used herein, we mean the antigen binding fragment resulting from the digestion with papain of a human monoclonal antibody of the invention.
• F(ab')2 fragment as used herein, we mean the antigen binding fragment resulting from the digestion with pepsin of a human monoclonal antibody of the invention.
• the terms "activated" B cell and “activation” of a B cell as used herein indicate a human B cell that has been CD40 crosslinked and EBV-transformed and expresses and secretes human antibodies.
• the B cell clones of the invention may be used in conventional DNA recombinant methods to produce the HuMAbs of the invention or fragments thereof.
• RNA from the B cell clones may be isolated according to the single-step method described by (Chomczynski et al., Anal. Biochem., 162 156-9 (1987). Briefly, about 10 7 cells are lysed in guanidinium thiocyanate denaturing solution.
• RNA is extracted with phenol and chloroform/3-methyl-1-butanol. RNA is then precipitated with isopropanol, the RNA pellet is redissolved in denaturing solution, reprecipitated with isopropanol, and washed with 75% ethanol.
• cDNA is obtained by reverse transcription, e.g., using the Superscript Reverse Transcriptase Kit (cat. 20898 BRL, Gaithersburg, MD, USA), with oligo dT-12-18 primers (Cat. 27.7858-01 , Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden). The cDNA is then used as template in a polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
• PCR polymerase chain reaction
• the primers may be designed to include restriction sites, to allow for the directional cloning of the PCR products.
• primers specific for the leader sequence of all the different human VH families are used individually in conjunction with primers located at the 3'-end of the constant region corresponding to the isotype previously determined by isotyping the HuMAb by ELISA or other appropriate method (e.g., radioimmunoprecipitation assay, etc.).
• the light chain is amplified with individual combinations of primers corresponding to the 3'-end of the kappa or lambda chain in conjunction with a series of primers annealing to the leader sequence of the V kappa or the V lambda genes.
• full-length heavy and light chains starting at the initiation codon in the leader sequence and ending at the stop codon may be generated.
• both full-length heavy chains and full-length light chains can then be cloned in any appropriate expression vector designed to be compatible with the restricted PCR products.
• Appropriate vectors include for example baculovirus vectors and plasmids compatible with CHO cells or other host cells. Examples of suitable vectors and hosts are described in the review "Engineered antibody molecules" in Immunol. Reviews, 130 (1992). Heavy and light chains can be cloned individually in distinct vectors, or in tandem in one vector. The recombinant plasmids or viral vectors may be cloned in bacteria, and a few clones may be sequenced on both strands to check for the absence of alteration of the insert.
• One clone each for the heavy chain and for the light chain, or one clone containing both chains, may then be selected for expression in the appropriate host cells.
• it will be introduced into appropriate prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells either by transfection or by infection.
• the cells expressing the recombinant HuMAb are cloned, supernatant fluid from the cultured cells is collected, and the HuMAb therein can be purified, e.g. by immunoaffinity, HPLC or any other appropriate methods.
• the full-length PCR product for the heavy chain can be modified for example to replace the original heavy-chain constant region by another one, so replacing one isotype by another, e.g., replacing a human lgG 4 isotype by a human IgG-i, lgG 2 , lgG 3 , IgA, IgD, IgM or IgE isotype.
• the DNA generated encoding the heavy chain may be digested with appropriate enzymes and ligated into the new expression vector, which will now contain the sequence of the desired heavy chain.
• This type of recombinant HuMAb will have the characteristic binding of the lgG 4 HuMAb, but will be able to display the effector functions normally associated with the human IgG-i, lgG2, etc. isotype.
• the same method can be used to replace an isotype other than lgG4 by another different isotype.
• Hybridomas may also be made with the B cells of the invention by techniques conventional in the art.
• the B cells of the invention may be fused with an appropriate myeloma cell or with a heterohybridoma cell to increase or stabilize the immunoglobulin secretion; see for example Kudo et al., J. Immunol. Methods, 145: 119-125 (1991); Zanella et al., J. Immunol.
• the HuMAbs and fragments of the present invention may be used therapeutically to treat existing symptoms associated with the antigen of interest.
• IL-1 ⁇ , IL-1 ⁇ and TNF- ⁇ are identified as inflammatory cytokines and thus HuMAbs to such cytokines or fragments of such HuMAbs may be useful for treating inflammation including chronic or acute inflammatory reactions such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, inflammation associated with asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, regulating fever associated with inflammation, pain relief in inflammation, etc.
• bowel diseases may benefit from a treatment with an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb of the invention, e.g., HuMAb X3, since anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies abolished the crypt hyperplasia in the jejunum of mice suffering from graft-versus-host disease enteropathy: see Mowat et al., Immunology, 80: 110-115 (1993). Also, since IL-1 ⁇ has been suspected to play a role in psoriasis [see Romero et al., J. Invest. Dermatol., 93: 518-522 (1989)], an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb of the invention may be useful in treatment of psoriasis.
• an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb of the invention may be useful in treatment of psoriasis.
• Allergy may be another target for an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb of the invention at both the regulatory and effector levels.
• IL-1 has been shown to be involved in the differentiation of naive T lymphocytes into TH2 T cells.
• clinical trials with soluble IL-1 receptor have shown a striking inhibition of wheal and flare reaction in allergen-challenged allergic patients.
• the anti IL-1 HuMAbs and anti IL-1 -binding fragments of the present invention are antagonists to IL-1 and therefore will be useful for the same indication as other known IL-1 antagonists, which either are in clinical trials for or have been shown in the literature to be useful in models of septic (endotoxin) shock, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, cerebral malaria, graft-versus-host disease and chronic myelogenous leukemia [see, for review, Dinarello, Immunol. Reviews, 127: 119-146 (1992); and Dinarello et al., N. Engl. J. Med, 328: 106-113 (1993)].
• IL-1 ⁇ has been reported to act as an autocrine growth stimulator for human thyroid and gastric carcinoma cells [Ito et al., Cancer Res., 53: 4102-4106 (1993)], as well as adult T cell leukemias [Shirakawa et al., Cancer Res., 49: 1143-1147 (1989)].
• an anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAb of the invention may be useful in the treatment of tumors.
• HuMAbs and fragments of the present invention may also be used prophylactically to prevent or inhibit the occurrence of such symptoms associated with the antigen of interest.
• the HuMAbs of the invention may be particularly useful, e.g., in treating chronic diseases, in view of the long half-lives of HuMAbs (e.g., about 21 days [Adair, Immunol. Reviews, 130: 5-40 (1992)]) compared to other cytokine antagonists (about 30 minutes for IL-1 receptor antagonist [Granowitz et al., Cytokine, 4: 353-360 (1992)]). This longer half life may allow a bimonthly or monthly administration of the HuMAb.
• the HuMAb or fragment thereof of the present invention may be used alone or in combination with at least one other HuMAb or fragment to form a cocktail or with another antiinflammatory drug.
• a cocktail may include two or more of the HuMAbs of the invention, each of which binds to one or more epitopes on a cytokine of interest.
• the proportions of the various HuMAbs or fragments may vary depending, for example, upon their binding characteristics.
• the HuMAbs and fragments of the present invention are preferably administered in the form of a pharmaceutical composition containing a therapeutically or prophylactically effective amount of at least one such HuMAb or fragment in combination with a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.
• a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier may be employed, i.e., a compatible, non-toxic material suitable for delivery of the HuMAb or fragment in the desired dosage form, e.g., oral, parenteral (subcutaneous, intramuscular or intravenous), or topical dosage forms.
• Suitable carriers include sterile water, sterile buffered water, sterile saline, etc. Special pharmaceutical compositions to insure a sustained release of the HuMAb and/or fragment may also be employed.
• the concentration of the HuMAb or fragment of the invention in the pharmaceutical compositions may vary, e.g., from about 0.1 ⁇ g/ml to about 1 mg/ml, preferably from about 1 ⁇ g/ml to about 100 ⁇ g/ml.
• concentration used will depend upon the number of HuMAbs and/or fragments thereof employed in the composition, their binding characteristics and the dosage form selected.
• the dose will be adjusted in a conventional manner by the skilled artisan to levels appropriate to achieve the desired result in vivo.
• the HuMAbs and/or fragments of the invention can be used prophylactically or therapeutically.
• the agent may be administered before the onset of symptoms or after the symptoms have appeared.
• the HuMAbs and/or fragments of the invention will be administered in a dose effective to provide the desired alleviation of symptoms. Amounts effective for this purpose will depend upon many factors, e.g., the severity of the symptoms in the patient.
• the HuMAb or fragment of the invention may be administered in dosages of from about 0.001 ⁇ g/kg to about 1 mg/kg, e.g., about 0.01 ⁇ g/kg to about 1 ⁇ g/kg, preferably from about 0.01 ⁇ g/kg to about 0.1 ⁇ g/kg.
• the proper dosage of a HuMAb or fragment of the invention for a particular situation will be determined by using common practices in the art. Generally, treatment may be initiated with smaller dosages that are less than the optimum dose of the agent. Thereafter, the dosage may be increased by small amounts until the optimum effect under the circumstances is reached.
• the amount and frequency of administration of the HuMAb or fragment of the invention will be regulated according to the judgment of the attending clinician considering such factors as age, condition and size of the patient as well as severity of the symptoms being treated.
• the HuMAbs and fragments of the invention may also be used for diagnostic purposes in the same manner as other antibodies and fragments are currently used in the art.
• the HuMAbs and fragments of the invention can be used in assays for the cytokine to which they bind or in an immunopurif ication procedure to isolate an antigen to which they bind.
• the HuMAbs and fragments may be used either labeled (e.g., with a radioisotope, fluorescent group, enzyme or other appropriate ligand) or unlabeled, as is conventional in the art for the particular assay of interest (e.g., in a sandwich assay with a second labeled antibody).
• the HuMAbs and fragments may be used in agglutination assays, enzyme immunoassays, etc. They could for example be used to calibrate a dosage of cytokine-specific IgG in the serum or in any other biological fluid.
• the labeled or unlabeled forms of the HuMAbs and fragments of the invention may be employed as elements of kits for purposes of performing the desired assay.
• IL-1 ⁇ IL-1 alpha
• IL-1Ra recombinant human IL-1 Receptor antagonist
• IL-1 beta Recombinant human IL-1 beta (IL-1 ⁇ ) was purchased from Genzyme (Boston, MA).
• Ci/mmole was from Du Pont De Nemours (Wilmington, DE).
• Mouse monoclonal antibody to human IL-1 ⁇ and rabbit neutralizing antibodies against human IL-1 ⁇ and human IL-1 ⁇ were from Genzyme (Cambridge, MA).
• Protein G from Group C Streptococcus sp. coupled to Sepharose 4BTM, and anti-human Ig polyvalent immunoserum (IgG fraction) coupled to agarose were obtained from Sigma Chemical Co. (St Louis, MO).
• Tissue culture media fetal calf serum (FCS), L-glutamine, Hepes buffer, and Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) were from GIBCO (Paisley, UK).
• Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was from Sigma Chemical Co. and gentamycin from Schering-Plough (Levallois-Perret, France).
• the murine thymoma cell line EL4 (ATCC, TIB 181 ) was maintained in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% FCS, 2mM L-glutamine, 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin and 5 x 10 "5 M 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) in a humidified 37°C chamber with 5% CO2.
• the murine IL-2-dependent cytotoxic T cell line (CTLL-2) (ATCC, TIB 214) was maintained in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% FCS, 2mM L-glutamine, 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin, 5 x 10 -5 M 2-ME and 20 U/ml recombinant human IL-2 in a humidified 37°C chamber with 5% CO2.
• Human synoviocytes were isolated from rheumatoid synovial biopsies obtained from rheumatoid arthritis patients undergoing knee or wrist synovectomy, or joint replacement as described in Dechanet et al., J. Immunol., 151 : 4908-4917 (1993). Fat and fibrous tissues were removed. The resulting fragments of synovium were finely minced into small pieces and digested with 4 mg/ml collagenase (Worthington, Freehold, NJ) in PBS for 2-3 hours at 37°C.
• CD1 , CD2, CD3, CD19, CD14 and HLA-DR were negative for the expression of CD1 , CD2, CD3, CD19, CD14 and HLA-DR as determined by flow cytometry analysis on a FACScan (Becton Dickinson, Sunnyvale, CA) after staining with specific fluorescein- isothiocyanate (FITC) conjugated monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) (Becton Dickinson, Mountain View, CA).
• FITC fluorescein- isothiocyanate conjugated monoclonal antibodies
• Epstein-Barr virus strain B 95.8
• EBV Epstein-Barr virus
• ATCC transformed marmoset leukocytes
• Itk " transfected mouse fibroblastic L cell line ATCC CRL 10680
• Fc ⁇ RII or CDw32 human Fc ⁇ receptor II
• mAb 89 mouse anti-human CD40 monoclonal antibody
• an immunoprecipitation assay was carried out using radio-labeled recombinant human IL-1 ⁇ and protein G-Sepharose as precipitating reagent. This assay allowed the identification of the four sub-classes of human IgG (IgG-i, lgG2, lgG3 and lgG4).
• 50 ⁇ l of sera/plasma from patients or 50 ⁇ l of culture supernatants were incubated for 45 minutes at room temperature with 50 ⁇ l (50 pM) of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ (diluted in PBS 1% BSA) in a well of a 96-well filtration microplate MultiScreen-HATM (Millipore Co., Bedford, MA) whose bottom was composed of a nitrocellulose membrane (HATF 0.45 ⁇ m).
• 50 ⁇ l of sera/plasma from patients or 50 ⁇ l of culture supernatants both used at appropriate dilution in PBS, 1 % BSA
• the above standard immunoprecipitation assay has been modified in order to identify human antibodies to human IL-1 ⁇ of isotypes other than IgG or to better identify the IgG subclass and light chain of such antibodies contained in patient biological fluids, e.g., sera or culture supernatants.
• patient biological fluids e.g., sera or culture supernatants.
• the principle of the different assays was the same as in the standard protocol, but the precipitating reagent, e.g. protein G-Sepharose, was changed.
• agarose beads coupled with goat polyspecific antibodies to human IgM, IgG and IgA (Sigma Chemical Co); Affi-Gel 10TM gel ( Bio-Rad laboratories, Richmond, CA) coupled, according to the manufacturer's instructions, with specific goat antibodies to human IgA heavy chain, human lambda light chain or human kappa light chain (Sigma Chemical Co.) or coupled with mouse mono ⁇ clonal antibodies to human IgG-i heavy chain, human lgG 2 heavy chain, human lgG 3 heavy chain or human lgG 4 heavy chain (Calbiochem Co., La Jolla, CA).
• These protocols may be employed with other antigens of interest by substituting an appropriately labeled antigen for the 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ in the assays.
• Some samples also contained IgA autoantibodies to human IL-1 ⁇ , as determined by immuno ⁇ precipitation of 125 I-labeled IL-1 ⁇ with appropriate anti-human IgA reagents coupled to beads.
• An increased frequency (15.9%, 59/370) of IgG anti-IL-1 ⁇ autoantibodies was observed in sera of patients with autoimmune diseases.
• Precipitation of radio-labeled human IL-1 ⁇ was specific since it was completely inhibited by pre-incubation of the positive samples with a 100-fold excess of unlabeled human IL-1 ⁇ .
• C, S, T, V, and X designate serum samples from healthy persons and patients.
• autoantibodies against other cytokines in human biological fluids are detected by substituting, for example, ⁇ 25 I-TNF- ⁇ , 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ , i 5l-IL-6 or 1 2 5ML-10 for i 2 5l-IL-1 ⁇ in the above procedure.
• Samples from such patients are then EBV-transformed, CD40-activated, screened and amplified by the methods described below to produce subpopulations and/or single clones of B cells producing HuMAbs against IL-1 ⁇ , TNF- ⁇ , IL-6 or IL-10.
• Detection of IgG autoantibodies to human IL-10 in a human serum is shown in Table 2 below. TABLE 2 Detection of IgG autoantibodies to human IL-10 in human serum
• Plasma from a selected patient (identified as X) was found to precipitate human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ with protein G and inhibited the binding of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ to EL4 cells in the protocols described above (see Table 1 above).
• peripheral blood collected on EDTA treated tubes were obtained from patient X.
• Blood was diluted 1 :1 with PBS and loaded onto a FicollTM (Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden) density gradient.
• Peripheral blood mononuclear cells PBMNC
• PBMNC Peripheral blood mononuclear cells
• the cells were pelleted and resuspended in 1 ml of RPMI complete medium which consisted of RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% heat-inactivated FCS, 2 mM L-glutamine and 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin. Then, 500 ⁇ l of a 100 x concentrated Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) suspension (strain B95.8) were added, and this mixture was incubated for 2 hours at 37°C under 5% CO2 in a humidified incubator. The cells were then washed once in RPMI complete medium and the pellet was resuspended at 5 x 10 4 cells/ml in Yssel's modified Iscove's medium [Yssel et al., J. Immunol.
• EBV Epstein-Barr virus
• the 13 pools were then identified and split. At day 11 , 50 ⁇ l of culture supernatants were harvested from each well corresponding to the 13 pools, and they were tested individually by immunoprecipitation of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ with protein G. A total of 13 different positive wells were thus identified. They were designed X1 to X13.
• the 13 initial positive cell lines (X1 to X13) were expanded in order to produce supernatants for further analysis, and the cells were frozen and stored in liquid nitrogen. The positive results of the 13 different lines were verified at different times by immunoprecipitation of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ with protein G. Experiments performed with positive culture supernatants have shown that the 13 cell lines secreted human antibodies that inhibit the binding of human 125 I-IL- ⁇ on EL4 cells.
• the isotype of the human anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies contained in these supernatants was determined by using an immunoprecipitation assay of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ with Affi-Gel 10 beads coated with specific antibodies against human IgG-i, lgG2, lgG3 or lgG4 heavy chain, or antibodies to human kappa (K) or lambda ( ⁇ ) light chain.
• human anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies secreted by the 13 cell lines three were of lgG-
• the human anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibody X3 was of lgG4/ ⁇ isotype.
• B cells from 14 other patients that tested positive in the detection screen described above were also activated with CD40 and transformed with EBV, screened and expanded.
• PBLs isolated from these 14 selected patients were submitted to EBV infection, cultured in the CD40 system and screened as described above for patient X. 28 other B cell lines secreting anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies were identified.
• 41 cell lines secreting anti- human IL-1 ⁇ antibodies were identified; 40 secreted IgG and one secreted IgA antibodies to human IL-1 ⁇ , and all these 41 cell lines precipitated 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ and inhibited its binding on EL4 cells. Details are shown in Table 3 below.
• the B cells in positive wells may be used to identify and isolate other anti-IL-1 ⁇ HuMAbs by the other methods described below, e.g., by repertoire cloning.
• the 13 positive initial cell lines (X1 to X13) were cloned by limiting dilution at 5 cells/well in 96-microwell plates (round-bottomed). Aliquots of cells were harvested, enumerated and resuspended at 50 cells/ml in complete culture medium containing 5 x 10 4 /ml irradiated (7,000 rads) CDw32 transfected L cells and 0.5 ⁇ g/ml anti-CD40 mAb 89. 100 ⁇ l of this suspension was distributed in each well and culture plates were incubated at 37°C, 5% CO2.
• 125 ⁇ l of fresh Yssel's modified Iscove's medium were added to each well.
• 50 ⁇ l of supernatant were harvested from the wells showing a cell growth, and screened individually for anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies by the immunoprecipitation assay performed with anti-human IgM, IgA and IgG antibodies coupled with agarose or protein G-Sepharose.
• the cell line X3 gave rise to three positive clones: X3A, X3B and X3C.
• the three positive clones X3A, X3B and X3C were then subcloned at 1 cell/well in complete culture medium without feeder cells.
• the screening was performed at different days after the initiation of the culture, by immuno ⁇ precipitation assay as described above. A total of 261 EBV-transformed cell lines secreting human anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibodies were obtained.
• the cells were expanded in RPMI complete medium. Culture supernatants were frozen and stored at -20°C. Cells were frozen at 1 x 10 6 to 5 x 10 6 cells/ml and kept in liquid nitrogen.
• X3A-16G5, X3B-14G10 and X3C-20G10 obtained as described above, were selected and maintained in culture in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% FCS, 2 mM L-glutamine and 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin.
• Conditioned media from these three clones were collected and tested (dilution 1 :1 in PBS, 0.05% Tween-20) in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) specific for human IgM, IgG or IgA isotypes, and for human IgG-i, lgG2, l G3 or lgG4 subclasses.
• ELISA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays
• the subclone X3A-16G5 was used to produce large quantities of human monoclonal antibodies to human IL-1 ⁇ . This clone was stable for more than 5 months, and was continuously amplified in RPMI 1640 medium supplemented with 10% FCS, 2 mM L-glutamine and 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin to allow the generation of large number of cells.
• TPP buffer (20 mM H3PO4, pH 7) and loaded to an affinity column of protein G -Sepharose 4B (Sigma Chemical Co.) previously equilibrated with TPP buffer.
• the column was then washed once with TPP buffer, 1 M NaCI, and three times with TPP buffer alone.
• the human antibody X3 was eluted from the column with 0.1 M glycine buffer, 0.4 M NaCI, pH 2.7.
• the pH was immediately adjusted to pH 8 by addition of TRIZMA Base 1 M, pH 12, and the purified antibody was dialyzed against PBS.
• the quality of the X3 purifications was verified by subjecting the obtained preparations to polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) in a 10% gel under reducing conditions essentially as described by Laemmli [Nature 227: 680-685 (1970)], and after subjecting the gel to silver staining.
• SDS-PAGE polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis
• the equilibrium association constant of X3/IL-1 ⁇ complexes was measured.
• Purified human antibody X3 was incubated with increasing concentrations of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ ( 10 to 500 pM) in a final volume of 250 ⁇ l in RPMI 1640, 1% BSA, 20 mM Hepes. Each tested condition was performed in triplicate. Nonspecific binding controls were performed in duplicate by addition of 50 nM unlabeled recombinant human IL-1 ⁇ .
• the value of the equilibrium affinity constant (K a ) obtained for the human monoclonal antibody X3 was 5 x 10 9 M *1 .
• human monoclonal antibody X3 to inhibit the binding of radiolabeled human IL-1 ⁇ to IL-1 receptors expressed on murine thymoma EL4 cells was investigated using both conditioned medium and the purified antibody. Serial dilutions (in RPMI 1640, 1% BSA, 20mM Hepes) of positive culture supernatants or purified HuMAb X3 were pre-incubated for 1 hour at 4°C with a fixed concentration (70 pM) of human 125 I-IL-1 ⁇ , in a final volume of 100 ⁇ l.
• the results presented in Figure 2 indicated that the antibody X3 blocks in a dose-dependent manner the binding of radiolabeled human IL-1 ⁇ on EL4 cells.
• the concentration of antibody X3 required to block 50% of receptor binding (IC50) was found to be 0.015 ⁇ g/ml (100 pM) for a constant concentration of 70 pM of radiolabeled human IL-1 ⁇ .
• the biological activity of human IL-1 was measured by its ability to stimulate IL-2 production by the murine thymoma subline EL4-6.1 [Zubler et al., J. Immunol., 134: 3662-3668 (1985)].
• the IL-2 production was further determined using the CTLL-2 assay [Gillis et al., J. Immunol., 120: 2027-2033 (1978)].
• the proliferation of IL-2-dependent CTLL cells is proportional to the concentration of IL-2 produced by EL4 cells in the first step of culture.
• the human monoclonal antibody X3 specifically inhibits human IL-1 ⁇ - induced IL-2 production by EL4 cells, but not the IL-2 secretion induced by human IL-1 ⁇ .
• the concentration of antibody X3 required to block 50% of IL-2 secretion induced by 50 pg/ml (2.8 pM) human IL-1 ⁇ (IC50) was found to be 0.1 ⁇ g/ml (700 pM).
• Human synoviocytes were isolated from rheumatoid synovial biopsies obtained from rheumatoid arthritis patients. Different concentrations of the human monoclonal antibody X3 were incubated for 30 minutes at 37°C with various concentrations of recombinant human IL-1 ⁇ or human IL-l ⁇ in a final volume of 100 ⁇ l/well in flat-bottomed microtiter plates (Falcon). Each experimental point was done in triplicate and reagent dilutions were performed in culture medium composed of ⁇ -MEM (Gibco) supplemented with 2 mM L-glutamine, 10% heat-inactivated FCS, 50 ⁇ g/ml gentamycin and 20 mM Hepes.
• ⁇ -MEM Gibco
• X3 specifically inhibits human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-6 production by human synoviocytes, but not the IL-6 secretion induced by human IL-1 ⁇ .
• the IC50 was found to be 0.02 ⁇ g/ml (150 pM) of human monoclonal antibody X3.
• PBMNC peripheral blood mononuclear cells
• adherent cells were re-cultured for 24 hours in 2.5 ml complete culture medium containing 1 ⁇ g/ml LPS ⁇ E. coli, serotype 0111 :B4) (Sigma Chemical Co.). After this incubation period, supernatant corresponding to the conditioned medium was harvested and centrifuged to remove contaminating cells. Adherent cells were washed three times with cold PBS and removed by treatment at 4°C with EDTA 0.02% (Sigma) and gentle scrapping with a rubber policeman. Cells were then washed twice, centrifuged, resuspended in 500 ⁇ l culture medium and lysed by successive freezings in liquid nitrogen.
• the cell lysate was then centrifuged (10,000 x g, 15 min, 4°C) and the upper phase was collected and adjusted to 1 ml with complete culture medium.
• the ability of the human monoclonal antibody X3 to block the native human IL-1 activity contained in conditioned medium or lysate from LPS- stimulated adherent human mononuclear cells was investigated using the EL4/CTLL assay, because such conditioned medium and lysate may contain significant amounts of LPS and IL-6 which may interact in the synoviocyte assay, but not in the EL4/CTLL assay.
• the neutralizing rabbit anti-human IL-1 ⁇ antiserum shared the same activities as antibody X3, while the unrelated human antibody did not inhibit the IL-1 activity neither in conditioned medium, nor in cell lysate.
• Monkey blood mononuclear cells were isolated, stimulated with LPS and lysed after 24 hours' incubation. Increasing concentrations of lysate induced EL-4 cells to secrete IL-2, and this activity was inhibited by the polyclonal rabbit anti- human IL-1 .
• HuMAb X3 was also able to block the monkey IL-1 ⁇ , but its activity appeared to be lower than that observed with human IL-1 ⁇ .
• the human monoclonal antibody X3 was found to inhibit IL-2 secretion by EL4 cells induced by PFA-fixed monocytes, whether or not these were stimulated with LPS. A similar inhibition was obtained with the rabbit anti-IL-1 ⁇ antibody but not with the rabbit anti-IL-1 ⁇ antiserum. These results indicate that the HuMAb X3 recognizes and neutralizes human membrane IL-1 ⁇ .
• elutriated blood monocytes were cultured for 24 hours with or without LPS (1 ⁇ g/ml) and then fixed or not with PFA as described above. Serial dilutions of monocyte preparations were then incubated for 30 minutes at 37°C with or without 1 ⁇ g/ml of HuMAb X3, 1 ⁇ g/ml non-related human lgG4 K antibody or 100 ng/ml of IL-1 Ra. Cultures were performed in triplicate in fiat-bottomed 96-well culture plates. Then 100 ⁇ l of synoviocyte suspension (5 x 10 4 cells/ml) were added to each well.
• the rheumatoid synovial tissue is composed of about 20% monocyte/macrophage/dendritic cells, 20% fibroblast-like cells (synoviocytes) and 30-50% T cells.
• This inflammatory tissue produces in vivo and ex vivo high levels of proinflammatory cytokines, including IL-6, TNF- ⁇ and IL-1 ⁇ ; see Miossec et al., Arthritis Rheum., 35: 874-883 (1992).
• a coculture of freshly isolated monocytes with synoviocytes from long term cultures results in the production of large amounts of IL-6 but not of IL-10 * IL-l ⁇ or TNF- ⁇ .
• HuMAb X3 was found to strongly inhibit the production of IL-6 by coculture of synoviocytes with non-activated monocytes or LPS-stimulated monocytes (without or with PFA fixation). This finding is in accordance with the inhibitory effect of IL-1 Ra.
• HuMAb X3 is able to interrupt an interaction between monocytes and synoviocytes, and that interaction may represent a critical step in the development of rheumatoid inflammation.
• RNA from the B cell clone X3 has been isolated according to the single- step method described by Chomczynski et al., Anal. Biochem., 162: 156-159 (1987). Briefly, about 10 7 cells from this clone were lysed in guanidinium thiocyanate denaturing solution. After acidification of the mixture with 2M sodium acetate, pH4, RNA was extracted with phenol and chloroform/isopentyl alcohol (24:1). RNA was then precipitated with isopropanol, the RNA pellet was redissolved in denaturing solution, reprecipitated with isopropanol, and washed with 75% ethanol.
• cDNA was obtained by reverse transcription, using the Superscript Reverse Transcriptase Kit (cat. 20898 BRL, Gaithersburg, MD, USA), with oligo dT-12-18 primers (Cat. 27.7858-01 , Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden). The cDNA was then used as template in the PCR. PCR amplifications were performed with Taq polymerase (Perkin Elmer, Norwalk, Connecticut) using the reaction buffer provided by the manufacturers: Taq buffer: 1 ,5 mM MgCl2, 50 mM KCI, 10 mM Tris-HCI, pH 8.3 and 0.001% (w/v) gelatin. All PCR mixtures contained 200 ng of each primer, and 2.5 of Taq Polymerase.
• Amplifications were performed in a Trio-Thermoblock Thermal cycler (Biometra, GmbH) and consisted of 35 cycles of 1 minute denaturation at 94°C, 2 min of primer annealing at 60°C, and 3 minutes extension at 72°C. After the last cycle, the reaction mixtures were incubated for 10 minutes at 72°C to insure complete extension of all products.
• the primers were designed to include restriction sites, to allow for the directional cloning of the PCR products.
• primers listed in SEQ ID NOS. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 specific for the leader sequence of the six different human VH families were used individually in conjunction with a primer (listed in SEQ ID NO.
• the light chain was amplified with individual combinations of primers corresponding to the 3'-end of the kappa or lambda chain (listed in SEQ ID NOS. 10 and 11 , respectively) in conjunction with a series of primers (listed in SEQ ID NOS. 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17) annealing to the leader sequence of the different V kappa gene families or with a series of primers (listed in SEQ ID NOS. 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22) annealing to the leader sequence of the different V lambda gene families.
• GELase (Epicentre, cat. G21223, Wl) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Purified PCR products from heavy and light chains were used as template for sequencing reaction with leader PCR primers and with primer hybridizing at the 5'-end of the gamma and of the kappa or lambda constant- region gene respectively. The sequencing reaction was performed on a 373 DNA Sequencer with TaqDyeDeoxy Terminator Cycle Sequencing Kit (both from Applied Biosystems Inc. Foster City, CA). Direct sequencing of both strands of the products of two independent PCRs were therefore obtained and compared. No difference was found between the sequences of the two PCRs from the same cells. The sequence of the VH gene is listed in SEQ ID NO.
• RNA from the B cell clone X3A-16G5 was isolated by the guanidinium thiocyanate single-step method described by Chomczynski et al., supra .
• cDNA was obtained by reverse transcription of the RNA using a Superscript Reverse Transcriptase Kit with oligo dTi2- ⁇ primers (Cat. 27.7858-01 , Pharmacia, Uppsala, Sweden). The cDNA was then used as a template in the PCR performed with Taq polymerase.
• the primers were designed to include Eco R1 and Not restriction sites, to allow for the directional cloning of the PCR products into the baculovirus vector pVL-1393.
• primer listed in SEQ ID NO.
• both full- length heavy and light chains were cloned in baculovirus vector restricted with the same enzymes.
• Heavy and light chains were cloned individually in distinct pVL1393 baculovirus vectors (Invitrogen Co, San Diego, CA).
• the recombinant vectors were transfected in competent DH5 ⁇ E. coli bacteria (Gibco BRL, Gaithersburg, MD), and 10 single colonies were selected. 100 ml culture of each bacterial clone were obtained, and vector DNA was purified with Qiagen plasmid-Kit (Diagen, GmbH).
• Both strands of the complete insert from double- stranded DNA vector were sequenced with (1 ) two primers flanking the insert - the first (listed in SEQ ID NO. 23) annealing 5' in the promoter region of the polyhedrin gene and the second (listed in SEQ ID NO. 24) annealing 3' in the polyhedrin gene itself; and (2) a series of forward primers and backward primers distributed about 400 bp apart along the heavy- and the light-chain sequences; i.e., the forward primers for the heavy chain are listed in SEQ ID NOS. 25 and 26, the backward primers for the heavy chain are listed in SEQ ID NOS. 27, 28 and 29, and the backward primer for the light chain is listed in SEQ ID NO. 30.
• Double-stranded DNA sequencing was done on a 373 DNA Sequencer with TaqDyeDeoxy Terminator Cycle Sequencing Kit (both from Applied Biosystems Inc., Foster City, CA).
• a recombinant baculovirus vector clone was selected for both the heavy and the light chains, which showed perfect match with the variable-region sequences obtained from the PCR products, and with the published sequences of the constant regions of the heavy gamma 4 and kappa light chains respectively.
• Recombinant baculovirus vectors were cotransfected with wild type baculovirus DNA in Sf9 insect cells, using the transfection module (Invitrogen Co, San Diego, CA).
• Recombinant baculoviruses recovered from the cell culture supernatant of these transfected cells were then cloned in Sf9 cells by limiting dilution and screened by hybridization with the labeled inserts. After two runs of cloning, followed by production, recombinant baculoviruses containing the heavy- or the light-chain cDNAs were titrated, and used to infect insect cells at a Multiplicity of Infection (MOI) of 5. After 5 days of culture, production of human heavy or light chain was confirmed by ELISA and/or by in vivo labeling.
• MOI Multiplicity of Infection
• One baculovirus clone expressing the heavy chain and one expressing the light chain were used to co-infect Sf9 cells, each at a MOI of 5. After 5 days of infection, the presence in the supernatant of an antibody binding specifically to human IL-1 ⁇ was confirmed by immunoprecipitation.
• the purified recombinant X3 was assayed in the assay "Affinity for Human IL-1 ⁇ " described above.
• the obtained equilibrium affinity constant (K a ) value was 1.4 x 10 10 M” 1 .
• the purified recombinant X3 was assayed in the assays "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-2 Secretion by EL4 cells” and "Inhibition of Human IL-1 ⁇ -induced IL-6 production by Human
• an immortalized and/or activated B cell population in accordance with the present invention, a series of amplified B cell subpopulations can be provided for screening for antibodies that bind to the desired antigen, e.g., by the standard and derived immuno ⁇ precipitation protocols described above.
• an immortalized and/or secreting B cell subpopulation that consists of from about 5 to about 50 different, amplified B cell clones, at least one of which expresses a HuMAb against the desired antigen, e.g.
• a human cytokine such as IL-1 ⁇ , TNF- ⁇ , IL-6, IL-10 etc.
• IL-1 ⁇ IL-1 ⁇
• TNF- ⁇ IL-6
• IL-10 a human cytokine
• the percentage of B cells producing HuMAbs against the antigen of interest in a B cell subpopulation of the present invention is greatly enhanced in comparison to other techniques which start with naturally occurring B cell populations.
• This amplified subpopulation can make it possible to uncover HuMAbs to human cytokines even when isolating a single clone, as we accomplished with the X3 clone discussed above, is not possible.
• an amplified, immortalized and/or secreting B cell subpopulation in accordance with the present invention including, for example, 40 different B cell clones, the number of possible VH/VL combinations from a cDNA library encoding the VH segments and VL segments from these B cells is 1600 (40 x 40). This very low number makes it far easier to isolate the specific combination of VH and VL segments responsible for the one (or more) amplified HuMAb clone in the subpopulation which binds to the desired antigen.
• HuMAbs against the desired antigen can be identified and isolated by recombinant techniques.
• a cDNA library encoding the mRNA repertoire of VH and/or VL segments of all the HuMAbs expressed in such a subpopulation can be prepared by PCR amplification of the mRNA from the subpopulation using appropriate primers.
• These repertoire cloning techniques are now standard in the art; see, for example, Marks et al., J. Mol.
• V H and VL segments may be assembled into appropriate vectors for direct cloning and expression in a host, e.g., by the methods described in Hoogenboom et al., Nucleic Acids Research, 19: 4133-4137 (1991 ).
• VH and VL segments or Fab may then be screened for binding to the desired antigen by the standard and derived immunoprecipitation protocols described above using labeled antigen, e.g. 125 I-IL-10.
• the DNA encoding the VH or VL segments from the identified clones can then be sequenced and operatively linked to DNA segments encoding the constant regions for the desired HuMAb isotype heavy or light chains, e.g., heavy chains or K or ⁇ light chains of IgG-i, lgG2, lgG3, lgG4, IgA, etc., to create a complete HuMAb or a fragment thereof (e.g., Fab, F(ab')2, Fv etc.) against the desired antigen, e.g., human IL-10.
• a fragment thereof e.g., Fab, F(ab')2, Fv etc.
• the cDNA repertoire encoding the VH and/or VL segments can be included in a vector appropriate to display the VH and/or VL segments on the surface of a suitable host.
• a suitable host See, for example, Marks et al., J. Mol. Biol., 222: 581-597 (1991) and Hoogenboom et al., supra , which disclose methodologies for displaying Fv, scFv or Fab fragments of such a cDNA library on the surface of bacteriophage.
• the host cells e.g., phage
• displaying the scFv on their surface that bind to the desired antigen can then be identified by ELISA or any other suitable assay.
• the DNA encoding the VH and/or VL segments from binding host cells can be separated and reassembled into appropriate vectors for direct cloning and expression in a host, e.g., by the method described in the Marks et al. article.
• the DNA sequences can then be assembled into a full-length HuMAb or fragment thereof by the methodologies described above.
• An amplified B-cell subpopulation of the present invention as described above may be employed with single cell and multiple cell PCR techniques to yield the DNA sequences encoding the variable regions of the HuMAbs produced by these cells.
• a CD40-crosslinked B cell population of the invention (which may also be EBV-transformed) may be diluted to provide either a small number of B cells (e.g., 10 B cells per well) or (on average) a single B cell or less per well.
• VH and VL genes heavy- and light-chain variable region genes
• the activity of the HuMAb may then be confirmed by conventional in vitro and in vivo biological assays.
• TNF- ⁇ , IL-l ⁇ and IL-6 the assays and models reviewed in Dinarello, Eur. Cytokine Netw., 3: 7-17 (1992) may be employed.
• human IL-10 the cytokine synthesis inhibitory factor (CSIF) assay described in Florentino et al., J. Exp. Med., 170: 2081-2095 (1989) or the property of IL-10 to induce proliferation and Ig secretion by human B cells as described in Rousset et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 89: 1890-1893 (1992) may be employed.
• CCF cytokine synthesis inhibitory factor
• pairs of heavy and light chains identified under the above conditions will be those of the identified antibody, since the screening procedures described above are selective for high affinity antibody which can only be obtained with a given combination of heavy and light chain. Furthermore, the identification of the heavy- and light-chain isotypes in the supernatants of the oligoclonal cell lines will also be of great help to determine whether the selected pair does indeed correspond to the initially identified clone.

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