WO2007042289A2 - Nanobodies™ and polypeptides against egfr and igf-ir - Google Patents
Nanobodies™ and polypeptides against egfr and igf-ir Download PDFInfo
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- WO2007042289A2 WO2007042289A2 PCT/EP2006/009840 EP2006009840W WO2007042289A2 WO 2007042289 A2 WO2007042289 A2 WO 2007042289A2 EP 2006009840 W EP2006009840 W EP 2006009840W WO 2007042289 A2 WO2007042289 A2 WO 2007042289A2
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- 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
- C07K16/28—Immunoglobulins [IGs], e.g. monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies against material from animals or humans against receptors, cell surface antigens or cell surface determinants
- C07K16/2863—Immunoglobulins [IGs], e.g. monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies against material from animals or humans against receptors, cell surface antigens or cell surface determinants against receptors for growth factors, growth regulators
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P11/00—Drugs for disorders of the respiratory system
- A61P11/12—Mucolytics
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P17/00—Drugs for dermatological disorders
- A61P17/06—Antipsoriatics
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P19/00—Drugs for skeletal disorders
- A61P19/02—Drugs for skeletal disorders for joint disorders, e.g. arthritis, arthrosis
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P29/00—Non-central analgesic, antipyretic or antiinflammatory agents, e.g. antirheumatic agents; Non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs [NSAID]
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P35/00—Antineoplastic agents
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61P—SPECIFIC THERAPEUTIC ACTIVITY OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS OR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS
- A61P37/00—Drugs for immunological or allergic disorders
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61K—PREPARATIONS FOR MEDICAL, DENTAL OR TOILETRY PURPOSES
- A61K39/00—Medicinal preparations containing antigens or antibodies
- A61K2039/505—Medicinal preparations containing antigens or antibodies comprising antibodies
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- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
- C07K—PEPTIDES
- C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
- C07K2317/20—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by taxonomic origin
- C07K2317/22—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by taxonomic origin from camelids, e.g. camel, llama or dromedary
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- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
- C07K—PEPTIDES
- C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
- C07K2317/30—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by aspects of specificity or valency
- C07K2317/31—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by aspects of specificity or valency multispecific
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- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
- C07K—PEPTIDES
- C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
- C07K2317/50—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments
- C07K2317/56—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments variable (Fv) region, i.e. VH and/or VL
- C07K2317/565—Complementarity determining region [CDR]
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- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
- C07K—PEPTIDES
- C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
- C07K2317/50—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments
- C07K2317/56—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments variable (Fv) region, i.e. VH and/or VL
- C07K2317/567—Framework region [FR]
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- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C07—ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
- C07K—PEPTIDES
- C07K2317/00—Immunoglobulins specific features
- C07K2317/50—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments
- C07K2317/56—Immunoglobulins specific features characterized by immunoglobulin fragments variable (Fv) region, i.e. VH and/or VL
- C07K2317/569—Single domain, e.g. dAb, sdAb, VHH, VNAR or nanobody®
Definitions
- the present invention relates to polypeptides and NanobodiesTM against Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor and/or the Insulin Growth Factor-I Receptor ("EGFR" and "IGF- IR", respectively).
- EGFR Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor
- IGF- IR Insulin Growth Factor-I Receptor
- the invention also relates to nucleic acids encoding such Nanobodies and polypeptides; to methods for preparing such Nanobodies and polypeptides; to host cells expressing or capable of expressing such Nanobodies or polypeptides; to compositions, and in particular to pharmaceutical compositions, that comprise such Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids and/or host cells; and to uses of such Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids, host cells and/or compositions, in particular for prophylactic, therapeutic or diagnostic purposes, such as the prophylactic, therapeutic or diagnostic purposes mentioned herein.
- Other aspects, embodiments, advantages and applications of the invention will become clear from the further description herein.
- Nanobodies against EGFR and polypeptides comprising the same that are an alternative to, and that preferably have improved properties compared to, the Nanobodies and polypeptides described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- the invention provides Nanobodies against EGFR that bind to ectodomain EGFR, compete with the EGF, TGF ⁇ but not with the Erbitux binding sites on EGFR.
- the invention provides Nanobodies that bind to ectodomain EGFR and compete with the EGF, Erbitux and TGF ⁇ - binding sites on EGFR.
- the invention provides Nanobodies that bind to ectodomain EGFR, compete with the TGF ⁇ but not the EGF or Erbitux-binding sites on EGFR.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides may find different (therapeutic or diagnostic) utility, depending on the desired properties for use.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein can be used for all applications and uses described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867 for the Nanobodies and polypeptides disclosed therein.
- the Nanobodies described herein can be used instead of the Nanobodies against EGFR described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867 in preparing the polypeptides and Nanobody constructs described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein can be formulated and used as described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- Nanobodies, polypeptides and compositions described herein can be used in the prevention, diagnosis and/or treatment of diseases and disorders associated with EGFR and/or IGF-IR, and in particular with diseases and disorders associated with or characterised by an over-expression of EGFR and/or IGF-IR (i.e. in certain tissues or cells).
- diseases and disorders will be clear to the skilled person, and include various forms of cancers and tumors, such as those mentioned herein, as well as certain inflammatory diseases of the skin.
- the anti-IGF-IR Nanobodies described herein can be used per se in the treatment of cancer and of other diseases and disorders associated with (the overexpression of) IGF-IR, but can also be used to enhance any anti-EGFR therapy (e.g. therapy with anti-EGFR compounds, anti-EGFR antibodies (including antibody fragments) or with anti-EGFR Nanobodies or polypeptides), to reduce the amount of anti-EGFR compounds or antibodies used in such therapy (and thus for example to reduce the side-effects associated therewith) and/or to prevent or reduce resistance against anti-EGFR therapy.
- anti-EGFR therapies will be clear to the skilled person, for example from the pertinent prior art cited herein. Reference is for example also made to Friess et al., Clin.
- mice monoclonal antibodies have already been successivefully introduced into pre-clinical and clinical application such as IMC-C225 (Erbitux or Cetuximab) from Imclone systems, EMD7200 (Matuzumab) from Merck, ABX-EGF (Panitumumab) from Abgenix and 2F8 from Genmab.
- the in vitro and/or in vivo activity and/or efficacy of the Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein may be determined using one or more of the in vitro assays, in vivo assays, cell-based assays or animal models described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- Nanobodies, polypeptides and compositions described herein in particular in treating tumors and/or in inhibiting the growth or proliferation of tumor cells, will be clear to the skilled person, for example from the prior art related to EGFR and IGF-IR referred to herein.
- IGF-I receptor plays a role in the development of resistance to Herceptin (Altundag et al., MoI. Cancer Ther., 2005, (4)7, 1136; Monnier et al., Bull. Cancer., 2004, Sep; 91(9):685-94; Chakravarti et al., Cancer Research 62, 200- 207, 2002).
- the synergistic effect of EGF and IGF-I is for example described in Faisal et al., Journal of Surgical Research, 69, 354-358 (1997), in Adams et al., Growth Factors, June 2004, Vol.
- Nanobodies against EGFR and/or polypeptides and Nanobodies against IGF-IR in particular against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from a warm-blooded animal, more in particular against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from a mammal, and especially against human EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and to provide proteins and polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of at least one such Nanobody.
- Nanobodies and such proteins and/or polypeptides that are suitable for prophylactic, therapeutic and/or diagnostic use in a warm-blooded animal, and in particular in a mammal, and more in particular in a human being.
- Nanobodies and such proteins and/or polypeptides that can be used for the prevention, treatment, alleviation and/or diagnosis of one or more diseases, disorders or conditions associated with EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or mediated by EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, (such as the diseases, disorders and conditions mentioned herein) in a warmblooded animal, in particular in a mammal, and more in particular in a human being.
- Nanobodies and such proteins and/or polypeptides that can be used in the preparation of a pharmaceutical or veterinary composition for the prevention and/or treatment of one or more diseases, disorders or conditions associated with and/or mediated by EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, (such as the diseases, disorders and conditions mentioned herein) in a warm-blooded animal, in particular in a mammal, and more in particular in a human being.
- One specific but non-limiting object of the invention is to provide Nanobodies, proteins and/or polypeptides against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, that have improved therapeutic and/or pharmacological properties and/or other advantageous properties (such as, for example, improved ease of preparation and/or reduced costs of goods), compared to conventional antibodies against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or fragments thereof, such as Fab' fragments, F(ab') 2 fragments, ScFv constructs, "diabodies” and/or other classes of (single) domain antibodies, such as the "dAb's described by Ward et al (infra), and also compared to the anti EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- Nanobodies proteins and polypeptides described herein.
- These Nanobodies are also referred to herein as ''''Nanobodies of the invention"; and these proteins and polypeptides are also collectively referred to herein "polypeptides of the invention”.
- the invention relates to improved Nanobodies against EGFR, and in particular to a Nanobody against EGFR from a warm-blooded animal, and more in particular to improved Nanobodies against EGFR from a mammal, and especially to improved Nanobodies against human EGFR, wherein said improved Nanobodies are as defined below.
- the invention relates to a binding polypeptide of less than 15 kDa directed against IGF-IR.
- binding polyepeptdie is able to inhibit IGF-I interaction with IGF-IR.
- polypeptides is a single domain antibody, a domain antibody, a "dAb", a VH, a VHH or a Nanobody.
- the invention preferably relates to a Nanobody against IGF-IR, and in particular to a Nanobody against IGF-IR from a warm-blooded animal, and more in particular to a Nanobody against IGF-IR from a mammal, and especially to a Nanobody against human IGF-IR.
- the invention relates to a protein or polypeptide that comprises or essentially consists of at least one such Nanobody against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- the invention provides Nanobodies and polypeptides against EGFR and Nanobodies against EGFR for use in a combination therapy, in particular for the treatment of cancer.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides against IGF-IR described herein can be used together with the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867, and/or together with the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein.
- a polypeptide as described herein comprises at least one Nanobody against EGFR and at least one Nanobody against
- IGF-IR described herein can be combined with one or more of the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867, and/or with one or more of the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention are preferably directed against human EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, whereas for veterinary purposes, the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention are preferably directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from the species to be treated.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides that are directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from a first species of warm-blooded animal may or may not show cross-reactivity with EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from one or more other species of warm-blooded animals.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides directed against human EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively may or may not show cross reactivity with
- EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, from one or more other species of primates and/or with
- EGFR or IGF-IR from one or more species of animals that are often used in animal models for diseases (for example mouse, rat, rabbit, pig or dog), and in particular in animal models for diseases and disorders associated with EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,
- Nanobodies and polypeptides directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, from one species of animal are used in the treatment of another species of animal, as long as the use of the Nanobodies and/or polypeptides provide the desired effects in the species to be treated.
- the present invention is in its broadest sense also not particularly limited to or defined by a specific antigenic determinant, epitope, part, domain, subunit or confirmation (where applicable) of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, against which the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention are directed.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may be directed against epitopes that are exposed on the cell surface.
- a Nanobody of the invention can bind to two or more antigenic determinants, epitopes, parts, domains, subunits or confirmations of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- the antigenic determinants, epitopes, parts, domains or subunits of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to which the Nanobodies and/or polypeptides of the invention bind may be the essentially same (for example, if EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, contains repeated structural motifs or is present as a multimer) or may be different (and in the latter case, the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may bind to such different antigenic determinants, epitopes, parts, domains, subunits of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an affinity and/or specificity which may be the same or different).
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may bind to either one of these confirmation, or may bind to both these confirmations (i.e. with an affinity and/or specificity which may be the same or different).
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may bind to a conformation of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in which it is bound to a pertinent ligand, may bind to a conformation of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in which it not bound to a pertinent ligand, or may bind to both such conformations (again with an affinity and/or specificity which may be the same or different).
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention will generally bind to all naturally occurring or synthetic analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or at least to those analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, that contain one or more antigenic determinants or epitopes that are essentially the same as the antigenic determinant(s) or epitope(s) to which the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind in EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, (e.g. in wild-type EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,).
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may bind to such analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments with an affinity and/or specificity that are the same as, or different from (i.e. higher than or lower than), the affinity and specificity with which the Nanobodies of the invention bind to (wild-type) EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively. It is also included within the scope of the invention that the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind to some analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, but not to others.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention When EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, exists in a monomeric form and in one or more multimeric forms, it is within the scope of the invention that the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention only bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in monomelic form, or that the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention in addition also bind to one or more of such multimeric forms.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in its non-associated state, bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in its associated state, or bind to both.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may bind to such multimers or associated protein complexes with an affinity and/or specificity that may be the same as or different from (i.e. higher than or lower than) the affinity and/or specificity with which the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, in its monomelic and non-associated state.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention will at least bind to those forms (including monomelic, multimeric and associated forms) that are the most relevant from a biological and/or therapeutic point of view, as will be clear to the skilled person.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention it is also within the scope of the invention to use parts, fragments, analogs, mutants, variants, alleles and/or derivatives of the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention, and/or to use proteins or polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of the same, as long as these are suitable for the uses envisaged herein.
- Such parts, fragments, analogs, mutants, variants, alleles, derivatives, proteins and/or polypeptides will be described in the further description herein.
- the Nanobodies of the invention generally comprise a single amino acid chain, that can be considered to comprise "framework sequences" or "FR" (which are generally as described herein) and "complementarity determining regions” or CDR's. Some preferred CDR's present in the Nanobodies of the invention are as described herein.
- the CDR sequences present in the Nanobodies of the invention are obtainable/can be obtained by a method comprising the steps of: a) providing at least one V 11 H domain directed against IGF-IR, by a method generally comprising the steps of (i) immunizing a mammal belonging to the Camelidae with
- IGF-IR or a part or fragment thereof so as to raise an immune response and/or antibodies (and in particular heavy chain antibodies) against IGF-IR; (ii) obtaining a biological sample from the mammal thus immunized, wherein said sample comprises heavy chain antibody sequences and/or VHH sequences that are directed against IGF-IR; and (iii) obtaining (e.g isolating) heavy chain antibody sequences and/or VH H sequences that are directed against IGF-IR from said biological sample; and/or by a method generally comprising the steps of (i) screening a library comprising heavy chain antibody sequences and/or V HH sequences for heavy chain antibody sequences and/or V HH sequences that are directed against IGF-IR or against at least one part or fragment thereof; and (ii) obtaining (e.g.
- heavy chain antibody sequences and/or V HH sequences that are directed against IGF-IR from said library; b) optionally subjecting the heavy chain antibody sequences and/or V HH sequences against IGF-IR thus obtained to affinity maturation, to mutagenesis (e.g.
- step d all CDR sequences present in a Nanobody of the invention will be derived from the same heavy chain antibody or V HH sequence.
- the invention in its broadest sense is not limited thereto. It is for example also possible (although often less preferred) to suitably combine, in a Nanobody of the invention, CDR's from two or three different heavy chain antibodies or V HH sequences against IGF-IR and/or to suitably combine, in a Nanobody of the invention, one or more CDR's derived from heavy chain antibodies or V HH sequences (an in particular at least CDR3) with one or more CDR's derived from a different source (for example synthetic CDR's or CDR's derived from a human antibody or VH domain).
- the CDR sequences in the Nanobodies of the invention are such that the Nanobody of the invention binds to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an dissociation constant (K D ) of 10 "5 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 ⁇ 7 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 ⁇ 8 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M “1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the Nanobody of the invention against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- the invention relates to a Nanobody (as defined herein) against EGFR, which consist of 4 framework regions (FRl to FR4 respectively) and 3 complementarity determining regions (CDRl to CDR3 respectively), in which:
- CDRl is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: TYTMA [SEQ ID NO:42]
- GLSWSADSTYYADSVKG [SEQ ID NO:65] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or in which: (c) CDR3 is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: ASVKLVYVNPNRYSY [SEQ ID NO:66]
- GSPYGTELPYTRIEQYAY [SEQ ID NO: 73]
- VYRVGAISEYSGTDYYTDEYDY [SEQ ID NO: 76]
- HRRPFASVFTTTRMYDY [SEQ ID NO: 79] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino
- the invention relates to a Nanobody (as defined herein) against IGF-IR, which consist of 4 framework regions (FRl to FR4 respectively) and 3 complementarity determining regions (CDRl to CDR3 respectively), in which: (a) CDRl is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of:
- RTAMA [SEQ ID NO:97] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or in which:
- CDR2 is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: VIISGGSTHYVDSVKG [SEQ ID NO:98] EITRSGRTNYVDSVKG [SEQ ID NO:99] AINWNSRSTYYADSVKG [SEQ ID NO: 100]
- TITWNSGTTRYADSVKG [SEQ ID NO: 101] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1
- amino acid difference(s) (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or in which:
- CDR3 is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: KKFGDY [SEQ ID NO: 102]
- TAAAVITPTRGYYNY [SEQ ID NO: 105] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s).
- CDR sequences and combinations of CDR sequences that are present in the Nanobodies of the invention are as listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, below.
- At least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or from the group of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% "sequence identity" (as defined herein) with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I
- At least the CDR3 sequence present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or from the group of CDR3 sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with at least one of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A- 1 for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- At least two of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present are chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively or from the group consisting of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- At least the CDR3 sequence present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or from the group of CDR3 sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively; and at least one of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A- 1 for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or from the group of CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively;
- CDR3 sequences present are chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or from the group of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with at least one of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively. Even more preferably, in the Nanobodies of the invention, at least one of the CDRl,
- CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- at least one or preferably both of the other two CDR sequences present are chosen from CDR sequences that that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the corresponding CDR sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDR sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with at least one of the corresponding sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- At least the CDR3 sequence present is chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- at least one and preferably both of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences present are chosen from the groups of CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, that that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, listed in listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with at least one of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- At least two of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present are chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- the remaining CDR sequence present are chosen from the group of CDR sequences that that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the corresponding CDR sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of CDR sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with at least one of the corresponding sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- At least the CDR3 sequence is chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and either the CDRl sequence or the CDR2 sequence is chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl and CDR2 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- the remaining CDR sequence present are chosen from the group of CDR sequences that that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with at least one of the corresponding CDR sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively; and/or from the group consisting of CDR sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with the corresponding CDR sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- all three CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present are chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- a CDR in a Nanobody of the invention is a CDR sequence mentioned in Table A-I or is chosen from the group of CDR sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity with a CDR sequence listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or from the group consisting of CDR sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with a CDR sequence listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, that at least one and preferably both of the other CDR' s are chosen from the CDR sequences that belong to the same combination in Table A-I (i.e.
- a Nanobody of the invention can for example comprise a CDRl sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with one of the CDRl sequences mentioned in Table A-I, a CDR2 sequence that has 3, 2 or 1 amino acid difference with one of the CDR2 sequences mentioned in Table A-I (but belonging to a different combination), and a CDR3 sequence.
- Nanobodies of the invention may for example comprise: (1) a CDRl sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with one of the CDRl sequences mentioned in Table A-I; a CDR2 sequence that has 3, 2 or 1 amino acid difference with one of the CDR2 sequences mentioned in Table A-I (but belonging to a different combination); and a CDR3 sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with one of the CDR3 sequences mentioned in Table A-I (but belonging to a different combination); or (2) a CDRl sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with one of the CDRl sequences mentioned in Table A-I; a CDR2 sequence, and one of the CDR3 sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or (3) a CDRl sequence; a CDR2 sequence that has more than 80% sequence identity with one of the CDR2 sequence listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and a CDR3 sequence that has 3, 2 or 1 amino acid
- Nanobodies of the invention may for example comprise: (1) a CDRl sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with one of the CDRl sequences mentioned in Table A-I; a CDR2 sequence that has 3, 2 or 1 amino acid difference with the CDR2 sequence mentioned in Table A-I that belongs to the same combination; and a CDR3 sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with the CDR3 sequence mentioned in Table A-I that belongs to the same combination; (2) a CDRl sequence; a CDR 2 listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and a CDR3 sequence listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, (in which the CDR2 sequence and CDR3 sequence may belong to different combinations).
- Some even more preferred Nanobodies of the invention may for example comprise:
- Nanobodies of the invention may for example comprise a CDRl sequence mentioned in Table A-I, a CDR2 sequence that has more than 80 % sequence identity with the CDR2 sequence mentioned in Table A-I that belongs to the same combination; and the CDR3 sequence mentioned in Table A-I that belongs to the same combination.
- the CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences present are chosen from one of the combinations of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 sequences, respectively, listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- a CDR sequence is chosen from the group of CDR sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the CDR sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and/or when a CDR sequence is chosen from the group consisting of CDR sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference(s) with one of the CDR sequences listed in Table A-I for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, i) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the CDR sequence listed in Table A- 1 for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- the CDR sequences in the the Nanobodies of the invention are as defined above and are also such that the Nanobody of the invention binds to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with a dissociation constant (KD) of 10 ⁇ 5 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 "7 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M “1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the Nanobody of the invention against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- CDRl has a length of between 1 and 12 amino acid residues, and usually between 2 and 9 amino acid residues, such as 5, 6 or 7 amino acid residues; and/or (b) CDR2 has a length of between 13 and 24 amino acid residues, and usually between 15 and 21 amino acid residues, such as 16 or 17 amino acid residues; and/or (c) CDR3 has a length of between 2 and 35 amino acid residues, usually between 3 and 30 amino acid residues, such as between 6 and 23 amino acid residues.
- Nanobodies with the above CDR sequences preferably have framework sequences that are as further defined herein.
- the invention relates to a Nanobody with an amino acid sequence that is chosen from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have more than 80%, preferably more than 90%, more preferably more than 95%, such as 99% or more sequence identity (as defined herein) with one or more of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93.
- the invention relates to a Nanobody with an amino acid sequence that is chosen from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO's: 106-109 or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have more than 80%, preferably more than 90%, more preferably more than 95%, such as 99% or more sequence identity (as defined herein) with one or more of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO' si 06- 109.
- polypeptides of the invention comprise or essentially consist of at least one
- Nanobody of the invention Some preferred, but non-limiting examples of polypeptides of the invention are given in SEQ ID NO's: 110-143.
- proteins or polypeptides that comprise or essentially consist of a single Nanobody will be referred to herein as “monovalent” proteins or polypeptides or as “monovalent constructs”.
- Proteins and polypeptides that comprise or essentially consist of two or more Nanobodies (such as at least two Nanobodies of the invention or at least one Nanobody of the Invention and at least one other Nanobody) will be referred to herein as “multivalent” proteins or polypeptides or as “multivalent constructs”, and these may provide certain advantages compared to the corresponding monovalent Nanobodies of the invention.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises or essentially consists of at least two Nanobodies of the invention, such as two or three Nanobodies of the invention.
- multivalent constructs can provide certain advantages compared to a protein or polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of a single Nanobody of the invention, such as a much improved affinity and/or specificity for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises or essentially consists of at least one Nanobody of the invention and at least one other Nanobody (i.e. directed against another epitope, antigen, target, protein or polypeptide).
- Such proteins or polypeptides are also referred to herein as "multispecific” proteins or polypeptides or as 'multispecific constructs", and these may provide certain advantages compared to the corresponding monovalent Nanobodies of the invention. Again, some non-limiting examples of such multispecific constructs will become clear from the further description herein.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises or essentially consists of at least one Nanobody of the invention, optionally one or more further Nanobodies, and at least one other amino acid sequence (such as a protein or polypeptide) that confers at least one desired property to the Nanobody of the invention and/or to the resulting fusion protein.
- at least one other amino acid sequence such as a protein or polypeptide
- such fusion proteins may provide certain advantages compared to the corresponding monovalent Nanobodies of the invention.
- the one or more Nanobodies and/or other amino acid sequences may be directly linked or linked via one or more linker sequences.
- linker sequences Some suitable but non-limiting examples of such linkers will become clear from the further description herein.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises one or more (such as two or preferably one) Nanobodies of the invention linked (optionally via one or more suitable linker sequences) to one or more (such as two and preferably one) amino acid sequences that allow the resulting polypeptide of the invention to cross the blood brain barrier.
- said one or more amino acid sequences that allow the resulting polypeptides of the invention to cross the blood brain barrier may be one or more (such as two and preferably one) Nanobodies, such as the Nanobodies described in WO 02/057445, of which FC44 (SEQ ID NO: 35) and FC5 (SEQ ID NO:36) are some preferred non-limiting examples.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises one or more (such as two or preferably one) Nanobodies of the invention linked (optionally via one or more suitable linker sequences) to one or more (such as two and preferably one) amino acid sequences that confer an increased half-life in vivo to the resulting polypeptide of the invention.
- said amino acid sequences that confer an increased half-life in vivo to the resulting polypeptide of the invention may be one or more (such as two and preferably one) Nanobodies, and in particular Nanobodies directed against a human serum protein such as human serum albumin, of which PMP6A6 ("ALB-I", SEQ ID NO: 32), ALB-8 (a humanized version of ALB-I, SEQ ID NO:33) and PMP6A8 ("ALB-2", SEQ ID NO: 34) are some preferred non-limiting examples.
- PMP6A6 ("ALB-I", SEQ ID NO: 32), ALB-8 (a humanized version of ALB-I, SEQ ID NO:33) and PMP6A8 (“ALB-2", SEQ ID NO: 34) are some preferred non-limiting examples.
- ALB-I human serum protein
- ALB-8 a humanized version of ALB-I, SEQ ID NO:33
- PMP6A8 ALB-2", SEQ ID NO: 34
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises one or more (such as two or preferably one) Nanobodies of the invention, one or more (such as two and preferably one) amino acid sequences that allow the resulting polypeptide of the invention to cross the blood brain barrier, and one or more (such as two and preferably one) amino acid sequences that confer an increased half-life in vivo to the resulting polypeptide of the invention (optionally linked via one or more suitable linker sequences).
- said one or more amino acid sequences that allow the resulting polypeptides of the invention to cross the blood brain barrier may be one or more (such as two and preferably one) Nanobodies (as mentioned herein), and said amino acid sequences that confer an increased half-life in vivo to the resulting polypeptide of the invention may be one or more (such as two and preferably one) Nanobodies (also as mentioned herein).
- the polypeptides of the invention are preferably such that they bind to EGFR or IGF-IR with an dissociation constant (K D ) of 10 ⁇ 5 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 "7 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M "1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M "1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the polypeptide of the invention against EGFR or IGF-IR can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- polypeptides of the invention are the polypeptides of SEQ ID NO's: 110-143, in which:
- SEQ ID NO's: 134-135 are some examples of multivalent (and in particular bivalent) polypeptides of the invention against IGF-IR;
- SEQ ID NO's: 110-133 and 141-143 are some examples of multivalent (and in particular bivalent) polypeptides of the invention against EGFR; - of these, SEQ ID NO's: 141-143 are some examples of multivalent (and in particular bivalent) biparatopic polypeptides of the invention against EGFR; SEQ ID NO's: 136-140 are some examples of bispecific polypeptides of the invention, comprising one Nanobody against EGFR and one Nanobody against IGF-
- polypeptides of the invention may for example be chosen from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have more than 80%, preferably more than 90%, more preferably more than 95%, such as 99% or more "sequence identity" (as defined herein) with one or more of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's: 110-143, in which the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's: 110-143, in which the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's: 110-143, in which the
- Nanobodies comprised within said amino acid sequences are preferably as defined herein.
- the invention relates to a nucleic acid that encodes a Nanobody of the invention and/or a polypeptide of the invention.
- a nucleic acid will also be referred to herein as a "nucleic acid of the invention' ' ' and may for example be in the form of a genetic construct, as defined herein.
- the invention relates to host or host cell that expresses or that is capable of expressing a Nanobody of the invention and/or a polypeptide of the invention; and/or that contains a nucleic acid of the invention.
- the invention further relates to a product or composition containing or comprising at least one Nanobody of the invention, at least one polypeptide of the invention and/or at least one nucleic acid of the invention, and optionally one or more further components of such compositions known per se, i.e. depending on the intended use of the composition.
- a product or composition may for example be a pharmaceutical composition (as described herein), a veterinary composition or a product or composition for diagnostic use (as also described herein).
- Some preferred but non-limiting examples of such products or compositions will become clear from the further description herein.
- the invention further relates to methods for preparing or generating the Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids, host cells, products and compositions described herein. Some preferred but non-limiting examples of such methods will become clear from the further description herein.
- the invention further relates to applications and uses of the Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids, host cells, products and compositions described herein, as well as to methods for the prevention and/or treatment for diseases and disorders associated with EGFR or IGF-
- immunoglobulin sequence whether it used herein to refer to a heavy chain antibody or to a conventional 4-chain antibody - is used as a general term to include both the full-size antibody, the individual chains thereof, as well as all parts, domains or fragments thereof (including but not limited to antigen- binding domains or fragments such as VHH domains or VH/VL domains, respectively).
- sequence as used herein (for example in terms like “immunoglobulin sequence”, “antibody sequence”, “variable domain sequence”, “VHH sequence” or “protein sequence”), should generally be understood to include both the relevant amino acid sequence as well as nucleic acid sequences or nucleotide sequences encoding the same, unless the context requires a more limited interpretation; c) Unless indicated otherwise, all methods, steps, techniques and manipulations that are not specifically described in detail can be performed and have been performed in a manner known per se, as will be clear to the skilled person. Reference is for example again made to the standard handbooks and the general background art mentioned herein and to the further references cited therein; d) Amino acid residues will be indicated according to the standard three-letter or one- letter amino acid code, as mentioned in Table A-2;
- an amino acid residue is referred to in this Table as being either charged or uncharged at pH 6.0 to 7.0 does not reflect in any way on the charge said amino acid residue may have at a pH lower than 6.0 and/or at a pH higher than 7.0; the amino acid residues mentioned in the Table can be either charged and/or uncharged at such a higher or lower pH, as will be clear to the skilled person.
- the percentage of "sequence identity" between a first nucleotide sequence and a second nucleotide sequence may be calculated by dividing [the number of nucleotides in the first nucleotide sequence that are identical to the nucleotides at the corresponding positions in the second nucleotide sequence] by [the total number of nucleotides in the first nucleotide sequence] and multiplying by [100%], in which each deletion, insertion, substitution or addition of a nucleotide in the second nucleotide sequence - compared to the first nucleotide sequence - is considered as a difference at a single nucleotide
- the degree of sequence identity between two or more nucleotide sequences may be calculated using a known computer algorithm for sequence alignment such as NCBI Blast v2.0, using standard settings.
- a known computer algorithm for sequence alignment such as NCBI Blast v2.0
- Some other techniques, computer algorithms and settings for determining the degree of sequence identity are for example described in WO 04/037999, EP 0 967 284, EP 1 085 089, WO 00/55318, WO 00/78972, WO 98/49185 and GB 2 357 768-A.
- the nucleotide sequence with the greatest number of nucleotides will be taken as the "first" nucleotide sequence, and the other nucleotide sequence will be taken as the "second" nucleotide sequence;
- the percentage of "sequence identity" between a first amino acid sequence and a second amino acid sequence may be calculated by dividing ⁇ the number of amino acid residues in the first amino acid sequence that are identical to the amino acid residues at the corresponding positions in the second amino acid sequence] by [the total number of amino acids in the first amino acid sequence] and multiplying by [100%], in which each deletion, insertion, substitution or addition of an amino acid residue in the second amino acid sequence - compared to the first amino acid sequence - is considered as a difference at a single amino acid residue (position), i.e
- the degree of sequence identity between two amino acid sequences may be calculated using a known computer algorithm, such as those mentioned above for determining the degree of sequence identity for nucleotide sequences, again using standard settings.
- a known computer algorithm such as those mentioned above for determining the degree of sequence identity for nucleotide sequences, again using standard settings.
- the amino acid sequence with the greatest number of amino acid residues will be taken as the "first" amino acid sequence, and the other amino acid sequence will be taken as the "second" amino acid sequence.
- amino acid substitutions which can generally be described as amino acid substitutions in which an amino acid residue is replaced with another amino acid residue of similar chemical structure and which has little or essentially no influence on the function, activity or other biological properties of the polypeptide.
- Such conservative amino acid substitutions are well known in the art, for example from WO 04/037999, GB-A-2 357 768, WO 98/49185, WO 00/46383 and WO 01/09300; and (preferred) types and/or combinations of such substitutions may be selected on the basis of the pertinent teachings from WO 04/037999 as well as WO 98/49185 and from the further references cited therein.
- Such conservative substitutions preferably are substitutions in which one amino acid within the following groups (a) - (e) is substituted by another amino acid residue within the same group: (a) small aliphatic, nonpolar or slightly polar residues: Ala, Ser, Thr, Pro and GIy; (b) polar, negatively charged residues and their (uncharged) amides: Asp, Asn, GIu and GIn; (c) polar, positively charged residues: His, Arg and Lys; (d) large aliphatic, nonpolar residues: Met, Leu, He, VaI and Cys; and (e) aromatic residues: Phe, Tyr and Trp.
- Particularly preferred conservative substitutions are as follows: Ala into GIy or into Ser; Arg into Lys; Asn into GIn or into His; Asp into GIu; Cys into Ser; GIn into Asn; GIu into Asp; GIy into Ala or into Pro; His into Asn or into GIn; He into Leu or into VaI; Leu into He or into VaI; Lys into Arg, into GIn or into GIu; Met into Leu, into Tyr or into He; Phe into Met, into Leu or into Tyr; Ser into Thr; Thr into Ser; Trp into Tyr; Tyr into Trp; and/or Phe into VaI, into He or into Leu.
- Any amino acid substitutions applied to the polypeptides described herein may also be based on the analysis of the frequencies of amino acid variations between homologous proteins of different species developed by Schulz et al., Principles of Protein Structure, Springer- Verlag, 1978, on the analyses of structure forming potentials developed by Chou and Fasman, Biochemistry 13: 211, 1974 and Adv.
- the crystal structure of a VHH domain from a llama is for example given by Desmyter et al., Nature Structural Biology, Vol. 3, 9, 803 (1996); Spinelli et al., Natural Structural Biology (1996); 3, 752-757; and Decanniere et al., Structure, Vol. 7, 4, 361 (1999). Further information about some of the amino acid residues that in conventional
- VH domains form the VH/VL interface and about potential camelizing substitutions on these positions is described in WO 94/04678, WO 96/34103, WO 03/035694, Muyldermans et al., Protein Eng. 1994 Sep; 7(9): 1129-3, Davies and Riechmann (1994 and 1996).
- amino acid difference refers to an insertion, deletion or substitution of a single amino acid residue on a position of the first sequence, compared to the second sequence; it being understood that two amino acid sequences can contain one, two or more such amino acid differences;
- a nucleic acid sequence or amino acid sequence is considered to be "(in) essentially isolated (form)" - for example, compared to its native biological source and/or the reaction medium or cultivation medium from which it has been obtained - when it has been separated from at least one other component with which it is usually associated in said source or medium, such as another nucleic acid, another protein/polypeptide, another biological component or macromolecule or at least one contaminant, impurity or minor component.
- a nucleic acid sequence or amino acid sequence is considered “essentially isolated” when it has been purified at least 2-fold, in particular at least 10-fold, more in particular at least 100-fold, and up to 1000-fold or more.
- a nucleic acid sequence or amino acid sequence that is "in essentially isolated form” is preferably essentially homogeneous, as determined using a suitable technique, such as a suitable chromatographical technique, such as polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis; j)
- domain as used herein generally refers to a globular region of an antibody chain, and in particular to a globular region of a heavy chain antibody, or to a polypeptide that essentially consists of such a globular region.
- Such a domain will comprise peptide loops (for example 3 or 4 peptide loops) stabilized, for example, as a sheet or by disulfide bonds.
- 'antigenic determinant' refers to the epitope on the antigen recognized by the antigen-binding molecule (such as a Nanobody or a polypeptide of the invention) and more in particular by the antigen-binding site of said molecule.
- the terms "antigenic determinant” and “epitope' may also be used interchangeably herein.
- An amino acid sequence (such as a Nanobody, an antibody, a polypeptide of the invention, or generally an antigen binding protein or polypeptide or a fragment thereof) that can bind to, that has affinity for and/or that has specificity for a specific antigenic determinant, epitope, antigen or protein (or for at least one part, fragment or epitope thereof) is said to be "against” or “directed against” said antigenic determinant, epitope, antigen or protein.
- the term “specificity” refers to the number of different types of antigens or antigenic determinants to which a particular antigen-binding molecule or antigen-binding protein (such as a Nanobody or a polypeptide of the invention) molecule can bind.
- the specificity of an antigen-binding protein can be determined based on affinity and/or avidity.
- the affinity represented by the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of an antigen with an antigen-binding protein (KD), is a measure for the binding strength between an antigenic determinant and an antigen-binding site on the antigen-binding protein: the lesser the value of the KD, the stronger the binding strength between an antigenic determinant and the antigen-binding molecule (alternatively, the affinity can also be expressed as the affinity constant (K A ), which is 1/KD).
- affinity can be determined in a manner known per se, depending on the specific antigen of interest.
- Avidity is the measure of the strength of binding between an antigen-binding molecule (such as a Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention) and the pertinent antigen. Avidity is related to both the affinity between an antigenic determinant and its antigen binding site on the antigen-binding molecule and the number of pertinent binding sites present on the antigen-binding molecule.
- antigen-binding proteins such as the Nanobodies and/or polypeptides of the invention
- KD dissociation constant
- 10 10 "5 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 "7 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 "12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M "1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 .
- KD dissociation constant
- Any KD value greater than 10 ⁇ liters/mol is generally considered to indicate non-specific binding.
- a Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention will bind to the desired antigen with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- Specific binding of an antigen-binding protein to an antigen or antigenic determinant can be determined in any suitable manner known per se, including, for example, Scatchard analysis and/or competitive binding assays, such as radioimmunoassays (RIA), enzyme immunoassays (EIA) and sandwich competition assays, and the different variants thereof known per se in the art.
- the amino acid sequence and structure of a Nanobody can be considered - without however being limited thereto - to be comprised of four framework regions or "FR's", which are referred to in the art and herein as "Framework region 1" or "FRl”; as “Framework region 2" or “FR2”; as “Framework region 3" or
- FR3 Framework region 4" or “FR4", respectively; which framework regions are interrupted by three complementary determining regions or “CDR's”, which are referred to in the art as “Complementarity Determining Region l”or “CDRl”; as “Complementarity Determining Region 2" or “CDR2”; and as “Complementarity Determining Region 3” or “CDR3”, respectively; o)
- the total number of amino acid residues in a Nanobody can be in the region of 110-120, is preferably 112-1 15, and is most preferably 1 13.
- parts, fragments, analogs or derivatives (as further described herein) of a Nanobody are not particularly limited as to their length and/or size, as long as such parts, fragments, analogs or derivatives meet the further requirements outlined herein and are also preferably suitable for the purposes described herein; p)
- the amino acid residues of a Nanobody are numbered according to the general numbering for VH domains given by Kabat et al. ("Sequence of proteins of immunological interest", US Public Health Services, NIH Bethesda, MD, Publication No. 91), as applied to VHH domains from Camelids in the article of Riechmann and Muyldermans, referred to herein (see for example Figure 2 of said reference).
- FRl of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 1-30
- CDRl of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 31-35
- FR2 of a Nanobody comprises the amino acids at positions 36-49
- CDR2 of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 50-65
- FR3 of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 66-94
- CDR3 of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 95-102
- FR4 of a Nanobody comprises the amino acid residues at positions 103-113.
- the total number of amino acid residues in each of the CDR's may vary and may not correspond to the total number of amino acid residues indicated by the Kabat numbering (that is, one or more positions according to the Kabat numbering may not be occupied in the actual sequence, or the actual sequence may contain more amino acid residues than the number allowed for by the Kabat numbering).
- the numbering according to Kabat may or may not correspond to the actual numbering of the amino acid residues in the actual sequence.
- position 1 according to the Kabat numbering corresponds to the start of FRl and vice versa
- position 36 according to the Kabat numbering corresponds to the start of FR2 and vice versa
- position 66 according to the Kabat numbering corresponds to the start of FR3 and vice versa
- position 103 according to the Kabat numbering corresponds to the start of FR4 and vice versa.
- variable domains present in naturally occurring heavy chain antibodies will also be referred to as "V HH domains", in order to distinguish them from the heavy chain variable domains that are present in conventional 4-chain antibodies (which will be referred to hereinbelow as “VH domains”) and from the light chain variable domains that are present in conventional 4-chain antibodies (which will be referred to hereinbelow as "VL domains").
- VHH domains have a number of unique structural characteristics and functional properties which make isolated VHH domains (as well as Nanobodies based thereon, which share these structural characteristics and functional properties with the naturally occurring VHH domains) and proteins containing the same highly advantageous for use as functional antigen-binding domains or proteins.
- VHH domains which have been "designed" by nature to functionally bind to an antigen without the presence of, and without any interaction with, a light chain variable domain
- Nanobodies can function as a single, relatively small, functional antigen-binding structural unit, domain or protein.
- VHH domains from the VH and VL domains of conventional 4-chain antibodies, which by themselves are generally not suited for practical application as single antigen-binding proteins or domains, but need to be combined in some form or another to provide a functional antigen-binding unit (as in for example conventional antibody fragments such as Fab fragments; in ScFv's fragments, which consist of a VH domain covalently linked to a VL domain).
- a functional antigen-binding unit as in for example conventional antibody fragments such as Fab fragments; in ScFv's fragments, which consist of a VH domain covalently linked to a VL domain.
- VHH domains and Nanobodies as single antigen-binding proteins or as antigen-binding domains (i.e. as part of a larger protein or polypeptide) offers a number of significant advantages over the use of conventional VH and VL domains, scFv's or conventional antibody fragments (such as Fab- or F(ab') 2 -fragments): only a single domain is required to bind an antigen with high affinity and with high selectivity, so that there is no need to have two separate domains present, nor to assure that these two domains are present in the right spacial conformation and configuration (i.e. through the use of especially designed linkers, as with scFv's); - VHH domains and Nanobodies can be expressed from a single gene and require no post- translational folding or modifications;
- VHH domains and Nanobodies can easily be engineered into multivalent and multispecific formats (as further discussed herein);
- VHH domains and Nanobodies are highly soluble and do not have a tendency to aggregate (as with the mouse-derived antigen-binding domains described by Ward et al., Nature, Vol. 341, 1989, p. 544);
- VHH domains and Nanobodies are highly stable to heat, pH, proteases and other denaturing agents or conditions (see for example Ewert et al, supra); VHH domains and Nanobodies are easy and relatively cheap to prepare, even on a scale required for production.
- VHH domains, Nanobodies and proteins/polypeptides containing the same can be produced using microbial fermentation (e.g.
- VHH domains and Nanobodies are relatively small (approximately 15 kDa, or 10 times smaller than a conventional IgG) compared to conventional 4-chain antibodies and antigen-binding fragments thereof, and therefore show high(er) penetration into tissues (including but not limited to solid tumors and other dense tissues) than such conventional 4-chain antibodies and antigen-binding fragments thereof; V HH domains and Nanobodies can show so-called cavity-binding properties (inter alia due to their extended CDR3 loop, compared to conventional V H domains) and can therefore also access targets and epitopes not accessable to conventional 4-chain antibodies and antigen-binding fragments thereof. For example, it has been shown that V HH domains and Nanobodies can inhibit enzymes (see for example WO 97/49805;
- the invention generally relates to Nanobodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, as well as to polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of one or more of such Nanobodies, that can be used for the prophylactic, therapeutic and/or diagnostic purposes described herein.
- the invention further relates to nucleic acids encoding such Nanobodies and polypeptides, to methods for preparing such Nanobodies and polypeptides, to host cells expressing or capable of expressing such Nanobodies or polypeptides, to compositions comprising such Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids or host cells, and to uses of such Nanobodies, polypeptides, nucleic acids, host cells or compositions.
- the term Nanobody as used herein in its broadest sense is not limited to a specific biological source or to a specific method of preparation.
- the Nanobodies of the invention can generally be obtained: (1) by isolating the V HH domain of a naturally occurring heavy chain antibody; (2) by expression of a nucleotide sequence encoding a naturally occurring V HH domain; (3) by "humanization” (as described herein) of a naturally occurring V HH domain or by expression of a nucleic acid encoding a such humanized V HH domain; (4) by "camelization” (as described herein) of a naturally occurring V H domain from any animal species, and in particular a from species of mammal, such as from a human being, or by expression of a nucleic acid encoding such a camelized V H domain; (5) by "camelisation” of a "domain antibody” or “Dab” as described by Ward et al (su).
- V HH sequences corresponds to the V HH domains of naturally occurring heavy chain antibodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- V HH sequences can generally be generated or obtained by suitably immunizing a species of Camelid with EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, (i.e. so as to raise an immune response and/or heavy chain antibodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,), by obtaining a suitable biological sample from said Camelid (such as a blood sample, serum sample or sample of B-cells), and by generating V HH sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, starting from said sample, using any suitable technique known per se. Such techniques will be clear to the skilled person and/or are further described herein.
- V HH domains against EGFR or IGF-IR can be obtained from naive libraries of Camelid V HH sequences, for example by screening such a library using EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or at least one part, fragment, antigenic determinant or epitope thereof using one or more screening techniques known per se.
- libraries and techniques are for example described in WO 99/37681, WO 01/90190, WO 03/025020 and WO 03/035694.
- V HH libraries obtained from naive V HH libraries may be used, such as V HH libraries obtained from naive V HH libraries by techniques such as random mutagenesis and/or CDR shuffling, as for example described in WO 00/43507.
- Yet another technique for obtaining V HH sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively involves suitably immunizing a transgenic mammal that is capable of expressing heavy chain antibodies (i.e. so as to raise an immune response and/or heavy chain antibodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,), obtaining a suitable biological sample from said transgenic mammal (such as a blood sample, serum sample or sample of B-cells), and then generating V HH sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, starting from said sample, using any suitable technique known per se.
- a suitable biological sample such as a blood sample, serum sample or sample of B-cells
- V HH sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, starting from said sample, using any suitable technique known per se.
- the heavy chain antibody-expressing mice and the further methods and techniques described in WO 02/085945 and in WO 04/049794 can be used.
- a particularly preferred class of Nanobodies of the invention comprises Nanobodies with an amino acid sequence that corresponds to the amino acid sequence of a naturally occurring V HH domain, but that has been "humanized” , i.e. by replacing one or more amino acid residues in the amino acid sequence of said naturally occurring V HH sequence (and in particular in the framework sequences) by one or more of the amino acid residues that occur at the corresponding position(s) in a V H domain from a conventional 4-chain antibody from a human being (e.g. indicated above).
- This can be performed in a manner known per se, which will be clear to the skilled person, for example on the basis of the further description herein and the prior art on humanization referred to herein.
- Nanobodies of the invention can be obtained in any suitable manner known per se (i.e. as indicated under points (1) - (8) above) and thus are not strictly limited to polypeptides that have been obtained using a polypeptide that comprises a naturally occurring V HH domain as a starting material.
- Nanobodies of the invention comprises Nanobodies with an amino acid sequence that corresponds to the amino acid sequence of a naturally occurring V H domain, but that has been "camelized", i.e. by replacing one or more amino acid residues in the amino acid sequence of a naturally occurring V H domain from a conventional 4-chain antibody by one or more of the amino acid residues that occur at the corresponding position(s) in a V HH domain of a heavy chain antibody.
- This can be performed in a manner known per se, which will be clear to the skilled person, for example on the basis of the further description herein.
- the V H sequence that is used as a starting material or starting point for generating or designing the camelized Nanobody is preferably a V H sequence from a mammal, more preferably the V H sequence of a human being, such as a V H 3 sequence.
- camelized Nanobodies of the invention can be obtained in any suitable manner known per se (i.e. as indicated under points (1) — (8) above) and thus are not strictly limited to polypeptides that have been obtained using a polypeptide that comprises a naturally occurring V H domain as a starting material.
- both “humanization” and “camelization” can be performed by providing a nucleotide sequence that encodes a naturally occurring V HH domain or V H domain, respectively, and then changing, in a manner known per se, one or more codons in said nucleotide sequence in such a way that the new nucleotide sequence encodes a "humanized” or “camelized” Nanobody of the invention, respectively.
- This nucleic acid can then be expressed in a manner known per se, so as to provide the desired Nanobody of the invention.
- the amino acid sequence of the desired humanized or camelized Nanobody of the invention can be designed and then synthesized de novo using techniques for peptide synthesis known per se.
- a nucleotide sequence encoding the desired humanized or camelized Nanobody of the invention can be designed and then synthesized de novo using techniques for nucleic acid synthesis known per se, after which the nucleic acid thus obtained can be expressed in a manner known per se, so as to provide the desired Nanobody of the invention.
- Nanobodies of the invention and/or nucleic acids encoding the same starting from naturally occurring VH sequences or preferably VHH sequences, will be clear from the skilled person, and may for example comprise combining one or more parts of one or more naturally occurring V H sequences (such as one or more FR sequences and/or CDR sequences), one or more parts of one or more naturally occurring VHH sequences (such as one or more FR sequences or CDR sequences), and/or one or more synthetic or semi-synthetic sequences, in a suitable manner, so as to provide a Nanobody of the invention or a nucleotide sequence or nucleic acid encoding the same.
- V H sequences such as one or more FR sequences and/or CDR sequences
- synthetic or semi-synthetic sequences such as one or more synthetic or semi-synthetic sequences
- a Nanobody in its broadest sense can be generally defined as a polypeptide comprising:
- amino acid sequence that is comprised of four framework regions/sequences interrupted by three complementarity determining regions/sequences, in which the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is a charged amino acid (as defined herein) or a cysteine residue, and position 44 is preferably an E; and/or:
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which
- the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is a charged amino acid or a cysteine and the amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is preferably E; and/or in which:
- amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of P, R and S, and is in particular chosen from the group consisting of R and S; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- Nanobody in its broadest sense can be generally defined as a polypeptide comprising:
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which
- amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of P, R and S, and is in particular chosen from the group consisting of R and S; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- Nanobody against EGFR or IGF-IR may have the structure:
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which (a) the amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is Q; and/or in which:
- the amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is E and in which the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is an R; and/or in which: (c) the amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of P, R and S, and is in particular chosen from the group consisting of R and S; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody can generally be defined as a polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence that is comprised of four framework regions/sequences interrupted by three complementarity determining regions/sequences, in which;
- amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of A, G, E, D, G, Q, R, S, L; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of G, E or Q; and
- amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of L, R or C; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of
- amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of W, R or S; and is preferably W or R, and is most preferably W;
- amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is Q; or in which: (b-1) the amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of E and Q; and
- (b-2) the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is R; and (b-3) the amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of W, R and S; and is preferably W;
- amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of Q and L; and is preferably Q; or in which:
- amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of A, G, E, D, Q, R, S and L; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of G, E and Q; and (c-2) the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of L, R and C; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of L and R; and
- amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of P, R and S; and is in particular chosen from the group consisting of R and S; and
- amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of Q and L; is preferably Q; and in which
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which:
- amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of A, G, E, D, G, Q, R, S, L; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of G, E or Q; and in which:
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which: (a) the amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of E and Q; and in which: (b) the amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is R; and in which: (c) the amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of W, R and S; and is preferably W; and in which: (d) the amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of Q and L; and is preferably Q; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure FRl - CDRl - FR2 - CDR2 - FR3 - CDR3 - FR4
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which: (a) the amino acid residue at position 44 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of A, G, E, D, Q, R, S and L; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of G, E and Q; and in which:
- amino acid residue at position 45 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of L, R and C; and is preferably chosen from the group consisting of L and R; and in which:
- amino acid residue at position 103 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of P, R and S; and is in particular chosen from the group consisting of R and S; and in which:
- the amino acid residue at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering is chosen from the group consisting of Q and L; is preferably Q; and in which: (e) CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- Nanobodies of the invention are those according to a) above; according to (a-1) to (a-4) above; according to b) above; according to (b-1) to (b-4) above; according to (c) above; and/or according to (c-1) to (c-4) above, in which; a) the amino acid residues at positions 44-47 according to the Kabat numbering form the sequence GLEW (or a GLEW-like sequence as defined herein) and the amino acid residue at position 108 is Q or L; or in which: b) the amino acid residues at positions 43-46 according to the Kabat numbering form the sequence KERE or KQRE (or a KERE-like sequence) and the amino acid residue at position 108 is Q or L, and is preferably Q.
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention may have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- the amino acid residue at position 37 is most preferably F.
- the amino acid residue at position 37 is chosen from the group consisting of Y, H, I, L, V or F, and is most preferably V.
- the Nanobodies of the invention can generally be classified on the basis of the following three groups: a) The "GLEW-group”: Nanobodies with the amino acid sequence GLEW at positions 44- 47 according to the Kabat numbering and Q or L at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering. As further described herein, Nanobodies within this group usually have a V at position 37, and can have a W, P, R or S at position 103, and preferably have a W at position 103.
- the GLEW group also comprises some GLEW-like sequences such as those mentioned in Table A-3 below;
- the "KERE-group” Nanobodies with the amino acid sequence KERE or KQRE at positions 43-46 according to the Kabat numbering and Q or L at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering.
- Nanobodies within this group usually have a F at position 37, an L or F at position 47; and can have a W, P, R or S at position 103, and preferably have a W at position 103;
- the "103 P, R, S-group” Nanobodies with a P, R or S at position 103.
- Nanobodies can have either the amino acid sequence GLEW at positions 44-47 of the Kabat numbering or the amino acid sequence KERE or KQRE at positions 43-46 according to the Kabat numbering, the latter most preferably in combination with an F at position 37 and an L or an F at position 47 (as defined for the KERE-group); and can have Q or L at position 108 according to the Kabat numbering, and preferably have Q.
- a Nanobody of the invention may be a Nanobody belonging to the GLEW-group (as defined herein), and in which CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- Nanobody of the invention may be a
- Nanobody belonging to the KERE-group (as defined herein), and CDRl , CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention may be a Nanobody belonging to the 103 P, R, S-group (as defined herein), and in which CDRl,
- CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- the Nanobodies of the invention can contain, at one or more positions that in a conventional V H domain would form (part of) the V H /V L interface, one or more amino acid residues that are more highly charged than the amino acid residues that naturally occur at the same position(s) in the corresponding naturally occurring V H sequence, and in particular one or more charged amino acid residues (as mentioned in Table A-2).
- substitutions include, but are not limited to, the GLEW-like sequences mentioned in Table A-3 below; as well as the substitutions that are described in the International Application WO 00/29004 for so-called "microbodies", e.g. so as to obtain a Nanobody with Q at position 108 in combination with KLEW at positions 44-47.
- Other possible substitutions at these positions will be clear to the skilled person based upon the disclosure herein.
- the amino acid residue at position 83 is chosen from the group consisting of L, M, S, V and W; and is preferably L.
- the amino acid residue at position 83 is chosen from the group consisting of R, K, N, E, G, I, T and Q; and is most preferably either K or E (for Nanobodies corresponding to naturally occurring V HH domains) or R (for "humanized” Nanobodies, as described herein).
- the amino acid residue at position 83 is chosen from the group consisting of R, K, N, E, G, I, T and Q; and is most preferably either K or E (for Nanobodies corresponding to naturally occurring V HH domains) or R (for "humanized” Nanobodies, as described herein).
- 84 is chosen from the group consisting of P, A, R, S, D T, and V in one embodiment, and is most preferably P (for Nanobodies corresponding to naturally occurring V HH domains) or R (for "humanized” Nanobodies, as described herein).
- the amino acid residue at position 104 is chosen from the group consisting of G and D; and is most preferably G.
- the amino acid residues at positions 11, 37, 44, 45, 47, 83, 84, 103, 104 and 108, which in the Nanobodies are as mentioned above, will also be referred to herein as the "Hallmark Residues".
- the Hallmark Residues and the amino acid residues at the corresponding positions of the most closely related human VH domain, V H 3, are summarized in Table A-3. Some especially preferred but non-limiting combinations of these Hallmark Residues as occur in naturally occurring VH H domains are mentioned in Table A-4.
- the corresponding amino acid residues of the human V H 3 called DP-47 have been indicated in italics.
- Table A-4 Some preferred but non-limiting combinations of Hallmark Residues in naturally occurring Nanobodies.
- each amino acid residue at any other position than the Hallmark Residues can be any amino acid residue that naturally occurs at the corresponding position (according to the Kabat numbering) of a naturally occurring VHH domain.
- Table A-5 also contains data on the V HH entropy ("V HH Ent ”) and V HH variability ("V HH Var.”) at each amino acid position for a representative sample of 1118 V HH sequences (data kindly provided by David Lutje Hulsing and Prof. Theo Verrips of Utrecht University).
- the values for the V HH entropy and the V HH variability provide a measure for the variability and degree of conservation of amino acid residues between the 1118 V HH sequences analyzed: low values (i.e. ⁇ 1, such as ⁇ 0.5) indicate that an amino acid residue is highly conserved between the V HH sequences (i.e. little variability).
- the G at position 8 and the G at position 9 have values for the VH H entropy of 0.1 and 0 respectively, indicating that these residues are highly conserved and have little variability (and in case of position 9 is G in all 1118 sequences analysed), whereas for residues that form part of the CDR's generally values of 1.5 or more are found (data not shown).
- Table A-5 Non-limiting examples of amino acid residues in FRl (for the footnotes, see the footnotes to Table A-3)
- Table A-7 Non-limiting examples of amino acid residues in FR3 (for the footnotes, see the footnotes to Table A-3)
- Table A-8 Non-limiting examples of amino acid residues in FR4 (for the footnotes, see the footnotes to Table A-3)
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which: (a) the Hallmark residues are as defined herein; and in which: (b) CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively,and in which: (a) FRl is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(
- FR2 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(
- FR3 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence: OJ
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein; in which the Hallmark Residues are indicated by "X" and are as defined hereinabove and in which the numbers between brackets refer to the amino acid positions according to the Kabat numbering.
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which: (a) FRl is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residue at position 11 is as indicated in the sequence above; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/
- FR2 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 37, 44, 45 and 47 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 83 and 84 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 103, 104 and 108 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 103, 104 and 108 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which:
- FRl is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residue at position 11 is as indicated in the sequence above; and in which:
- FR2 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 37, 44, 45 and 47 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- FR3 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 83 and 84 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- FR4 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences: [103] WGQGTQVTVSS [113] [SEQ ID NO: 13]
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 103, 104 and 108 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which: (a) FRl is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residue at position 11 is as indicated in the sequence above; and in which:
- FR2 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 37, 44, 45 and 47 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- FR3 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 83 and 84 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- FR4 is chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequence:
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s); and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 103, 104 and 108 are as indicated in each of the sequences above; and in which:
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- a Nanobody of the invention can have the structure
- FRl - CDRl - FR2 - CDR2 - FR3 - CDR3 - FR4 in which FRl to FR4 refer to framework regions 1 to 4, respectively, and in which CDRl to CDR3 refer to the complementarity determining regions 1 to 3, respectively, and in which:
- FRl is chosen from the group consisting of the FRl sequences present in the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 or 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said FRl sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-5; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to said FRl sequence; and iii) the Hallmark residue at position 1 1 is as indicated in said FRl sequence; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein)
- FR2 is chosen from the group consisting of the FR2 sequences present in the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 or 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said FR2 sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-6; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to said FR2 sequence; and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 37, 44, 45 and 47 are as indicated in said FR2 sequence; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (
- FR3 is chosen from the group consisting of the FR3 sequences present in the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 or 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said FR3 sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-7; and/or ⁇ ) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to said FR3 sequence; and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 83 and 84 are as indicated in said FR3 sequence; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined
- FR4 is chosen from the group consisting of the FR4 sequences present in the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 or 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said FR4 sequences; in which i) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Table A-8; and/or ii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to said FR4 sequence; and iii) the Hallmark residues at positions 103, 104 and 108 are as indicated in said FR3 sequence; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)"
- CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein, and are preferably as defined according to one of the preferred embodiments herein, and are more preferably as defined according to one of the more preferred embodiments herein.
- Some particularly preferred Nanobodies of the invention can be chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's: 80-93 and 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said amino acid sequences; in which /O
- the Hallmark residues can be as indicated in Table A-3 above; ii) any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Tables A-5 - A-8; and/or iii) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequence(s).
- Nanobodies of the invention can be chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or 106-109, respectively, or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of said amino acid sequences; in which
- Hallmark residues are as indicated in the pertinent sequence from SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or 106-109;
- any amino acid substitution at any position other than a Hallmark position is preferably either a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein) and/or an amino acid substitution as defined in Tables A-5 — A-8; and/or
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the pertinent sequence chosen from SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or 106-109.
- Nanobodies of the invention against EGFR and IGF-IR can be chosen from the group consisting of the amino acid sequences of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or 106-109, respectively.
- the CDR sequences and FR sequences in the Nanobodies of the invention are such that the Nanobody of the invention binds to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an dissociation constant (KD) of 10 "5 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 "7 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 "12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M “1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the Nanobody of the invention against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- a Nanobody may be as defined herein, but with the proviso that it has at least "one amino acid difference" (as defined herein) in at least one of the framework regions compared to the corresponding framework region of a naturally occurring human VH domain, and in particular compared to the corresponding framework region of DP-47.
- a Nanobody may be as defined herein, but with the proviso that it has at least "one amino acid difference" (as defined herein) at at least one of the Hallmark residues (including those at positions 108, 103 and/or 45) compared to the corresponding framework region of a naturally occurring human VH domain, and in particular compared to the corresponding framework region of DP-47.
- a Nanobody will have at least one such amino acid difference with a naturally occurring VH domain in at least one of FR2 and/or FR4, and in particular at at least one of the Hallmark residues in FR2 and/or FR4 (again, including those at positions 108, 103 and/or 45).
- a humanized Nanobody of the invention may be as defined herein, but with the proviso that it has at least "one amino acid difference" (as defined herein) in at least one of the framework regions compared to the corresponding framework region of a naturally occurring VHH domain. More specifically, according to one non-limiting aspect of the invention, a Nanobody may be as defined herein, but with the proviso that it has at least "one amino acid difference” (as defined herein) at at least one of the Hallmark residues (including those at positions 108, 103 and/or 45) compared to the corresponding framework region of a naturally occurring VHH domain.
- a Nanobody will have at least one such amino acid difference with a naturally occurring VHH domain in at least one of FR2 and/or FR4, and in particular at at least one of the Hallmark residues in FR2 and/or FR4 (again, including those at positions 108, 103 and/or 45).
- Nanobodies of the invention As will be clear from the disclosure herein, it is also within the scope of the invention to use natural or synthetic analogs, mutants, variants, alleles, homologs and orthologs (herein collectively referred to as "analogs") of the Nanobodies of the invention as defined herein, and in particular analogs of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109.
- analogs synthetic analogs, mutants, variants, alleles, homologs and orthologs
- analogs of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109 analogs of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109.
- the term “Nanobody of the invention” in its broadest sense also covers such analogs.
- one or more amino acid residues may have been replaced, deleted and/or added, compared to the Nanobodies of the invention as defined herein.
- Such substitutions, insertions or deletions may be made in one or more of the framework regions and/or in one or more of the CDR's.
- substitutions, insertions or deletions are made in one or more of the framework regions, they may be made at one or more of the Hallmark residues and/or at one or more of the other positions in the framework residues, although o
- a substitution may for example be a conservative substitution (as described herein) and/or an amino acid residue may be replaced by another amino acid residue that naturally occurs at the same position in another V HH domain (see Tables A-5 - A-8 for some non-limiting examples of such substitutions), although the invention is generally not limited thereto.
- any one or more substitutions, deletions or insertions, or any combination thereof, that either improve the properties of the Nanobody of the invention or that at least do not detract too much from the desired properties or from the balance or combination of desired properties of the Nanobody of the invention are included within the scope of the invention.
- a skilled person will generally be able to determine and select suitable substitutions, deletions or insertions, or suitable combinations of thereof, based on the disclosure herein and optionally after a limited degree of routine experimentation, which may for example involve introducing a limited number of possible substitutions and determining their influence on the properties of the Nanobodies thus obtained.
- deletions and/or substitutions may be designed in such a way that one or more sites for post-translational modification (such as one or more glycosylation sites) are removed, as will be within the ability of the person skilled in the art.
- substitutions or insertions may be designed so as to introduce one or more sites for attachment of functional groups (as described herein), for example to allow site-specific pegylation (again as described herein).
- the analogs are preferably such that they can bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an dissociation constant (K D ) of 10 "5 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 ⁇ 7 to 10 " 12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 "12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M “1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the analog against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- the analogs are preferably also such that they retain the favourable properties the Nanobodies, as described herein.
- the analogs have a degree of sequence identity of at least 70%, preferably at least 80%, more preferably at least 90%, such as at least 95% or 99% or more; and/or preferably have at most 20, preferably at most 10, even more preferably at most 5, such as 4, 3, 2 or only 1 amino acid difference (as defined herein), with one of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NOs 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109.
- the framework sequences and CDR' s of the analogs are preferably such that they are in accordance with the preferred embodiments defined herein.
- the analogs will have (a) a Q at position 108; and/or (b) a charged amino acid or a cysteine residue at position 45 and preferably an E at position 44, and more preferably E at position 44 and R at position 45; and/or (c) P, R or S at position 103.
- Nanobodies of the invention comprise Nanobodies that have been humanized (i.e. compared to the sequence of a naturally occurring Nanobody of the invention).
- humanization generally involves replacing one or more amino acid residues in the sequence of a naturally occurring V HH with the amino acid residues that occur at the same position in a human V H domain, such as a human V H 3 domain.
- Examples of possible humanizing substitutions or combinations of humanizing substitutions will be clear to the skilled person, for example from the Tables herein, from the possible humanizing substitutions mentioned in the background art cited herein, and/or from a comparision between the sequence of a Nanobody and the sequence of a naturally occurring human V H domain.
- the humanizing substitutions should be chosen such that the resulting humanized Nanobodies still retain the favourable properties of Nanobodies as defined herein, and more preferably such that they are as described for analogs in the preceding paragraphs.
- a skilled person will generally be able to determine and select suitable humanizing substitutions or suitable combinations of humanizing substitutions, based on the disclosure herein and optionally after a limited degree of routine experimentation, which may for example involve introducing a limited number of possible humanizing substitutions and determining their influence on the properties of the Nanobodies thus obtained.
- the Nanobodies of the invention may become more "human-like", while still retaining the favorable properties of the Nanobodies of the invention as described herein.
- such humanized Nanobodies may have several advantages, such as a reduced immunogenicity, compared to the corresponding naturally occurring V HH domains.
- the skilled person will be able to select humanizing substitutions or suitable combinations of humanizing substitutions which optimize or achieve a desired or suitable balance between the favourable properties provided by the humanizing substitutions on the one hand and the favourable properties of naturally occurring V HH domains on the other hand.
- the humanized and other analogs, and nucleic acid sequences encoding the same can be provided in any manner known per se.
- the analogs can be obtained by providing a nucleic acid that encodes a naturally occurring V HH domain, changing the codons for the one or more amino acid residues that are to be substituted into the codons for the corresponding desired amino acid residues (e.g. by site-directed mutagenesis or by PCR using suitable mismatch primers), expressing the nucleic acid/nucleotide sequence thus obtained in a suitable host or expression system; and optionally isolating and/or purifying the analog thus obtained to provide said analog in essentially isolated form (e.g. as further described herein).
- nucleic acid encoding the desired analog can be synthesized in a manner known per se (for example using an automated apparatus for synthesizing nucleic acid sequences with a predefined amino acid sequence) and can then be expressed as described herein.
- a technique may involve combining one or more naturally occurring and/or synthetic nucleic acid sequences each encoding a part of the desired analog, and then expressing the combined nucleic acid sequence as described herein.
- the analogs can be provided using chemical synthesis of the pertinent amino acid sequence using techniques for peptide synthesis known per se, such as those mentioned herein.
- the Nanobodies of the invention can be designed and/or prepared starting from human V H sequences (i.e. amino acid sequences or the corresponding nucleotide sequences), such as for example from human V H 3 sequences such as DP-47, DP-51 or DP-29, i.e. by introducing one or more camelizing substitutions (i.e. changing one or more amino acid residues in the amino acid sequence of said human V H domain into the amino acid residues that occur at the corresponding position in a V HH domain), so as to provide the sequence of a Nanobody of the invention and/or so as to confer the favourable properties of a Nanobody to the sequence thus obtained.
- this can generally be performed using the various methods and techniques referred to in the previous paragraph, using an amino acid sequence and/or nucleotide sequence for a human V H domain as a starting point.
- camelizing substitutions can be derived from Tables A-5 - A-8. It will also be clear that camelizing substitutions at one or more of the Hallmark residues will generally have a greater influence on the desired properties than substitutions at one or more of the other amino acid positions, although both and any suitable combination thereof are included within the scope of the invention. For example, it is possible to introduce one or more camelizing substitutions that already confer at least some the desired properties, and then to introduce further camelizing substitutions that either further improve said properties and/or confer additional favourable properties.
- such camelizing substitutions are preferably such that the resulting amino acid sequence at least contains (a) a Q at position 108; and/or (b) a charged amino acid or a cysteine residue at position 45 and preferably also an E at position 44, and more preferably E at position 44 and R at position 45; and/or (c) P, R or S at position 103; and optionally one or more further camelizing substitutions. More preferably, the camelizing substitutions are such that they result in a Nanobody of the invention and/or in an analog thereof (as defined herein), such as in a humanized analog and/or preferably in an analog that is as defined in the preceding paragraphs.
- Nanobodies of the invention As will also be clear from the disclosure herein, it is also within the scope of the invention to use parts or fragments, or combinations of two or more parts or fragments, of the Nanobodies of the invention as defined herein, and in particular parts or fragments of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NO's 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109.
- the term "Nanobody of the invention” in its broadest sense also covers such parts or fragments.
- such parts or fragments of the Nanobodies of the invention have amino acid sequences in which, compared to the amino acid sequence of the corresponding full length Nanobody of the invention (or analog thereof), one or more of the amino acid residues at the N-terminal end, one or more amino acid residues at the C- terminal end, one or more contiguous internal amino acid residues, or any combination thereof, have been deleted and/or removed.
- the parts or fragments are preferably such that they can bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an dissociation constant (K D ) of 10 "5 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 ⁇ 7 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 ⁇ 8 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M '1 , preferably at least 10 8 M "1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M "1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of the parts or fragments against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- Any part or fragment is preferably such that it comprises at least 10 contiguous amino acid residues, preferably at least 20 contiguous amino acid residues, more preferably at least 30 contiguous amino acid residues, such as at least 40 contiguous amino acid residues, of the amino acid sequence of the corresponding full length Nanobody of the invention.
- any part or fragment is such preferably that it comprises at least one of CDRl, CDR2 and/or CDR3 or at least part thereof (and in particular at least CDR3 or at least part thereof). More preferably, any part or fragment is such that it comprises at least one of the CDR's (and preferably at least CDR3 or part thereof) and at least one other CDR (i.e. CDRl or CDR2) or at least part thereof, preferably connected by suitable framework sequence(s) or at least part thereof. More preferably, any part or fragment is such that it comprises at least one of the CDR's (and preferably at least CDR3 or part thereof) and at least part of the two remaining CDR's, again preferably connected by suitable framework sequence(s) or at least part thereof.
- such a part or fragment comprises at least CDR3, such as FR3, CDR3 and FR4 of the corresponding full length Nanobody of the invention, i.e. as for example described in the International application WO 03/050531 (Lasters et al.).
- Nanobody of the invention it is also possible to combine two or more of such parts or fragments (i.e. from the same or different Nanobodies of the invention), i.e. to provide an analog (as defined herein) and/or to provide further parts or fragments (as defined herein) of a Nanobody of the invention. It is for example also possible to combine one or more parts or fragments of a Nanobody of the invention with one or more parts or fragments of a human V H domain.
- the parts or fragments have a degree of sequence identity of at least 50%, preferably at least 60%, more preferably at least 70%, even more preferably at least 80%, such as at least 90%, 95% or 99% or more with one of the Nanobodies of SEQ ID NOs 80-93 or SEQ ID NO's 106-109
- the parts and fragments, and nucleic acid sequences encoding the same can be provided and optionally combined in any manner known per se.
- such parts or fragments can be obtained by inserting a stop codon in a nucleic acid that encodes a full-sized Nanobody of the invention, and then expressing the nucleic acid thus obtained in a manner known per se (e.g. as described herein).
- nucleic acids encoding such parts or fragments can be obtained by suitably restricting a nucleic acid that encodes a full-sized Nanobody of the invention or by synthesizing such a nucleic acid in a manner known per se.
- Parts or fragments may also be provided using techniques for peptide synthesis known per se.
- the invention in its broadest sense also comprises derivatives of the Nanobodies of the invention.
- derivatives can generally be obtained by modification, and in particular by chemical and/or biological (e.g enzymatical) modification, of the Nanobodies of the invention and/or of one or more of the amino acid residues that form the Nanobodies of the invention.
- Nanobody sequence that can be modified in such a manner (i.e. either on the protein backbone but preferably on a side chain), methods and techniques that can be used to introduce such modifications and the potential uses and advantages of such modifications will be clear to the skilled person.
- such a modification may involve the introduction (e.g. by covalent linking or in an other suitable manner) of one or more functional groups, residues or moieties into or onto the Nanobody of the invention, and in particular of one or more functional groups, residues or moieties that confer one or more desired properties or functionalities to the Nanobody of the invention.
- one or more functional groups, residues or moieties may be clear to the skilled person.
- such modification may comprise the introduction (e.g. by covalent binding or in any other suitable manner) of one or more functional groups that increase the half-life, the solubility and/or the absorption of the Nanobody of the invention, that reduce the immunogenicity and/or the toxicity of the Nanobody of the invention, that eliminate or attenuate any undesirable side effects of the Nanobody of the invention, and/or that confer other advantageous properties to and/or reduce the undesired properties of the Nanobodies and/or polypeptides of the invention; or any combination of two or more of the foregoing.
- Such functional groups can generally comprise all functional groups and techniques mentioned in the general background art cited hereinabove as well as the functional groups and techniques known per se for the modification of pharmaceutical proteins, and in particular for the modification of antibodies or antibody fragments (including ScFv's and single domain antibodies), for which reference is for example made to Remington's Pharmaceutical Sciences, 16th ed., Mack Publishing Co., Easton, PA (1980).
- Such functional groups may for example be linked directly (for example covalently) to a Nanobody of the invention, or optionally via a suitable linker or spacer, as will again be clear to the skilled person.
- One of the most widely used techniques for increasing the half-life and/or reducing immunogenicity of pharmaceutical proteins comprises attachment of a suitable pharmacologically acceptable polymer, such as poly(ethyleneglycol) (PEG) or derivatives thereof (such as methoxypoly(ethyleneglycol) or mPEG).
- PEG poly(ethyleneglycol)
- derivatives thereof such as methoxypoly(ethyleneglycol) or mPEG.
- pegylation can be used, such as the pegylation used in the art for antibodies and antibody fragments (including but not limited to (single) domain antibodies and ScFv's); reference is made to for example Chapman, Nat. Biotechnol., 54, 531-545 (2002); by Veronese and Harris, Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 54, 453-456 (2003), by Harris and Chess, Nat.
- PEG may be attached to a cysteine residue that naturally occurs in a Nanobody of the invention
- a Nanobody of the invention may be modified so as to suitably introduce one or more cysteine residues for attachment of PEG, or an amino acid sequence comprising one or more cysteine residues for attachment of PEG may be fused to the N- and/or C-terminus of a Nanobody of the invention, all using techniques of protein engineering known per se to the skilled person.
- a PEG is used with a molecular weight of more than 5000, such as more than 10,000 and less than 200,000, such as less than 100,000; for example in the range of 20,000-80,000.
- Another, usually less preferred modification comprises N-linked or O-linked glycosylation, usually as part of co-translational and/or post-translational modification, depending on the host cell used for expressing the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention.
- Yet another modification may comprise the introduction of one or more detectable labels or other signal-generating groups or moieties, depending on the intended use of the labelled Nanobody.
- Suitable labels and techniques for attaching, using and detecting them will be clear to the skilled person, and for example include, but are not limited to, fluorescent labels (such as fluorescein, isothiocyanate, rhodamine, phycoerythrin, phycocyanin, allophycocyanin, o-phthaldehyde, and fluorescamine and fluorescent metals such as Eu or others metals from the lanthanide series), phosphorescent labels, chemiluminescent labels or bioluminescent labels (such as luminal, isoluminol, theromatic acridinium ester, imidazole, acridinium salts, oxalate ester, dioxetane or GFP and its analogs ), radio-isotopes (such as 3 H, 125 I, 32 P, 35 S, 14 C, 51 Cr, 36 Cl, 57 Co, 58 Co, 59 Fe, and 75 Se), metals, metals chelates or metallic cations (for
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention may for example be used for in vitro, in vivo or in situ assays (including immunoassays known per se such as ELISA, RIA, EIA and other "sandwich assays", etc.) as well as in vivo diagnostic and imaging purposes, depending on the choice of the specific label.
- chelating group for example to chelate one of the metals or metallic cations referred to above.
- Suitable chelating groups for example include, without limitation, diethyl- enetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) or ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA).
- DTPA diethyl- enetriaminepentaacetic acid
- EDTA ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid
- Yet another modification may comprise the introduction of a functional group that is one part of a specific binding pair, such as the biotin-(strept)avidin binding pair.
- a functional group may be used to link the Nanobody of the invention to another protein, polypeptide or chemical compound that is bound to the other half of the binding pair, i.e. through formation of the binding pair.
- a Nanobody of the invention may be conjugated to biotin, and linked to another protein, polypeptide, compound or carrier OO
- Such a conjugated Nanobody may be used as a reporter, for example in a diagnostic system where a detectable signal-producing agent is conjugated to avidin or streptavidin.
- binding pairs may for example also be used to bind the Nanobody of the invention to a carrier, including carriers suitable for pharmaceutical purposes.
- a carrier including carriers suitable for pharmaceutical purposes.
- One non-limiting example are the liposomal formulations described by Cao and Suresh, Journal of Drug Targetting, 8, 4, 257 (2000).
- Such binding pairs may also be used to link a therapeutically active agent to the Nanobody of the invention.
- the Nanobodies of the invention may also be linked to a toxin or to a toxic residue or moiety.
- toxic moieties, compounds or residues which can be linked to a Nanobody of the invention to provide - for example - a cytotoxic compound will be clear to the skilled person and can for example be found in the prior art cited above and/or in the further description herein.
- ADEPTTM technology WO 03/055527.
- the derivatives are such that they bind to EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with an dissociation constant (K D ) of 10 "5 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less, and preferably 10 "7 to 10 "12 moles/liter or less and more preferably 10 "8 to 10 ⁇ 12 moles/liter, and/or with a binding affinity of at least 10 7 M "1 , preferably at least 10 8 M “1 , more preferably at least 10 9 M “1 , such as at least 10 12 M "1 and/or with an affinity less than 500 nM, preferably less than 200 nM, more preferably less than 10 nM, such as less than 500 pM.
- the affinity of a derivative of a Nanobody of the invention against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be determined in a manner known per se, for example using the assay described herein.
- the invention also relates to proteins or polypeptides that essentially consist of or comprise at least one Nanobody of the invention.
- essentially consist of is meant that the amino acid sequence of the polypeptide of the invention either is exactly the same as the amino acid sequence of a Nanobody of the invention or corresponds to the amino acid sequence of a Nanobody of the invention which has a limited number of amino acid residues, such as 1-20 amino acid residues, for example 1-10 amino acid residues and preferably 1-6 amino acid residues, such as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 amino acid residues, added at the o
- amino acid residues may or may not change, alter or otherwise influence the (biological) properties of the Nanobody and may or may not add further functionality to the Nanobody.
- amino acid residues a) can comprise an N-terminal Met residue, for example as result of expression in a heterologous host cell or host organism.
- b) may form a signal sequence or leader sequence that directs secretion of the Nanobody from a host cell upon synthesis. Suitable secretory leader peptides will be clear to the skilled person, and may be as further described herein.
- such a leader sequence will be linked to the N-terminus of the Nanobody, although the invention in its broadest sense is not limited thereto; c) may form a sequence or signal that allows the Nanobody to be directed towards and/or to penetrate or enter into specific organs, tissues, cells, or parts or compartments of cells, and/or that allows the Nanobody to penetrate or cross a biological barrier such as a cell membrane, a cell layer such as a layer of epithelial cells, a tumor including solid tumors, or the blood-brain-barrier. Examples of such amino acid sequences will be clear to the skilled person.
- Pep- trans vectors small peptide vectors
- Temsamani et al. Expert Opin. Biol. Then, 1, 773 (2001); Temsamani and Vidal, Drug Discov. Today, 9, 1012 (004) and
- C- terminal and N-terminal amino acid sequences for intracellular targeting of antibody fragments are for example described by Cardinale et al., Methods, 34, 171 (2004).
- Other suitable techniques for intracellular targeting involve the expression and/or use of so- called “intrabodies” comprising a Nanobody of the invention, as mentioned below; d) may form a "tag", for example an amino acid sequence or residue that allows or facilitates the purification of the Nanobody, for example using affinity techniques directed against said sequence or residue. Thereafter, said sequence or residue may be removed (e.g. by chemical or enzymatical cleavage) to provide the Nanobody sequence
- the tag may optionally be linked to the Nanobody sequence via a cleavable linker sequence or contain a cleavable motif).
- Some preferred, but non- limiting examples of such residues are multiple histidine residues, glutatione residues and a myc-tag such as AAAEQKLISEEDLNGAA [SEQ ID NO:31]; e) may be one or more amino acid residues that have been functionalized and/or that can serve as a site for attachment of functional groups. Suitable amino acid residues and functional groups will be clear to the skilled person and include, but are not limited to, the amino acid residues and functional groups mentioned herein for the derivatives of the Nanobodies of the invention.
- a polypeptide of the invention comprises a Nanobody of the invention, which is fused at its amino terminal end, at its carboxy terminal end, or both at its amino terminal end and at its carboxy terminal end to at least one further amino acid sequence, i.e. so as to provide a fusion protein comprising said Nanobody of the invention and the one or more further amino acid sequences.
- a fusion will also be referred to herein as a "Nanobody fusion".
- the one or more further amino acid sequence may be any suitable and/or desired amino acid sequences.
- the further amino acid sequences may or may not change, alter or otherwise influence the (biological) properties of the Nanobody, and may or may not add further functionality to the Nanobody or the polypeptide of the invention.
- the further amino acid sequence is such that it confers one or more desired properties or functionalities to the Nanobody or the polypeptide of the invention.
- amino acid sequences will be clear to the skilled person, and may generally comprise all amino acid sequences that are used in peptide fusions based on conventional antibodies and fragments thereof (including but not limited to ScFv' s and single domain antibodies). Reference is for example made to the review by Holliger and Hudson,
- such an amino acid sequence may be an amino acid sequence that increases the half-life, the solubility, or the absorption, reduces the immunogenicity or the toxicity, eliminates or attenuates undesirable side effects, and/or confers other advantageous properties to and/or reduces the undesired properties of the polypeptides of the invention, compared to the Nanobody of the invention per se.
- Some non-limiting examples of such amino acid sequences are serum proteins, such as human serum albumin (see for example WO 00/27435) or haptenic molecules (for example haptens that are recognized by circulating antibodies, see for example WO 98/22141).
- the further amino acid sequence may also provide a second binding site, which binding site may be directed against any desired protein, polypeptide, antigen, antigenic determinant or epitope (including but not limited to the same protein, polypeptide, antigen, antigenic determinant or epitope against which the Nanobody of the invention is directed, or a different protein, polypeptide, antigen, antigenic determinant or epitope).
- the further amino acid sequence may provide a second binding site that is directed against a serum protein (such as, for example, human serum albumin or another serum protein such as IgG), so as to provide increased half-life in serum.
- the one or more further amino acid sequences may comprise one or more parts, fragments or domains of conventional 4-chain antibodies (and in particular human antibodies) and/or of heavy chain antibodies.
- a Nanobody of the invention may be linked to a conventional (preferably human) V H or V L domain domain or to a natural or synthetic analog of a V H or V L domain, again optionally via a linker sequence (including but not limited to other (single) domain antibodies, such as the dAb's described by Ward et al.).
- the at least one Nanobody may also be linked to one or more (preferably human) CHi , CH 2 and/or CH 3 domains, optionally via a linker sequence.
- a Nanobody linked to a suitable CHi domain could for example be used - together with suitable light chains - to generate antibody fragments/structures analogous to conventional Fab fragments or F(ab')2 fragments, but in which one or (in case of an F(ab')2 fragment) one or both of the conventional V H domains have been replaced by a Nanobody of the invention.
- two Nanobodies could be linked to a CH3 domain (optionally via a linker) to provide a construct with increased half-life in vivo.
- one or more Nanobodies of the invention may linked to one or more antibody parts, fragments or domains that confer one or more effector functions to the polypeptide of the invention and/or may confer the ability to bind to one or more Fc receptors.
- the one or more further amino acid sequences may comprise one or more CH 2 and/or CH 3 domains of an antibody, such as from a heavy chain antibody (as described herein) and more preferably from a conventional human 4-chain antibody; and/or may form (part of) and Fc region, for example from IgG, from IgE or from another human Ig.
- WO 94/04678 describes heavy chain antibodies comprising a Camelid V HH domain or a humanized derivative thereof (i.e. a Nanobody), in which the Camelidae CH 2 and/or CH 3 domain have been replaced by human CH 2 and CH 3 domains, so as to provide an immunoglobulin that consists of 2 heavy chains each comprising a Nanobody and human CH2 and CH3 domains (but no CHl domain), which immunoglobulin has the effector function provided by the CH2 and CH3 domains and which immunoglobulin can function without the presence of any light chains.
- a Camelid V HH domain or a humanized derivative thereof i.e. a Nanobody
- the Camelidae CH 2 and/or CH 3 domain have been replaced by human CH 2 and CH 3 domains
- any fusion protein or derivatives with increased half-life will preferably have a molecular weight of more than 50 kD, the cut-off value for renal absorption.
- the further amino acid sequences may also form a signal sequence or leader sequence that directs secretion of the Nanobody or the polypeptide of the invention from a host cell upon synthesis (for example to provide a pre-, pro- or prepro- form of the polypeptide of the invention, depending on the host cell used to express the polypeptide of the invention).
- the further amino acid sequence may also form a sequence or signal that allows the
- Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention to be directed towards and/or to penetrate or enter into specific organs, tissues, cells, or parts or compartments of cells, and/or that allows the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention to penetrate or cross a biological barrier such as a cell membrane, a cell layer such as a layer of epithelial cells, a tumor including solid tumors, or the blood-brain-barrier.
- a biological barrier such as a cell membrane, a cell layer such as a layer of epithelial cells, a tumor including solid tumors, or the blood-brain-barrier.
- Suitable examples of such amino acid sequences will be clear to the skilled person, and for example include, but are not limited to, the "Peptrans" vectors mentioned above, the sequences described by Cardinale et al.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention as so-called “intrabodies”, for example as described in WO 94/02610, WO 95/22618, US-A-6004940, WO 03/014960, WO 99/07414; WO 05/01690; EP 1 512 696; and in Cattaneo, A. & Biocca, S. (1997) Intracellular Antibodies: Development and Applications. Austin and Springer- Verlag; and in Kontermann, Methods 34, (2004), 163- 170, and the further references described therein.
- the Nanobodies of the invention may also be linked to a (cyto)toxic protein or polypeptide.
- ADEPTTM technology WO 03/055527.
- said one or more further amino acid sequences comprise at least one further Nanobody, so as to provide a polypeptide of the invention that comprises at least two, such as three, four, five or more Nanobodies, in which said Nanobodies may optionally be linked via one or more linker sequences (as defined herein).
- Polypeptides of the invention that comprise two or more Nanobodies, of which at least one is a Nanobody of the invention will also be referred to herein as "multivalent" polypeptides of the invention, and the Nanobodies present in such polypeptides will also be referred to herein as being in a "multivalent format".
- a “bivalent” polypeptide of the invention comprises two Nanobodies, optionally linked via a linker sequence
- a “trivalent” polypeptide of the invention comprises three Nanobodies, optionally linked via two linker sequences; etc.; in which at least one of the Nanobodies present in the polypeptide, and up to all of the Nanobodies present in the polypeptide, is/are a Nanobody of the invention.
- the two or more Nanobodies may be the same or different, and may be directed against the same antigen or antigenic determinant (for example against the same part(s) or epitope(s) or against different parts or epitopes) or may alternatively be directed against different antigens or antigenic determinants; or any suitable combination thereof.
- a bivalent polypeptide of the invention may comprise (a) two identical Nanobodies; (b) a first Nanobody directed against a first antigenic determinant of a protein or antigen and a second Nanobody directed against the same antigenic determinant of said protein or antigen which is different from the first Nanobody; (c) a first Nanobody directed against a first antigenic determinant of a protein or antigen and a second Nanobody directed against another antigenic determinant of said protein or antigen; or (d) a first Nanobody directed against a first protein or antigen and a second Nanobody directed against a second protein or antigen (i.e. different from said first antigen).
- a trivalent polypeptide of the invention may, for example and without being limited thereto, comprise (a) three identical Nanobodies; (b) two identical Nanobody against a first antigenic determinant of an antigen and a third Nanobody directed against a different antigenic determinant of the same antigen; (c) two identical Nanobody against a first antigenic determinant of an antigen and a third Nanobody directed against a second antigen different from said first antigen; (d) a first Nanobody directed against a first antigenic determinant of a first antigen, a second Nanobody directed against a second antigenic determinant of said first antigen and a third Nanobody directed against a second antigen different from said first antigen; or (e) a first Nanobody directed against a first antigen, a second Nanobody directed against a second antigen different from said first antigen, and a third Nanobody directed against a third antigen different from said first and second antigen.
- the invention provides a bivalent polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of two identical Nanobody against EFGR.
- Non-limiting examples of such bivalent polypeptides are provided in SEQ ID NO's: 122-123.
- the invention provides a bivalent polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of two identical Nanobodies against IGF-IR.
- Non-limiting examples of such bivalent polypeptides are provided in SEQ ID NO's: 134-135.
- Polypeptides of the invention that contain at least two Nanobodies, in which at least one Nanobody is directed against a first antigen (i.e. against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,) and at least one Nanobody is directed against a second antigen (i.e. different from EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,), will also be referred to as "multispecific" polypeptides of the invention, and the Nanobodies present in such polypeptides will also be referred to herein as being in a "multivalent format".
- a "bispecif ⁇ c" polypeptide of the invention is a polypeptide that comprises at least one Nanobody directed against a first antigen (i.e.
- a "trispecific" polypeptide of the invention is a polypeptide that comprises at least one Nanobody directed against a first antigen (i.e. EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,), at least one further Nanobody directed against a second antigen (i.e. different from EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively,) and at least one further Nanobody directed against a third antigen (i.e. different from both EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and the second antigen); etc.
- a bispecific polypeptide of the invention is a bivalent polypeptide of the invention (as defined herein), comprising a first Nanobody directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and a second Nanobody directed against a second antigen, in which said first and second Nanobody may optionally be linked via a linker sequence (as defined herein);
- a trispecific polypeptide of the invention in its simplest form is a trivalent polypeptide of the invention (as defined herein), comprising a first Nanobody directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, a second Nanobody directed against a second antigen and a third Nanobody directed against a third antigen, in which said first, second and third Nanobody may optionally be linked via one or more, and in particular one and more in particular two, linker sequences.
- a multispecif ⁇ c polypeptide of the invention may comprise at least one Nanobody against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and any number of Nanobodies directed against one or more antigens different from EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- a polypeptide as described herein comprises at least one Nanobody against EGFR and at least one Nanobody against IGF-IR, optionally linked using one or more suitable linkers.
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides against IGF-IR described herein can be combined with one or more of the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867, and/or with one or more of the anti-EGFR Nanobodies and polypeptides described herein.
- Non-limiting examples of such bispecific Nanobody constructs include SEQ ID NOs: 136-140.
- Bispecific polypeptides that comprise two binding moieties, wherein each binding moiety is specific for a tumor associated antigen (i.e. an antigen expressed on a tumor cell, also called 'tumor marker'), are highly advantageous in tumor targeting. Such bispecific polypeptides are capable of simultaneously targeting two tumor associated antigens, resulting in enhanced tumor specificity. It is known that most tumor markers are not truly tumor specific but also occur (mostly at lower levels) on normal tissues or cells. Monospecific binding moieties, Nanobodies or polypeptides against only one tumor marker will therefore also recognize those normal tissues or cells resulting in a non-specific cell arrest or killing. Polypeptides that are specific for two or more markers on one or more tumor cells will be much more tumor specific and provide a better specific binding. They can thus block simultaneously multiple receptor activation and downstream signal transduction pathways, and provide a better inhibition of tumor proliferation and arrest or killing of the tumor cells.
- the present invention also relates to a bispecific or multispecific polypeptide, comprising or essentially consisting of at least two binding moieties, wherein each of said at least two binding moieties is directed against a tumor associated antigen or epitope.
- each binding moiety is directed against a different epitope on the same tumor associated antigen (also called biparatopic binding moieties).
- each binding moiety is directed against a different tumor associated antigen.
- Each binding moiety can be directed against a different tumor associated antigen on either a single or adjacent tumor cell.
- said at least two binding moieties have a moderate or low affinity to their individual tumor associated antigen or epitope and, accordingly, have only a reduced retention on normal tissues or cells expressing one of the tumor associated antigens. Those at least two binding moieties, however preferentially target (have a high avidity for) tumor cells that express both antigens recognized by the bispecific or multispecific polypeptide.
- a binding moiety according to the present invention can be any peptide or nucleotide containing moiety having a known binding affinity for at least one antigen.
- the moiety can be a protein, a polypeptide, a protein fragment (such as an antibody fragment) or one or more subunit(s) of any protein.
- a typical example of a binding moiety would be an enzyme, a receptor or a transport protein. It can also be a carrier protein such as albumin or an antibody.
- the binding moiety can also be, or include, a sequence of DNA or RNA.
- one or more of the binding moieties on the bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention is a polypeptide below 15 kDa.
- one or more of the binding moieties on the bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention is a VH, a VHH, a domain antibody, a single domain antibody, a "dAb" or a Nanobody.
- the binding moieties on the bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention are Nanobodies.
- EGFR family members EGFR, HER2, HER3, HER4
- EGFR epidermal growth factor receptor
- HER2, HER3, HER4 epidermal growth factor receptor 4
- HER2 epidermal growth factor 4
- head and neck cancer a much more selective and/or enhanced tumor targeting will be obtained.
- the invention also provides a bispecific polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of a Nanobody directed against EGFR and a Nanobody directed against another member of the EGFR family.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against EGFR and a Nanobody directed against HER2.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against EGFR and a Nanobody directed against HER3.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against EGFR and a Nanobody directed against HER4.
- the polypeptide may also comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against HER2 and a Nanobody directed against another member of the EGFR family.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against HER2 and a Nanobody directed against HER3.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against HER2 and a Nanobody directed against HER4.
- the polypeptide may also comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against HER3 and a Nanobody directed against another member of the EGFR family.
- the polypeptide of the invention may comprise or essentially consist of a Nanobody directed against HER3 and a Nanobody directed against HER4.
- the invention provides a bispecific polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of a Nanobody directed against a specific epitope of EGFR and a Nanobody directed against another specific epitope of EGFR.
- a bispecific polypeptide comprising or essentially consisting of a Nanobody directed against a specific epitope of EGFR and a Nanobody directed against another specific epitope of EGFR.
- Such bispecif ⁇ c/biparatopic polypeptides are SEQ ID NOs: 141-143.
- CD138 and CD38 tumor markers expressed on multiple myeloma cells Another non-limiting example is the CD138 and CD38 tumor markers expressed on multiple myeloma cells. By simultaneous targeting CDl 38 and CD38 a much more selective targeting of those multiple myeloma cells is obtained.
- Tumor markers that can be simultaneously targeted via the bispecific or multispecific polypeptides of the invention include -but are not limited to - EGFR, IGF-IR, HER2, HER3, HER4, CEA, VEGF, CD38, CD138.
- the invention relates to a trispecific or multispecific polypeptide, comprising or essentially consisting of at least three binding moieties, wherein two of said at least three binding moieties are directed against a tumor associated antigen or epitope and the other binding moiety is directed against another target or antigen.
- this target or antigen is a molecule which can increase the half-life of the polypeptide in vivo (as further described) or a molecule with an effector function such as CD3, the Fc receptor or a complement protein.
- the two binding moieties directed against a tumor associated antigen or epitope are directed against a different epitope on the same tumor associated antigen (also called biparatopic binding moieties).
- the two binding moiety directed against a tumor associated antigen or epitope are directed against a different tumor associated antigen. Each of these binding moiety can be directed against a different tumor associated antigen on either a single or adjacent tumor cell.
- one or more of the binding moieties on the trispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention is a polypeptide below 15 kDa.
- one or more of the binding moieties on the trispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention is a VH, a VHH, a domain antibody, a single domain antibody, a "dAb" or a Nanobody.
- the binding moieties on the trispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention are Nanobodies.
- the invention provides trispecific polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of a Nanobody against EGFR, a Nanobody against IGF-IR and a Nanobody against human serum albumin, such as non-limiting examples SEQ ID NO's: 138- 140.
- the invention provides trispecific polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of a Nanobody against a specific epitope on EGFR, a Nanobody against another specific epitope on EGFR and a Nanobody against human serum albumin, such as non-limiting examples SEQ ID NO's: 142-143.
- the specific order or arrangement of the various Nanobodies in the polypeptides of the invention may have some influence on the properties of the final polypeptide of the invention (including but not limited to the affinity, specificity or avidity for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or against the one or more other antigens), said order or arrangement is usually not critical and may be suitably chosen by the skilled person, optionally after on some limited routine experiments based on the disclosure herein.
- a specific multivalent or multispecific polypeptide of the invention it should be noted that this encompasses any order or arrangements of the relevant Nanobodies, unless explicitly indicated otherwise.
- bispecific or multispecific polypeptides comprising or essentially consisting of at least two Nanobodies of which one of said at least two Nanobodies has a decreased or increased affinity for its antigen, upon binding by the other Nanobodies to its antigen. Such binding is called 'conditional bispecific or multispecific binding'.
- bispecific or multispecific polypeptide is also called 'a conditionally binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention'.
- Binding of the antigen by the first of said at least two Nanobodies may modulate, such as enhance, reduce or inhibit, binding of the antigen by the second of said at least two Nanobodies.
- binding by the first of said at least two Nanobodies stimulates binding by the second of said at least two Nanobodies.
- binding by the first of said at least two Nanobodies at least partially inhibits binding by the second of said at least two Nanobodies.
- binding by the first of said at least two Nanobodies inhibits binding by the second of said at least two Nanobodies.
- the polypeptide of the invention may, for example, be maintained in the body of a subject organism in vivo through binding to a protein which increases the half-life of the polypeptide until such a time as it becomes bound to its second target antigen and dissociates from the half-life increasing protein.
- Modulation of binding in the above context is achieved as a consequence of the structural proximity of the antigen binding sites of the Nanobodies relative to one another.
- Such structural proximity can be achieved by the nature of the structural components linking the two or more antigen binding sites, e.g. by the provision of a linker with a relatively rigid structure that holds the antigen binding sites in close proximity.
- the two or more antigen binding sites are in physically close proximity to one another such that one site modulates the binding of the antigen at another site by a process which involves steric hindrance and/or conf ⁇ rmational changes within the polypeptide.
- the invention also relates to a method for producing a conditional binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention comprising the steps of: a) selecting a first Nanobody by its ability to bind to a first epitope, b) selecting a second Nanobody by its ability to bind to a second epitope, c) combining the Nanobodies, optionally via a linker sequence; and d) selecting the conditional binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention by its ability to bind to said first epitope and said second epitope.
- conditional binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention can be selected for its ability to bind to said first epitope and said second epitope, wherein binding to one of said epitopes enhances binding to the other epitope.
- binding is enhanced by 25% or more, advantageously 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90% or more, and preferably by 100% or more.
- conditional binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention can be selected for its ability to bind to said first epitope and said second epitope, wherein binding to one of said epitopes reduces binding to the other epitope.
- conditional binding bispecific or multispecific polypeptide of the invention can be selected for its ability to bind to said first epitope and said second epitope, but not to both said first and second epitopes simultaneously.
- the first and second Nanobody compete for epitope binding.
- binding is reduced by 25% or more, advantageously 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90% or more, and preferably up to 100% or nearly so, such that binding is completely inhibited. Binding of epitopes can be measured by conventional antigen binding assays, such as ELISA, by fluorescence based techniques, including FRET, or by techniques such as suface plasmon resonance which measure the mass of molecules.
- a further step comprising selecting a third or further Nanobody by its ability to bind to a third or further epitope.
- the multispecific polypeptide produced comprises more than two Nanobodies.
- at least two of said Nanobodies provide a conditional bispecific binding (i.e. binding of the antigen by the first of said at least two Nanobodies modulates, such as enhances, reduces or inhibits, binding of the antigen by the second of said at least two Nanobodies).
- the other one or more Nanobody may also provide a conditional binding (also called conditional multispecific binding) or may be free to associate independently with its epitope(s).
- the bispecific conditional binding polypeptide may comprise a first Nanobody binding a target molecule and a second Nanobody binding a molecule or group which extends the half-life of the polypeptide (examples of such molecules or groups are further described hereafter).
- the first Nanobody may be capable of binding the target molecule only when the half-life enhancing molecule or group is bound to the second Nanobody.
- the first Nanobody may be capable of binding the target molecule only on displacement of the half-life enhancing molecule or group from the second Nanobody.
- the bispecific conditional binding polypeptide is maintained in circulation in the bloodstream of a subject by a bulky molecule such as HSA. When a target molecule is encountered, competition between the binding domains of the bispecific conditional binding polypeptide results in displacement of the HSA and binding of the target.
- polypeptides of the invention contain two or more Nanobodies and one or more further amino acid sequences (as mentioned herein).
- One preferred, but non-limiting example of a multispecific polypeptide of the invention comprises at least one Nanobody of the invention and at least one Nanobody that provides for an increased half-life.
- Some preferred, but non-limiting examples of such Nanobodies include Nanobodies directed against serum proteins, such as human serum albumin, thyroxine-binding protein, (human) transferrin, fibrinogen, an immunoglobulin such as IgG, IgE or IgM, or one of the other serum proteins listed in WO 04/003019.
- Nanobodies against mouse serum albumin can be used, whereas for pharmaceutical use, Nanobodies against human serum albumin can be used.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide construct as described above wherein said at least one (human) serum protein is any of (human) serum albumin, (human) serum immunoglobulins, (human) thyroxine-binding protein, (human) transferrin, (human) fibrinogen, etc.
- the polypeptides of the invention contain, besides the one or more Nanobodies of the invention, at least one Nanobody against human serum albumin.
- these Nanobodies against human serum albumin may be as generally described in the applications by applicant cited above (see for example W04/062551), according to a particularly preferred, but non-limiting embodiment, said Nanobody against human serum albumin consists of 4 framework regions (FRl to FR4 respectively) and 3 complementarity determining regions (CDRl to CDR3 respectively), in which: i) CDRl is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: SFGMS [SEQ ID NO: 15]
- any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- CDR2 is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of:
- RISTGGGYSYYADSVKG [SEQ ID NO: 25] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which (1) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or (2) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which:
- any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- CDR3 is an amino acid sequence chosen from the group consisting of: DREAQVDTLDFDY [SEQ ID NO: 26] or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences; in which
- any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences; and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: (1) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences; or from the group consisting of: GGSLSR [SEQ ID NO: 27]
- GRGSP [SEQ ID NO: 30] and/or from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with one of the above amino acid sequences, in which:
- any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences.
- the invention relates to a Nanobody against human serum albumin, which consist of 4 framework regions (FRl to FR4 respectively) and 3 complementarity determining regions (CDRl to CDR3 respectively), which is chosen from the group consisting of Nanobodies with the one of the following combinations of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3, respectively:
- CDRl SFGMS
- CDR2 SISGSGSDTLYADSVKG
- CDR3 GGSLSR
- CDRl LNLMG
- CDR2 TITVGDSTNYADSVKG
- CDR3 RRTWHSEL
- CDRl SFGMS
- CDR2 SINGRGDDTRYADSVKG
- CDR3 GRSVSRS
- - CDRl SFGMS
- CDR2 AISADSSDKRYADSVKG
- CDR3 GRGSP;
- CDRl NYWMY
- CDR2 RISTGGGYSYYADSVKG
- CDR3 DREAQ VDTLDFDY.
- each CDR can be replaced by a CDR chosen from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have at least 80%, preferably at least 90%, more preferably at least 95%, even more preferably at least 99% sequence identity (as defined herein) with the mentioned CDR's; in which
- any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or (2) said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences; and/or chosen from the group consisting of amino acid sequences that have 3, 2 or only 1 (as indicated in the preceding paragraph) "amino acid difference(s)" (as defined herein) with the mentioned CDR(s) in one of the above amino acid sequences, in which: (1) any amino acid substitution is preferably a conservative amino acid substitution (as defined herein); and/or
- said amino acid sequence preferably only contains amino acid substitutions, and no amino acid deletions or insertions, compared to the above amino acid sequences.
- Nanobodies of the invention that comprise the combinations of CDR' s mentioned above, Nanobodies comprising one or more of the CDR' s listed above are particularly preferred; Nanobodies comprising two or more of the CDR' s listed above are more particularly preferred; and Nanobodies comprising three of the CDR's listed above are most particularly preferred.
- FR4 are preferably as defined hereinabove for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- Nanobodies directed against human serum albumin that can be used in the polypeptides of the invention are listed in Table A-9 below.
- ALB-8 is a humanized version of ALB-I.
- Nanobodies for example pegylated Nanobodies or polypeptides of the invention, multispecii ⁇ c Nanobodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and (human) serum albumin, or Nanobodies fused to an Fc portion, all as described herein
- a half-life that is at least 1.5 times, preferably at least 2 times, such as at least 5 times, for example at least 10 times or more than 20 times, the half-life of the corresponding Nanobody of the invention.
- any derivatives or polypeptides of the invention with an increase half-life preferably have a half-life of more than 1 hour, preferably more than 2 hours, more preferably of more than 6 hours, such as of more than 12 hours, and for example of about one day, two days, one week, two weeks or three weeks, and preferably no more than 2 months, although the latter may be less critical.
- Half-life can generally be defined as the time taken for the serum concentration of the polypeptide to be reduce by 50%, in vivo, for example due to degradation of the ligand and/or clearance or sequestration of the ligand by natural mechanisms.
- Methods for pharmacokinetic analysis and determination of half-life are familiar to those skilled in the art. Details may be found in Kenneth, A et al: Chemical Stability of Pharmaceuticals: A Handbook for Pharmacists and in Peters et al, Pharmacokinete analysis: A Practical Approach (1996). Reference is also made to "Pharmacokinetics", M Gibaldi & D Perron, published by Marcel Dekker, 2 nd Rev. ex edition (1982).
- polypeptides are capable of binding to one or more molecules which can increase the half-life of the polypeptide in vivo.
- polypeptides of the invention are stabilised in vivo and their half-life increased by binding to molecules which resist degradation and/or clearance or sequestration.
- molecules which resist degradation and/or clearance or sequestration.
- such molecules are naturally occurring proteins which themselves have a long half-life in vivo.
- a multispecif ⁇ c polypeptide of the invention comprises at least one Nanobody of the invention and at least one Nanobody that directs the polypeptide of the invention towards, and/or that allows the polypeptide of the invention to penetrate or to enter into specific organs, tissues, cells, or parts or compartments of cells, and/or that allows the Nanobody to penetrate or cross a biological barrier such as a cell membrane, a cell layer such as a layer of epithelial cells, a tumor including solid tumors, or the blood-brain-barrier.
- a biological barrier such as a cell membrane, a cell layer such as a layer of epithelial cells, a tumor including solid tumors, or the blood-brain-barrier.
- Nanobodies examples include Nanobodies that are directed towards specific cell-surface proteins, markers or epitopes of the desired organ, tissue or cell (for example cell-surface markers associated with tumor cells), and the single-domain brain targeting antibody fragments described in WO 02/057445, of which FC44 (SEQ ID NO 35) and FC5 (SEQ ID NO: 36) are preferred examples.
- the one or more Nanobodies and the one or more polypeptides may be directly linked to each other (as for example described in WO 99/23221) and/or may be linked to each other via one or more suitable spacers or linkers, or any combination thereof.
- Suitable spacers or linkers for use in multivalent and multispecific polypeptides will be clear to the skilled person, and may generally be any linker or spacer used in the art to link amino acid sequences.
- said linker or spacer is suitable for use in constructing proteins or polypeptides that are intended for pharmaceutical use.
- Some particularly preferred spacers include the spacers and linkers that are used in the art to link antibody fragments or antibody domains. These include the linkers mentioned in the general background art cited above, as well as for example linkers that are used in the art to construct diabodies or ScFv fragments (in this respect, however, its should be noted that, whereas in diabodies and in ScFv fragments, the linker sequence used should have a length, a degree of flexibility and other properties that allow the pertinent VH and VL domains to come together to form the complete antigen-binding site, there is no particular limitation on the length or the flexibility of the linker used in the polypeptide of the invention, since each Nanobody by itself forms a complete antigen-binding site).
- a linker may be a suitable amino acid sequence, and in particular amino acid sequences of between 1 and 50, preferably between 1 and 30, such as between 1 and 10 amino acid residues.
- amino acid sequences include gly-ser linkers, for example of the type (gly x ser y ) z , such as (for example (gly 4 ser) 3 or (gly 3 ser 2 ) 3 , as described in WO 99/42077, hinge-like regions such as the hinge regions of naturally occurring heavy chain antibodies or similar sequences (such as described in WO 94/04678 ).
- linkers are poly-alanine (such as AAA), as well as the linkers mentioned in Table A-I l, of which AAA, GS-7 and GS-9 are particularly preferred.
- Table A-Il Sequence listing of linkers
- linkers generally comprise organic compounds or polymers, in particular those suitable for use in proteins for pharmaceutical use.
- poly(ethyleneglycol) moieties have been used to link antibody domains, see for example WO 04/081026.
- the length, the degree of flexibility and/or other properties of the linker(s) used may have some influence on the properties of the final polypeptide of the invention, including but not limited to the affinity, specificity or avidity for EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, or against the one or more of the other antigens.
- the skilled person will be able to determine the optimal hnker(s) for use in a specific polypeptide of the invention, optionally after some limited routine experiments.
- the length and flexibility of the linker are preferably such that it allows each Nanobody of the invention present in the polypeptide to bind to the antigenic determinant on each of the subunits of the multimer.
- the length and flexibility of the linker are preferably such that it allows each Nanobody to bind to its intended antigenic determinant.
- linker(s) used confer one or more other favourable properties or functionality to the polypeptides of the invention, and/or o
- linkers containing one or more charged amino acid residues can provide improved hydrophilic properties
- linkers that form or contain small epitopes or tags can be used for the purposes of detection, identification and/or purification.
- linkers when two or more linkers are used in the polypeptides of the invention, these linkers may be the same or different. Again, based on the disclosure herein, the skilled person will be able to determine the optimal linkers for use in a specific polypeptide of the invention, optionally after some limited routine experiments.
- a polypeptide of the invention will be a linear polypeptide.
- the invention in its broadest sense is not limited thererto.
- a linker with three or more "arms", of which each "arm” being linked to a Nanobody, so as to provide a "star-shaped” construct.
- circular constructs it is also possible, although usually less preferred, to use circular constructs.
- the invention also comprises derivatives of the polypeptides of the invention, which may be essentially analogous to the derivatives of the Nanobodies of the invention, i.e. as described herein.
- the invention also comprises proteins or polypeptides that "essentially consist” of a polypeptide of the invention (in which the wording "essentially consist of has essentially the same meaning as indicated hereinabove).
- the polypeptide of the invention is in essentially isolated from, as defined herein.
- Nanobodies, polypeptides and nucleic acids of the invention can be prepared in a manner known per se, as will be clear to the skilled person from the further description herein.
- the Nanobodies and polypetides of the invention can be prepared in any manner known per se for the preparation of antibodies and in particular for the preparation of antibody fragments (including but not limited to (single) domain antibodies and ScFv fragments).
- Some preferred, but non-limiting methods for preparing the Nanobodies, polypeptides and nucleic acids include the methods and techniques described herein.
- one particularly useful method for preparing a Nanobody and/or a polypeptide of the invention generally comprises the steps of: the expression, in a suitable host cell or host organism (also referred to herein as a "host of the invention") or in another suitable expression system of a nucleic acid that encodes said Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention (also referred to herein as a "nucleic acid of the invention”), optionally followed by: isolating and/or purifying the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention thus obtained.
- such a method may comprise the steps of: cultivating and/or maintaining a host of the invention under conditions that are such that said host of the invention expresses and/or produces at least one Nanobody and/or polypeptide of the invention; optionally followed by: isolating and/or purifying the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention thus obtained.
- a nucleic acid of the invention can be in the form of single or double stranded DNA or RNA, and is preferably in the form of double stranded DNA.
- the nucleotide sequences of the invention may be genomic DNA, cDNA or synthetic DNA (such as DNA with a codon usage that has been specifically adapted for expression in the intended host cell or host organism).
- the nucleic acid of the invention is in essentially isolated from, as defined herein.
- the nucleic acid of the invention may also be in the form of, be present in and/or be part of a vector, such as for example a plasmid, cosmid or YAC, which again may be in essentially isolated form.
- nucleic acids of the invention can be prepared or obtained in a manner known per se, based on the information on the amino acid sequences for the polypeptides of the invention given herein, and/or can be isolated from a suitable natural source.
- nucleotide sequences encoding naturally occurring V HH domains can for example be subjected to site-directed mutagenesis, so at to provide a nucleic acid of the invention encoding said analog.
- nucleic acid of the invention also several nucleotide sequences, such as at least one nucleotide sequence encoding a Nanobody and for example nucleic acids encoding one or more linkers can be linked-together in a suitable manner.
- nucleic acids of the invention may for instance include, but are not limited to, automated DNA synthesis; site- directed mutagenesis; combining two or more naturally occurring and/or synthetic sequences IUo
- the nucleic acid of the invention may also be in the form of, be present in and/or be part of a genetic construct, as will be clear to the person skilled in the art.
- Such genetic constructs generally comprise at least one nucleic acid of the invention that is optionally linked to one or more elements of genetic constructs known per se, such as for example one or more suitable regulatory elements (such as a suitable promoters), enhancer(s), terminators), etc.) and the further elements of genetic constructs referred to herein.
- suitable regulatory elements such as a suitable promoters), enhancer(s), terminators, etc.
- Such genetic constructs comprising at least one nucleic acid of the invention will also be referred to herein as "genetic constructs of the invention”.
- the genetic constructs of the invention may be DNA or RNA, and are preferably double-stranded DNA.
- the genetic constructs of the invention may also be in a form suitable for transformation of the intended host cell or host organism, in a form suitable for integration into the genomic DNA of the intended host cell or in a form suitable for independent replication, maintenance and/or inheritance in the intended host organism.
- the genetic constructs of the invention may be in the form of a vector, such as for example a plasmid, cosmid, YAC, a viral vector or transposon.
- the vector may be an expression vector, i.e. a vector that can provide for expression in vitro and/or in vivo (e.g. in a suitable host cell, host organism and/or expression system).
- a genetic construct of the invention comprises a) at least one nucleic acid of the invention; operably connected to b) one or more regulatory elements, such as a promoter and optionally a suitable terminator; and optionally also c) one or more further elements of genetic constructs known per se; in which the terms "regulatory element”, “promoter”, “terminator” and “operably connected” have their usual meaning in the art (as further described herein); and in which said "further elements” present in the genetic constructs may for example be 3 '- or 5'-UTR sequences, leader sequences, selection markers, expression markers/reporter genes, and/or elements that may facilitate or increase (the efficiency of) transformation or integration.
- nucleotide sequences of the invention of interest are to be expressed (e.g. via constitutive, transient or inducible expression); and/or the transformation technique to be used.
- regulatory requences, promoters and terminators known per se for the expression and production of antibodies and antibody fragments may be used in an essentially analogous manner.
- said at least one nucleic acid of the invention and said regulatory elements, and optionally said one or more further elements are "operably linked" to each other, by which is generally meant that they are in a functional relationship with each other.
- a promoter is considered “operably linked” to a coding sequence if said promoter is able to initiate or otherwise control/regulate the transcription and/or the expression of a coding sequence (in which said coding sequence should be understood as being "under the control of said promotor).
- two nucleotide sequences when operably linked, they will be in the same orientation and usually also in the same reading frame. They will usually also be essentially contiguous, although this may also not be required.
- the regulatory and further elements of the genetic constructs of the invention are such that they are capable of providing their intended biological function in the intended host cell or host organism.
- a promoter, enhancer or terminator should be “operable" in the intended host cell or host organism, by which is meant that (for example) said promoter should be capable of initiating or otherwise controlling/regulating the transcription and/or the expression of a nucleotide sequence - e.g. a coding sequence - to which it is operably linked (as defined herein).
- Some particularly preferred promoters include, but are not limited to, promoters known per se for the expression in the host cells mentioned herein; and in particular promoters for the expression in the bacterial cells, such as those mentioned herein and/or those used in the Examples.
- a selection marker should be such that it allows - i.e.
- host cells and/or host organisms that have been (successfully) transformed with the nucleotide sequence of the invention to be distinguished from host cells/organisms that have not been (successfully) transformed.
- Some preferred, but non-limiting examples of such markers are genes that provide resistance against antibiotics (such as kanamycin or ampicillin), genes that provide for temperature resistance, or genes that allow the host cell or host organism to be maintained in the absence of certain factors, compounds and/or (food) components in the medium that are essential for survival of the non-transformed cells or organisms.
- leader sequence should be such that - in the intended host cell or host organism - it allows for the desired post-translational modifications and/or such that it directs the transcribed mRNA to a desired part or organelle of a cell.
- a leader sequence may also allow for secretion of the expression product from said cell.
- the leader sequence may be any pro-, pre-, or prepro-sequence operable in the host cell or host organism.
- Leader sequences may not be required for expression in a bacterial cell.
- leader sequences known per se for the expression and production of antibodies and antibody fragments may be used in an essentially analogous manner.
- An expression marker or reporter gene should be such that - in the host cell or host organism - it allows for detection of the expression of (a gene or nucleotide sequence present on) the genetic construct.
- An expression marker may optionally also allow for the localisation of the expressed product, e.g. in a specific part or organelle of a cell and/or in (a) specific cell(s), tissue(s), organ(s) or part(s) of a multicellular organism.
- Such reporter genes may also be expressed as a protein fusion with the amino acid sequence of the invention. Some preferred, but non-limiting examples include fluorescent proteins such as GFP.
- suitable promoters, terminator and further elements include those that can be used for the expression in the host cells mentioned herein; and in particular those that are suitable for expression bacterial cells, such as those mentioned herein and/or those used in the Examples below.
- suitable promoters, selection markers, leader sequences, expression markers and further elements that may be present/used in the genetic constructs of the invention - such as terminators, transcriptional and/or translational enhancers and/or integration factors - reference is made to the general handbooks such as Sambrook et al. and Ausubel et al.
- the genetic constructs of the invention may generally be provided by suitably linking the nucleotide sequence(s) of the invention to the one or more further elements described above, for example using the techniques described in the general handbooks such as Sambrook et al. and Ausubel et al., mentioned above.
- the genetic constructs of the invention will be obtained by inserting a nucleotide sequence of the invention in a suitable (expression) vector known per se.
- suitable expression vectors are those used in the Examples below, as well as those mentioned herein.
- the nucleic acids of the invention and/or the genetic constructs of the invention may be used to transform a host cell or host organism, i.e. for expression and/or production of the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention.
- Suitable hosts or host cells will be clear to the skilled person, and may for example be any suitable fungal, prokaryotic or eukaryotic cell or cell line or any suitable fungal, prokaryotic or eukaryotic organism, for example: a bacterial strain, including but not limited to gram-negative strains such as strains of Escherichia coli; of Proteus, for example of Proteus mirabilis; of Pseudomonas, for example of Pseudomonas ⁇ uorescens; and gram-positive strains such as strains of
- Bacillus for example of Bacillus subtilis or of Bacillus brevis; of Streptomyces , for example of Streptomyces lividans; of Staphylococcus, for example of Staphylococcus carnosus; and of Lactococcus, for example of Lactococcus lactis; a fungal cell, including but not limited to cells from species of Trichoderma, for example from Trichoderma reesei; of Neurospora, for example from Neurospora crassa; of Sordaria, for example from Sordaria macrospora; of Aspergillus, for example from Aspergillus niger or from Aspergillus sojae; or from other filamentous fungi; a yeast cell, including but not limited to cells from species of Saccharomyces, for example of Saccharomyces cerevisiae; of Schizosaccharomyces ⁇ for example of
- Schizosaccharomyces pombe of Pichia, for example of Pichia pastoris or of Pichia methanolica; of Hansenula, for example of Hansenula polymorpha; of Kluyveromyces, for example of Kluyveromyces lactis; of Arxula, for example of Arxula adeninivorans; of Yarrowia, for example of Yarrowia lipolytica; an amphibian cell or cell line, such as Xenopus oocytes; an insect-derived cell or cell line, such as cells/cell lines derived from lepidoptera, including but not limited to Spodoptera SF9 and SCl cells or cells/cell lines derived from Drosophila, such as Schneider and Kc cells; a plant or plant cell, for example in tobacco plants; and/or a mammalian cell or cell line, for example derived a cell or cell line derived from a human, from the mammals including but not limited to CHO-cells, BHK
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention can also be introduced and expressed in one or more cells, tissues or organs of a multicellular organism, for example for prophylactic and/or therapeutic purposes (e.g. as a gene therapy).
- the nucleotide sequences of the invention may be introduced into the cells or tissues in any suitable way, for example as such (e.g. using liposomes) or after they have been inserted into a suitable gene therapy vector (for example derived from retroviruses such as adenovirus, or parvoviruses such as adeno-associated virus).
- such gene therapy may be performed in vivo and/or in situ in the body of a patient by administering a nucleic acid of the invention or a suitable gene therapy vector encoding the same to the patient or to specific cells or a specific tissue or organ of the patient; or suitable cells (often taken from the body of the patient to be treated, such as explanted lymphocytes, bone marrow aspirates or tissue biopsies) may be treated in vitro with a nucleotide sequence of the invention and then be suitably (re-)introduced into the body of the patient. All this can be performed using gene therapy vectors, techniques and delivery systems which are well known to the skilled person, for Culver, K.
- Nanobodies for expression of the Nanobodies in a cell, they may also be expressed as so-called
- the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention can for example also be produced in the milk of transgenic mammals, for example in the milk of rabbits, cows, goats or sheep (see for example US-A-5,741,957, US-A-5,304,489 and US-A-5,849,992 for general techniques for introducing transgenes into mammals), in plants or parts of plants including but not limited to their leaves, flowers, fruits, seed, roots or turbers (for example in tobacco, maize, soybean or alfalfa) or in for example pupae of the silkworm Bombix mori.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention can also be expressed and/or produced in cell-free expression systems, and suitable examples of such systems will be clear to the skilled person.
- Some preferred, but non-limiting examples include expression in the wheat germ system; in rabbit reticulocyte lysates; or in the E. coli Zubay system.
- Nanobodies As mentioned above, one of the advantages of the use of Nanobodies is that the polypeptides based thereon can be prepared through expression in a suitable bacterial system, and suitable bacterial expression systems, vectors, host cells, regulatory elements, etc., will be clear to the skilled person, for example from the references cited above. It should however be noted that the invention in its broadest sense is not limited to expression in bacterial systems.
- an (in vivo or in vitro) expression system such as a bacterial expression system
- a bacterial expression system provides the polypeptides of the invention in a form that is suitable for pharmaceutical use
- expression systems will again be clear to the skilled person.
- polypeptides of the invention suitable for pharmaceutical use can be prepared using techniques for peptide synthesis.
- preferred heterologous hosts for the (industrial) production of Nanobodies or Nanobody-containing protein therapeutics include strains of E. coli, Pichia pastoris, S. cerevisiae that are suitable for large scale expression/production/fermentation, and in particular for large scale pharmaceutical expression/production/fermentation. Suitable examples of such strains will be clear to the skilled person. Such strains and production/expression systems are also made available by companies such as Biovitrum (Uppsala, Sweden).
- mammalian cell lines in particular Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells, can be used for large scale expression/production/fermentation, and in particular for large scale pharmaceutical expression/production/fermentation.
- CHO Chinese hamster ovary
- the choice of the specific expression system would depend in part on the requirement for certain post-translational modifications, more specifically glycosylation.
- the production of a Nanobody-containing recombinant protein for which glycosylation is desired or required would necessitate the use of mammalian expression hosts that have the ability to glycosylate the expressed protein.
- the glycosylation pattern obtained i.e. the kind, number and position of residues attached
- the cell or cell line is used for the expression.
- a human cell or cell line is used (i.e.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is glycosylated. According to another non-limiting embodiment of the invention, the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is non-glycosylated.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is produced in a bacterial cell, in particular a bacterial cell suitable for large scale pharmaceutical production, such as cells of the strains mentioned above.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is produced in a yeast cell, in particular a yeast cell suitable for large scale pharmaceutical production, such as cells of the species mentioned above.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is produced in a mammalian cell, in particular in a human cell or in a cell of a human cell line, and more in particular in a human cell or in a cell of a human cell line that is suitable for large scale pharmaceutical production, such as the cell lines mentioned hereinabove.
- the Nanobodies and proteins of the invention can be produced either intracellullarly (e.g. in the cytosol, in the periplasma or in inclusion bodies) and then isolated from the host cells and optionally further purified; or can be produced extracellularly (e.g. in the medium in which the host cells are cultured) and then isolated from the culture medium and optionally further purified.
- extracellular production is usually preferred since this considerably facilitates the further isolation and downstream processing of the Nanobodies and proteins obtained.
- Bacterial cells such as the strains of E.
- coli normally do not secrete proteins extracellularly, except for a few classes of proteins such as toxins and hemolysin, and secretory production in E. coli refers to the translocation of proteins across the inner membrane to the periplasmic space.
- Periplasmic production provides several advantages over cytosolic production. For example, the N- terminal amino acid sequence of the secreted product can be identical to the natural gene product after cleavage of the secretion signal sequence by a specific signal peptidase. Also, there appears to be much less protease activity in the periplasm than in the cytoplasm. In addition, protein purification is simpler due to fewer contaminating proteins in the periplasm.
- Another advantage is that correct disulfide bonds may form because the periplasm provides a more oxidative environment than the cytoplasm. Proteins overexpressed in E. coli are often found in insoluble aggregates, so-called inclusion bodies. These inclusion bodies may be located in the cytosol or in the periplasm; the recovery of biologically active proteins from these inclusion bodies requires a denaturation/refolding process. Many recombinant proteins, including therapeutic proteins, are recovered from inclusion bodies. Alternatively, as will be clear to the skilled person, recombinant strains of bacteria that have been genetically modified so as to secrete a desired protein, and in particular a Nanobody or a polypeptide of the invention, can be used.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is a Nanobody or polypeptide that has been produced intracellularly and that has been isolated from the host cell, and in particular from a bacterial cell or from an inclusion body in a bacterial cell.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is a Nanobody or polypeptide that has been produced intracellularly and that has been isolated from the host cell, and in particular from a bacterial cell or from an inclusion body in a bacterial cell.
- the Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention is a Nanobody or polypeptide that has been produced extracellularly, and that has been isolated from the medium in which the host cell is cultivated.
- Some preferred, but non-limiting promoters for use with these host cells include, for expression in E. coli: lac promoter (and derivatives thereof such as the lacUV5 promoter); arabinose promoter; left- (PL) and rightward (PR) promoter of phage lambda; promoter of the trp operon; hybrid lac/trp promoters (tac and trc); T7-promoter (more specifically that of T7-phage gene 10) and other T-phage promoters; promoter of the TnIO tetracycline resistance gene; engineered variants of the above promoters that include one or more copies of an extraneous regulatory operator sequence; for expression in S.
- lac promoter and derivatives thereof such as the lacUV5 promoter
- arabinose promoter left- (PL) and rightward (PR) promoter of phage lambda
- promoter of the trp operon hybrid lac/trp promoters (tac and trc)
- ADHl alcohol dehydrogenase 1
- ENO enolase
- CYCl cytochrome c iso-1
- GAPDH glycosylaldehydes-3-phosphate dehydrogenase
- PGKl phosphoglycerate kinase
- PYKl pyruvate kinase
- GALl 10,7 (galactose metabolic enzymes)
- ADH2 alcohol dehydrogenase 2
- PHO5 ascid phosphatase
- CUPl copper metallothionein
- heterologous CaMV (cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter); for expression in Pichia pastoris: the AOXl promoter (alcohol oxidase I) for expression in mammalian cells: human cytomegalovirus (hCMV) immediate early enhancer/promoter; human cytomegalovirus (hCMV) immediate early promoter variant that contains two t
- vectors for use with these host cells include: vectors for expression in mammalian cells: pMAMneo (Clontech), pcDNA3 (Invitrogen), pMClneo (Stratagene), pSG5 (Stratagene), EBO-pSV2-neo (ATCC 37593), pBPV-1 (8-2) (ATCC 37110), pdBPV-MMTneo (342-12) (ATCC 37224), pRSVgpt (ATCC37199), pRSVneo (ATCC37198), pSV2-dhfr (ATCC 37146), pUCTag (ATCC 37460) and 1ZD35 (ATCC 37565), as well as viral-based expression systems, such as those based on adenovirus; vectors for expression in bacterials cells: pET vectors (Novagen) and pQE vectors (Qiagen); vectors for expression in yeast or other fungal cells:
- Some preferred, but non-limiting secretory sequences for use with these host cells include: for use in bacterial cells such as E. coli: PeIB, BIa, OmpA, OmpC, OmpF, OmpT, StII, PhoA, PhoE, MaIE, Lpp, LamB, and the like; TAT signal peptide, hemolysin C- terminal secretion signal for use in yeast: ⁇ -mating factor prepro-sequence, phosphatase (phol), invertase (Sue), etc.; for use in mammalian cells: indigenous signal in case the target protein is of eukaryotic origin; murine Ig ⁇ -chain V-J2-C signal peptide; etc.
- Suitable techniques for transforming a host or host cell of the invention will be clear to the skilled person and may depend on the intended host cell/host organism and the genetic construct to be used. Reference is again made to the handbooks and patent applications mentioned above.
- a step for detecting and selecting those host cells or host organisms that have been successivefully transformed with the nucleotide sequence/genetic construct of the invention may be performed. This may for instance be a selection step based on a selectable marker present in the genetic construct of the invention or a step involving the detection of the amino acid sequence of the invention, e.g. using specific antibodies.
- the transformed host cell (which may be in the form or a stable cell line) or host organisms (which may be in the form of a stable mutant line or strain) form further aspects of the present invention.
- these host cells or host organisms are such that they express, or are (at least) capable of expressing (e.g. under suitable conditions), an amino acid sequence of the invention (and in case of a host organism: in at least one cell, part, tissue or organ thereof).
- the invention also includes further generations, progeny and/or offspring of the host cell or host organism of the invention, that may for instance be obtained by cell division or by sexual or asexual reproduction.
- the transformed host cell or transformed host organism may generally be kept, maintained and/or cultured under conditions such that the (desired) amino acid sequence of the invention is expressed/produced. Suitable conditions will be clear to the skilled person and will usually depend upon the host cell/host organism used, as well as on the regulatory elements that control the expression of the (relevant) nucleotide sequence of the invention. Again, reference is made to the handbooks and patent applications mentioned above in the paragraphs on the genetic constructs of the invention.
- suitable conditions may include the use of a suitable medium, the presence of a suitable source of food and/or suitable nutrients, the use of a suitable temperature, and optionally the presence of a suitable inducing factor or compound (e.g. when the nucleotide sequences of the invention are under the control of an inducible promoter); all of which may be selected by the skilled person.
- a suitable inducing factor or compound e.g. when the nucleotide sequences of the invention are under the control of an inducible promoter
- the amino acid sequences of the invention may be expressed in a constitutive manner, in a transient manner, or only when suitably induced.
- amino acid sequence of the invention may (first) be generated in an immature form (as mentioned above), which may then be subjected to post-translational modification, depending on the host cell/host organism used.
- amino acid sequence of the invention may be glycosylated, again depending on the host cell/host organism used.
- the amino acid sequence of the invention may then be isolated from the host cell/host organism and/or from the medium in which said host cell or host organism was cultivated, using protein isolation and/or purification techniques known per se, such as (preparative) chromatography and/or electrophoresis techniques, differential precipitation techniques, affinity techniques (e.g. using a specific, cleavable amino acid sequence fused with the amino acid sequence of the invention) and/or preparative immunological techniques (i.e. using antibodies against the amino acid sequence to be isolated).
- protein isolation and/or purification techniques known per se such as (preparative) chromatography and/or electrophoresis techniques, differential precipitation techniques, affinity techniques (e.g. using a specific, cleavable amino acid sequence fused with the amino acid sequence of the invention) and/or preparative immunological techniques (i.e. using antibodies against the amino acid sequence to be isolated).
- the polypeptides of the invention may be formulated as a pharmaceutical preparation comprising at least one polypeptide of the invention and at least one pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, diluent or excipient and/or adjuvant, and optionally one or more further pharmaceutically active polypeptides and/or compounds.
- a formulation may be in a form suitable for oral administration, for parenteral administration (such as by intravenous, intramuscular or subcutaneous injection or intravenous infusion), for topical administration, for administration by inhalation, by a skin patch, by an implant, by a suppository, etc.
- suitable administration forms - which may be solid, semi-solid or liquid, depending on the manner of administration - as well as methods and carriers for use in the preparation thereof, will be clear to the skilled person, and are further described herein.
- the invention relates to a pharmaceutical composition that contains at least one Nanobody of the invention or at least one polypeptide of the invention and at least one suitable carrier, diluent or excipient (i.e. suitable for pharmaceutical use), and optionally one or more further active substances.
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention can be formulated and administered in any suitable manner known per se, for which reference is for example made to the general background art cited above (and in particular to WO 04/041862, WO 04/041863, WO 04/041865 and WO 04/041867) as well as to the standard handbooks, such as Remington's Pharmaceutical Sciences, 18 th Ed., Mack Publishing Company, USA (1990) or Remington, the Science and Practice of Pharmacy, 21th Edition, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins (2005).
- Nanobodies and polypeptides of the inventions may be formulated and administered in any manner known per se for conventional antibodies and antibody fragments (including ScFv's and diabodies) and other pharmaceutically active proteins.
- Such formulations and methods for preparing the same will be clear to the skilled person, and for example include preparations suitable for parenteral administration (for example intravenous, intraperitoneal, subcutaneous, intramuscular, intraluminal, intra-arterial or intrathecal administration) or for topical (i.e. transdermal or intradermal) administration.
- Preparations for parenteral administration may for example be sterile solutions, suspensions, dispersions or emulsions that are suitable for infusion or injection.
- Suitable carriers or diluents for such preparations for example include, without limitation, sterile water and aqueous buffers and solutions such as physiological phosphate-buffered saline, Ringer's solutions, dextrose solution, and Hank's solution; water oils; glycerol; ethanol; glycols such as propylene glycol or as well as mineral oils, animal oils and vegetable oils, for example peanut oil, soybean oil, as well as suitable mixtures thereof.
- aqueous solutions or suspensions will be preferred.
- the present invention further relates to the use of the Nanobodies, polypeptides and compositions described herein in the diagnosis, treatment or prophylaxis of cancer.
- the present invention provides single domain antibodies, more precisely Nanobodies, directed to tumor-specific or tumor-associated antigens such as EGFR (EGFR) and insulin growth factor receptor (IGF-IR).
- EGFR EGFR
- IGF-IR insulin growth factor receptor
- the present invention further relates to their use in diagnosis and therapy.
- Such antibodies may have a framework sequence with high homology to the human framework sequences.
- Compositions comprising antibodies to IGF-IR and EGFR alone or in combination with other drugs are described.
- EGFR is part of the ERBB receptor family, which has four closely related members: EGFR (ErbB-1), HER2 (ErbB-2 or Neu), HER3 (ErbB-3) and HER4 (ErbB-4). Each of these members consist of an extracellular ligand-binding domain, a transmembrane domain and an intracellular tyrosine kinase domain (Yarden et al. 2001, Nature Rev. MoI. Cell Biol. 2, 127- 137).
- the first step in the mitogenic stimulation of epidermal cells is the specific binding of ligands such as epidermal growth factor (EGF) or transforming growth factor alpha (TGF ⁇ ) to a membrane glycoprotein known as the EGFR (EGF receptor).
- EGF epidermal growth factor
- TGF ⁇ transforming growth factor alpha
- EGF receptor is composed of 1,186 amino acids which are divided into an extracellular portion of 621 residues and a cytoplasmic portion of 542 residues connected by a single hydrophobic transmembrane segment of 23 residues. (Ullrich et al. 1986, Nature, Vol. 309, 418-425).
- the external portion of the EGF receptor can be subdivided into four domains. It has been demonstrated that domain I and III, flanked by two cysteine rich domains, are likely to contain the EGF binding site of the receptor.
- domain I and III flanked by two cysteine rich domains, are likely to contain the EGF binding site of the receptor.
- intramolecular domain II-domain IV interactions maintain the receptor in an inactive tethered state (Ferguson KM, Berger MB, Mendrola JM, Cho HS, Leahy DJ, Lemmon MA 2003. EGF activates its receptor by removing interactions that autoinhibit ectodomain dimerization. MoI. Cell. 11:507-17).
- domain II becomes exposed and makes intermolecular contact with domain II of a neighboring receptor resulting in receptor dimerization.
- the dimerization state of the receptor is required to activate the tyrosine kinase in the cytoplasmic domain. This leads to transphosphorylation of tyrosine residue in the intracellular domain and the initiation of a myriad of signal transduction cascades resulting in DNA synthesis and eventually in cell proliferation and differentiation.
- EGFR activation initiates a cascade of events leading to the assembly of a number of adaptor proteins in a structure known as a clathrin coated pit, which, after invagination of the plasma membrane and budding gives rise to a vesicle termed clathrin coated vesicle (CCV).
- CCV clathrin coated vesicle
- the activated receptor is sorted into endosomes and finally to lysosomes for proteolitic degradation, resulting in receptor downregulation or sequestration (Vieira AV, Lamaze C, Schmid SL, 1996. Control of EGF receptor signaling by clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Science 274:2086-2089). In normal cells, this feedback mechanism controls abberant receptor signaling.
- EGF receptor signaling is a consequence of i) ligand or receptor overexpression (for example after gene duplication) or ii) constitutive receptor signaling by the formation of heterodimers or EGFR mutant forms such as EGFRvIII.
- heterodimer EGFR-HER2 is characterized by a more sustained signalling activity compared to the EGFR homodimer (Arteaga CL 2001.
- EGFR is expressed in a wide variety of tumors of epithelial origin, including >40% of NSCLC (none-small-cell-lung cancer), >95% of head and neck cancer, >30% of pancreatic cancer, >90% of renal carcinoma, > 35% of ovarian cancer, >40% of glioma and >31% of bladder cancer (Salomon et al. 1995. Crit. Review Oncol. Hematol, 19, 183-232).
- Breast cancer cells exhibit a positive correlation between EGF receptor density and tumor size and a negative correlation with the extent of differentiation. (Sainsbury et al. 1985, EGFRs and Oestrogen Receptors in Human Breast Cancer, Lancet, Vol. 1, 364-366; Sainsbury et al.
- synovial fibroblasts and keratinocytes are cell types that also express EGF receptor, these cells are candidate target cells for treatment of inflammatory arthritis and psoriasis, respectively.
- EGFR has also been implicated in several other diseases, such as inflammatory arthritis (US 5906820, US 5614488), laryngeal papillomas (Johnston D, Hall H, DiLorenzo TP, Steinberg BM 1999. Elevation of the EGFR and dependent signaling in human papillomavirus-infected laryngeal papillomas. Cancer Res. 59:968-74.) and hypersecretion of mucus in the lungs (Barnes PJ, Hansel TT 2003. Prospects for new drugs for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Lancet 364:985-996; US 6566324 and US 6551989).
- the identification of MAbs that inhibit EGFR is an approach used in clinical development to target aberrant signalling of EGFR in malignant neoplasia.
- Examples of such EGFR targeting antibodies are IMC-C225 (Erbitux, Imclone), EMD72000 (Merck Darmstadt), ABX-EGF (Abgenix), h-R3 (theraCIM, YM Biosciences) and Humax-EGFR (Genmab).
- the mechanism of action of these antibodies relies on the inhibition with ligand binding to the receptor and subsequent inhibition of receptor transphosphorylation and the downstream signaling cascade.
- Mab 225 (of which Erbitux is the chimeric derivative), the 225-derived F(ab') 2 fragment are able to induce EGFR internalization and modest receptor sequestration but only after sustained incubation with EGFR expressing cells.
- the monovalent 225-derived Fab' fragment however only induces receptor downregulation after preincubation with a rabbit anti-mouse antibody (Fan Z, Mendelsohn J, Masui H, Kumar R 1993. Regulation of EGFR in NIH3T3/Her-14 cells by antireceptor monoclonal antibodies. J. Biol. Chem. 268:21073-21079; Fan Z, Lu Y, Wu X, Mendelsohn J 1994.
- Antibody-induced EGFR dimerization mediates inhibition of autocrine proliferation of A431 squamous carcinoma cells. J. Biol. Chem. 269:27595-27602). These antibodies show an antitumoral activity against a broad panel of human tumor xenografts (reviewed in Grunwald V, Hidalgo M 2003. Developing inhibitors of the EGFR for cancer treatment. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 95:851-867).
- the primary goal in treating tumors is to kill all the cells of the tumor.
- a therapeutic agent that kills the cell is defined as cytotoxic.
- a therapeutic agent that prevents the cells to replicate rather than killing them is defined as cytostatic.
- the known antibody-based therapeutics which bind to the EGF receptor merely prevent the cells from replicating and thus such conventional antibodies act as a cytostatic agent (EP 667165, EP 359282, US 5844093). Yet none of these antibodies nor the presently available small molecule drugs are completely effective for the treatment of cancer, and most are limited by severe toxicity. In addition, it is extremely difficult and a lengthy process to develop a new chemical entity (NCE) with sufficient potency and selectivity to such target sequence.
- NCE new chemical entity
- Antibodies offer significant potential as drugs because they have extraordinarily specificity to their target and a low inherent toxicity. Additionally, the development time can be reduced considerably when compared to the development of new chemical entities (NCE 's).
- NCE 's new chemical entities
- Polypeptide therapeutics and in particular antibody-based therapeutics have significant potential as drugs because they have extraordinarily specificity to their target and a low inherent toxicity.
- an antibody which has been obtained for a therapeutically useful target requires additional modification in order to prepare it for human therapy, so as to avoid an unwanted immunological reaction in a human individual upon administration.
- the modification process is commonly termed "humanization”.
- Solid tumors consist of densely packed, highly proliferating cells. For the treatment of solid tumors, it is essential that the therapeutic antibody penetrates into the deepest layers of the tumor resulting in a rapid and homogeneous distribution to avoid tumor relapse.
- derived immunoglobulin formats such as F(ab') 2 , Fab' and scFv fragments (the smallest antigen binding unit formed by the genetic fusion of gene segments coding for the variable domain of the heavy and light chain separated by a short linker seqiuence)
- F(ab') 2 , Fab' and scFv fragments the smallest antigen binding unit formed by the genetic fusion of gene segments coding for the variable domain of the heavy and light chain separated by a short linker seqiuence
- Nanobodies described in the invention which are derived from heavy chain antibodies from Camelidae, are known to have cavity-binding propensity (WO97/49805; Lauwereys et al, EMBO J. 17, 5312, 1998). Therefore, such Nanobodies are inherently suited to recognize ligand-binding domains on the receptor or to bind epitopes that are less accessible to conventional antibodies and may therefore operate via a different mechanism of action to yield a cytotoxic effect on tumour cells.
- Heavy chain antibodies are devoid of light chains. Hence, its antigen binding domain is formed by a single domain, the V H ⁇ (approximately 15 kDa), contrary to the antigen binding domain of conventional antibodies which requires functional folding of the variable domains of a heavy and a light chain. Only a single gene segment is required for expression of a functional V HH , making these V HH S suitable as building blocks (Conrath KE, Lauwereys M, Wyns L, Muyldermans S 2001. Camel single-domain antibodies as modular building units in bispecific and bivalent antibody constructs. J. Biol. Chem. 276:7346-7350).
- Such heavy chain antibody fragments can easily be produced 'en-masse' in fe ⁇ nentors using cheap expression systems compared to mammalian cell culture fermentation, such as yeast, E. coli or other microorganisms (EP 0 698 097).
- the Camelidae Nanobodies have been shown to have unexpectedly high thermal stability with T m s in the range of 60C° to 80C° and resist harsh conditions, such as extreme pH and denaturing reagents (Ewert S et al, Biochemistry 2002 Mar 19; 41(11):3628- 36; Perez et al, Biochemistry, 2001, 40: 74-83), so making them suitable for delivery by oral administration.
- This allows, among others, for better labeling efficiency compared to labeling of conventional antibodies and their derivatives (e.g. scFv). As such, higher specific activities can be obtained resulting in superior imaging results or therapeutic efficacy.
- V HH S are the smallest antigen binding domains (15 kDa) they are extremely suitable for optimal distribution in solid tumor masses. Since V HH S originate from naturally occurring heavy chain antibodies which already underwent an in vivo maturation, no time consuming and labor intensive in vitro affinity maturation is required anymore. It is an aim of the present invention to provide polypeptides comprising one or more single domain antibodies (and in particular Nanobodies) which bind to tumor-specific or tumor-associated antigens such as EGFR (EGFR) and insulin growth factor receptor (IGF-IR), homologues of said polypeptides and functional portions.
- EGFR EGFR
- IGF-IR insulin growth factor receptor
- Said polypeptides can i) inhibit binding of the natural ligand to the receptor and /or, ii) induce recepor downregulation, and/or iii) prevent homo- and heterodimerization of the receptor and/or iv) induce apoptosis in human cells, thereby modifying the biological activity of EGFR upon binding, v) detect tumors expressing IGF-IR and/or EGFR by using labeled polypeptides, vi) have a cytotoxic effect on the cell due to its binding to the tumor antigen.
- Such polypeptides might bind into the ligand-binding groove of EGFR, or might not bind in the ligand binding groove.
- Such polypeptides are single domain antibodies.
- Nanobodies or polypeptides joined to therapeutic compounds such as anti-tumor agents, or joined to imaging agents suitable for visualization in MRI or CAT-scans.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide comprising at least one single domain antibody directed against EGRF or IGF-IR respectively.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one single domain antibody is a heavy chain variable domain.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one single domain antibody is a V HH or Nanobody.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one single domain antibody is a V HH in which one or more amino acid residues have been substituted without substantially altering the antigen binding capacity.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one single domain antibody is a VH wherein one or more amino acid residues have been substituted, and in particular Camelized, without substantially altering the antigen binding capacity.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said single domain antibody is an homologous sequence, a functional portion, or a functional portion of an homologous sequence of the full length single domain antibody.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above further comprising at least one covalently attached or recombinantly fused substance directed to improving the half-life.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said substance directed to improving the half-life is any of polyethylene glycol, serum protein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said substance is a single domain antibody directed against a serum protein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said serum protein is any of serum albumin, serum immunoglobulins, thyroxine-binding protein, transferrin, or fibrinogen.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said serum protein is human.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said single domain antibody is an homologous sequence, a functional portion, or a functional portion of an homologous sequence of the full length single domain antibody.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said polypeptide is an homologous sequence, a functional portion, or a functional portion of an homologous sequence of the full length single domain antibody.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, wherein the number of single domain antibodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR is at least two.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, wherein said at least two single domain antibodies are joined head to tail in the absence of a linker sequence.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, wherein at least one single domain antibody is capable of binding to EGFR, internalising the receptor and but not co-localising with transferrin.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above further comprising one or more radioisotopes.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one isotope is any of 188 Re, 131 I or 211 At.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above further comprising one or more anti-tumour agents.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein at least one anti-tumour agent is any of antracyclines, methotrexate, vindesine, cis-platinum, ricin, calicheamicin and cytokine.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above further comprising one or more enzymes capable of activating a prodrug.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a nucleic acid encoding an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, or a nucleic acid encoding said polypeptide for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders relating to inflammatory processes.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, or a nucleic acid encoding said polypeptide for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders relating to cancer.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, or a nucleic acid encoding said polypeptide for the preparation of a medicament for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders relating to cancer.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR polypeptide, anti-IGF- IR polypeptide or nucleic acid as described above wherein said cancer is selected from the group consisting of cancer of the breast, ovary, testis, lung, colon, rectum, pancreas, liver, central nervous system, head and neck, kidney, bone, blood and lymphatic system.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a composition comprising an anti- EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above or a nucleic acid encoding said polypeptide and a suitable pharmaceutical vehicle.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of diagnosing a disorder characterised by the abberant signaling of EGFR or the presence of IGF-IR comprising: (a) contacting a sample with an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above,
- step (c) comparing the binding detected in step (b) with a standard, wherein a difference in binding relative to said sample is diagnostic of a disorder characterised by the aberrent signalling of EGFR or the presence of IGF-IR respectively.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a kit for screening for a disorder cited above, using a method as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a kit for screening for a disorder cited above comprising an isolated anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above for inhibiting the interaction between EGF and one or more EGF receptors or IGF-IR and one or more IGF-IR receptors respectively.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of producing an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above comprising: (a) culturing host cells comprising nucleic acid capable of encoding an anti-EGFR or anti- IGF-IR polypeptide as described above, under conditions allowing the expression of the polypeptide, and,
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method as described above, wherein said host cells are bacteria or yeast.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a kit for screening for cancer comprising an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above further comprising one or more imaging agents.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above wherein said imaging agents are any of radiolabels, enzyme labels, magnetic resonance paramagnetic chelates, and/or optical dyes.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above for imaging.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method for imaging EGFR or IGF- IR targets comprising adminstering an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a composition, more preferably a diagnostic composition for imaging.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method as described above, wherein the number of anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies is at least two.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method as described above, wherein said polypeptides are administered to a subject in microparticles, ultrasound bubbles, microspheres, emulsions or liposomes.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method for increasing the residence time of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide on their respective receptor comprising fusing said polypeptide to one one or more single domain antibodies directed against serum protein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method as described above wherein said anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide is a polypeptide as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of identifying an agent that modulates the binding of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above to EGFR or IGF-IR comprising: (a) contacting a polypeptide as described above with a target that is EGFR or IGF-IR, or a fragment thereof, in the presence and absence of a candidate modulator under conditions permitting binding between said polypeptide and corresponding target, and
- step (b) measuring the binding between the polypeptide and target of step (a), wherein a decrease in binding in the presence of said candidate modulator, relative to the binding in the absence of said candidate modulator identified said candidate modulator as an agent that modulates the binding of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above and EGFR or IGF-IR respectively.
- step (b) measuring the binding between the polypeptide and target of step (a), wherein a decrease in binding in the presence of said candidate modulator, relative to the binding in the absence of said candidate modulator identified said candidate modulator as an agent that modulates EGFR- or IGF-IR-mediated disorders.
- step (b) measuring the binding between the polypeptide and target of step (a), wherein a decrease in binding in the presence of said candidate modulator, relative to the binding in the absence of said candidate modulator identified said candidate modulator as an agent that modulates the binding of EGFR natural ligand.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a kit for screening for agents that modulate EGFR -mediated or anti-IGF-IR-mediated disorders comprising an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above and EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, or a fragment thereof.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an unknown agent that modulates the binding of the polypeptides as described above to EGFR or IGF-IR, identified according to the method as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an unknown agent that modulates EGFR-mediated or IGF-IR-mediated disorders, identified according to the methods as described above.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an unknown agent as described above wherein said disorders are one or more of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, or hypersecretion of mucus in the lung.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist that is able to pass through the gastric environment without being inactivated.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an
- EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist that is able to pass through the gastric environment without being inactivated.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the vaginal and/or rectal tract without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the vaginal and/or rectal tract without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the upper respiratory tract and lung without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders requiring the delivery of a therapeutic compound to the upper respiratory tract and lung.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the intestinal mucosa without inactivation, wherein said disorder increases the permeability of the intestinal mucosa.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist without inactivation, wherein said disorder increases the permeability of the intestinal mucosa.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the tissues beneath the tongue without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist to the tissues beneath the tongue without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide as described above for treating and/or preventing and/or alleviating disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist through the skin without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by the delivery of an EGFR or IGF-IR antagonist through the skin without inactivation.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a polypeptide, nucleic acid or agent as described above, use of a polypeptide, nucleic acid or agent as described above, a polypeptide as described above, use of a polypeptide as described above wherein said disorders are cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, or hypersecretion of mucus in the lung.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of a polypeptide as described above for inhibiting the interaction between EGF and one or more EGFR.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a therapeutic composition comprising: (a) a VH H which inhibits the growth of human tumor cells by said V H H binding to EGFR or IGF-IR of said tumour cell, and
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a therapeutic composition as described above for separate administration of the components.
- the present invention relates to an anti-EGFR (EGFR) polypeptide, comprising at least one single domain antibody which is directed towards EGFR.
- the present invention also relates to an anti-IGF-IR (IGF-IR) polypeptide, comprising at least one single domain antibody which is directed towards IGF-IR.
- the invention also relates to nucleic acids capable of encoding said polypeptides.
- the EGFR is overexpressed on the surface of many cancer cells, and this overexpression is associated with bad prognosis, progression, shortened survival and resistance to chemotherapy or hormone therapy. Also it has been proven that EGFR overexpression alters cell cycle regulation (increasing proliferation on tumor cell), blocks apoptosis and promotes angiogenesis. In this way the blockade of the EGFR associated signal transduction pathway in tumor cells should result in: (i) Inhibition of tumor cell proliferation, (ii) cell cycle arrest, (iii) induction of apoptosis and (iv) inhibition of angiogenesis.
- the pharmaceutical compounds of the present invention block the binding of the EGF to the receptor, inhibit activation of receptor tyrosine kinase (inhibit tyrosine phosphorylation) induced by EGF binding, stimulate receptor internalization, inhibit cell proliferation induced by EGF on in vitro cell culture, have significant pro-apoptotic effect, and have a potent anti- angiogenic activity causing down regulation of the VEGF production and diminishing the number of microvessel counts. These effects are further amplified when the pharmaceutical compound is combined with other anti-cancer treatments.
- One embodiment of the present invention relates to a pharmaceutical composition
- a pharmaceutical composition comprising at least one polypeptide of the invention and at least a pharmaceutical acceptable carrier, diluent or excipients.
- Nanobodies are polypeptides which are derived from heavy chain antibodies and whose framework regions and complementary determining regions are part of a single domain polypeptide.
- heavy chain antibodies include, but are not limited to, naturally occurring immunoglobulins devoid of light chains.
- immunoglobulins are disclosed in WO 94/04678 for example.
- the antigen-binding site of this unusual class of heavy chain antibodies has a unique structure that comprises a single variable domain. For clarity reasons, the variable domain derived from a heavy chain antibody naturally devoid of light chain is known herein as a VHH or VH H domain or nanobody.
- V HH domain peptide can be derived from antibodies raised in Camelidae species, for example in camel, dromedary, llama, alpaca and guanaco.
- Other species besides Camelidae ⁇ e.g. shark, pufferf ⁇ sh may produce functional antigen- binding heavy chain antibodies naturally devoid of light chain.
- V HH domains derived from such heavy chain antibodies are within the scope of the invention.
- Camelidae antibodies express a unique, extensive repertoire of functional heavy chain antibodies that lack light chains.
- the V HH molecules derived from Camelidae antibodies are the smallest intact antigen-binding domains known (approximately 15 kDa, or 10 times smaller than conventional IgG) and hence are well suited towards delivery to dense tissues and for accessing the limited space between macromolecules.
- Nanobodies include Nanobodies derived from VH domains of conventional four chain antibodies which have been modified by substituting one or more amino acid residues with Camelidae-specific residues (the so-called camelisation of heavy chain antibodies, WO 94/04678). Such positions may preferentially occur at the VH-VL interface and at the so-called Camelidae hallmark residues (WO 94/04678), comprising positions 37, 44, 45, 47, 103 and 108. Nanobodies correspond to small, robust and efficient recognition units formed by a single immunoglobulin (Ig) domain.
- Ig immunoglobulin
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as disclosed herein and their derivatives not only possess the advantageous characteristics of conventional antibodies, such as low toxicity and high selectivity, but they also exhibit additional properties. They are more soluble; as such they may be stored and/or administered in higher concentrations compared with conventional antibodies.
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention are stable at room temperature; as such they may be prepared, stored and/or transported without the use of refrigeration equipment, conveying a cost, time and environmental savings.
- conventional antibodies are unsuitable for use in assays or kits performed at temperatures outside biologically active- temperature ranges (e.g. 37 ⁇ 20 0 C).
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as disclosed herein as compared to conventional antibodies include modulation of half-life in the circulation which may be modulated according to the invention by, for example, albumin- coupling, or by coupling to one or more Nanobodies directed against a serum protein such as, for example, serum albumin.
- a serum protein such as serum albumin
- One aspect of the invention is a bispecif ⁇ c anti-EGFR polypeptide, with one specificity against a serum protein such as serum albumin and the other against the target as disclosed in WO04/041865 and incorporated herein by reference.
- Other means to enhance half life include coupling a polypeptide of the present invention to Fc, or to other Nanobodies directed against EGFR (i.e. creating multivalent Nanobodies - bivalent, trivalent, etc.) or coupling to polyethylene glycol.
- a controllable half-life is desirable for modulating dosage with immediate effect.
- Camelidae antibodies are unsuitable for use in environments outside the usual physiological pH range. They are unstable at low or high pH and hence are not suitable for oral administration. Camelidae antibodies resist harsh conditions, such as extreme pH, denaturing reagents and high temperatures, so making the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as disclosed herein suitable for delivery by oral administration. Camelidae antibodies are resistant to the action of proteases which is less the case for conventional antibodies.
- the yields of expression of conventional antibodies are very low and the method of production is very labor intensive. Furthermore, the manufacture or small-scale production of said antibodies is expensive because the mammalian cellular systems necessary for the expression of intact and active antibodies require high levels of support in terms of time and equipment, and yields are very low.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention may be cost-effectively produced through fermentation in convenient recombinant host organisms such as Escherichia coli and yeast; unlike conventional antibodies which also require expensive mammalian cell culture facilities, achievable levels of expression are high. Examples of yields of the polypeptides of the present invention are 1 to 10 mg/ml (E. coli) and up to lg/1 (yeast).
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention exhibit high binding affinity for a broad range of different antigen types, and ability to bind to epitopes not recognised by conventional antibodies; for example they display long CDR3 loops with the potential to penetrate into cavities.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention exhibit a straightforward generation of bi- or multi-functional molecules by (head-to-tail) fusion as disclosed in WO96/34103 (incorporated herein by reference).
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention allow better tissue penetration and ability to reach all parts of the body than conventional antibodies.
- Llama single-domain antibodies can transmigrate across human blood-brain barrier.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides can penetrate the blood-brain-barrier. In another embodiment of the invention the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides may not penetrate the blood-brain barrier.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as disclosed herein are less immunogenic than conventional antibodies.
- a subclass of Camelidae antibodies has been discovered which displays 95% amino acid sequence homology to human VH framework regions. This suggests that immunogenicity upon administration in human patients can be anticipated to be minor or even non-existent.
- humanization of Nanobodies surprisingly requires only a few residues that need to be substituted.
- a polypeptide of the invention has an iso-electrical point between 4 and 11.
- a polypeptide of the invention has an iso-electrical point between 5 and 10.
- the polypeptides of the invention comprise two amino acid chains (herein called "heavy chains") which are covalently linked.
- the heavy chains of the invention are preferably linked via a disulfide bond. More preferably, the heavy chains of the invention are linked via cysteine residues forming a disulfide bond.
- the heavy chains of the invention have an approximate molecular weight of between 35 kDa and 50 kDa.
- the molecular weight is determined as described in Hamers-Casterman et al. (Nature 1993).
- the heavy chains of the invention have a molecular weight of between 40 kDa and 50 kDa.
- the heavy chains of the invention have a molecular weight of between 41 kDa and 49 kDa, 42 kDa and 48 kDa, 43 kDa and 47 kDa, or 44 kDa and 46 kDa. Most preferably, the heavy chains of the invention have a molecular weight of between 43 kDa and 46 kDa. According to one preferred, but non-limiting embodiment, the heavy chains of the invention have a molecular weight of 43 kDa.
- the heavy chains of the invention have a molecular weight of 46 kDa.
- Single domain antibodies are antibodies whose complementary determining regions are part of a single domain polypeptide. Examples include, but are not limited to, heavy or light chain antibodies, antibodies naturally devoid of light chains, single domain antibodies derived from conventional 4-chain antibodies, VH domain from conventional antibodies, the respective human germline sequences encoding parts of these, engineered antibodies and single domain scaffolds other than those derived from antibodies. Single domain antibodies may be any of the art, or any future single domain antibodies. Single domain antibodies may be derived from any species including, but not limited to mouse, human, camel, llama, shark, pufferf ⁇ sh, goat, rabbit, bovine. According to one aspect of the invention, a single domain antibody as used herein is a naturally occurring immunoglobulin devoid of light chains.
- V HH variable domain derived from a heavy chain antibody naturally devoid of light chain
- a V HH or Nanobody to distinguish it from the conventional VH of four chain immunoglobulins.
- V HH molecule can be derived from antibodies raised in Camelidae species, for example in camel, dromedary, llama, vicuna, alpaca and guanaco.
- Camelidae e.g. shark, pufferfish
- V HH S derived from such heavy chain antibodies are within the scope of the invention.
- Nanobodies are heavy chain variable domains derived from immunoglobulins naturally devoid of light chains such as those derived from Camelidae as described in WO 94/04678 (and referred to hereinafter as V HH domains or Nanobodies).
- V HH molecules are about 1Ox smaller than IgG molecules. They are single polypeptides and very stable, resisting extreme pH and temperature conditions. Furthermore, expression of V HH S in microbial hosts produce high yields, properly folded functional V HH S. Expression in mammalian hosts can therefore be avoided. Moreover, they are resistant to the action of proteases which is less the case for conventional antibodies.
- V H HS of the invention are resistant to digestion by proteases of the digestive tract, and generally more so than conventional antibodies. This would allow such V HH S to be used therapeutically via oral intake. Furthermore, the V HH S of the invention have been shown to be stable over several months when incubated in human serum at 37°C. In addition, antibodies generated in Camelids will recognise epitopes other than those recognised by antibodies generated in vitro through the use of antibody libraries or via immunization of mammals other than Camelids (WO 97/49805).
- anti EGFR and anti-IGF-IR V HH 'S may interact more efficiently or induce a unique biological effect when binding to EGFR or IGF-IR respectively than conventional antibodies, thereby blocking its interaction with the EGFR ligand(s) or block the activity of the IGF-IR antigen more efficiently on their respective receptors.
- V HH 'S are known to bind into 'unusual' epitopes such as cavities or grooves (WO 97/49805), the affinity of such V HH 'S may be more suitable for therapeutic treatment.
- EGFR targeting antibodies such as IMC-C225, ABX-EGF, Humax-EGFR, hR3 and EMD72000 have been described that show a cytostatic effect on human carcinoma cells.
- EGFR targeting antibodies to inhibit binding of ligand to the ectodomain of the EGF receptor, thus preventing receptor-mediated downstream signaling required for cell proliferation.
- One of the commercially available EGFR antibodies showing a cytostatic effect is Erbitux (the chimeric version of a mouse monoclonal antibody 225) which was recently approved for treatment of colorectal cancer in a combination therapy with irinotecan.
- Erbitux the chimeric version of a mouse monoclonal antibody 225
- One of the machineries of the cell to reduce EGF receptor-mediated signaling is the mechanism of receptor sequestration or down-regulation. After binding of a ligand to the receptor, a cell can down-regulate receptor signaling by internalization of the ligand-receptor complex resulting in the degradation of the ligand-receptor complex in the lysosomes.
- the inventors have surprisingly found that certain anti-EGFR Nanobodies are able to compete with EGF, TGF ⁇ and/or Erbitux.
- the new anti-EGFR Nanobodies are functionally classified into 3 Types of ligand competing Nanobodies.
- Non-limiting examples of the different classes of Nanobodies are as follows:
- Nanobodies bind to ectodomain EGFR, competes with the EGF, TGF ⁇ but not with the Erbitux binding sites on EGFR.
- Examples of such Nanobodies are 27-10-E8 (SEQ ID NO: 80; family I) and PMP7A5 (SEQ ID NO: 84; family III).
- Nanobodies bind to ectodomain EGFR, competes with the EGF, Erbitux and TGF ⁇ -binding sites on EGFR.
- Examples of such Nanobodies are PMP7D12 and PMP7C12
- an embodiment of the invention is an anti-EGFR polypeptide comprising a single domain antibody or Nanobody specifically binding to the ectodomain of EGFR and competing with the EGF and TGF ⁇ binding site on EGFR, but not with the Erbitux binding site on EGFR.
- an anti-EGFR polypeptide comprising a single domain antibody or Nanobody specifically binding the ectodomain of EGFR and competing with the EGF, TGF ⁇ and Erbitux binding site on EGFR.
- the anti-EGFR polypeptide comprises a single domain antibody or Nanobody specifically binding the ectodomain of EGFR and competing with the TGF ⁇ binding site on EGFR but not with the EGF or Erbitux binding site on EGFR
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide comprising at least one anti-EGFR Nanobody. It is an aspect of the invention that such a polypeptide may comprise additional components.
- Such components may be polypeptide sequences, for example, one or more anti-EGFR Nanobodies, one or more anti-IGF-IR Nanobodies , one or more anti-serum albumin Nanobodies.
- Other fusion proteins are within the scope of the invention, and may include, for example, fusions with carrier polypeptides, signaling molecules, tags, and enzymes.
- Other components may include, for example, radiolabels, organic dyes, fluorescent compounds.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide consisting of a sequence corresponding to that of a Camelidae V HH directed towards EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, or a closely related family member.
- a single domain antibody of the present invention is directed against EGFR, IGF-IR or a closely related family member.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a multivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF- IR polypeptide as disclosed herein comprising at least two single domain antibodies directed against EGFR.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a multivalent anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein comprising at least two single domain antibodies directed against IGF-IR.
- Such multivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides have the advantage of unusually high functional affinity for the target, displaying much higher than expected inhibitory properties compared to their monovalent counterparts.
- the multivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides have functional affinities that are several orders of magnitude higher than the monovalent parent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides respectively.
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention comprising single domain antibodies linked to each other directly or via a short linker sequence show the high functional affinities expected theoretically with multivalent conventional four-chain antibodies.
- the inventors have found that such large increased functional activities can be detected preferably with antigens composed of multidomain and multimeric proteins, either in straight binding assays or in functional assays, e.g. cytotoxicity assays.
- multivalent polypeptides have increased residence times and affinity/avidity towards their respective IGF-IR and/or EGFR targets.
- These multimeric polypeptides can be altered to provide IGF-IR or EGFR-specific imaging agents by radiolabeling, enzymatic labeling, or labeling with MR paramagnetic chelates or incorporated in microparticles, ultrasound bubbles, microspheres, emulsions, or liposomes; or wherein the binding moieties are conjugated with optical dyes.
- a multivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as used herein refers to a polypeptide comprising two or more anti-EGFR single domain antibodies which have been covalently linked.
- a multivalent anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as used herein refers to a polypeptide comprising two or more anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies which have been covalently linked.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies may be identical in sequence or may be different in sequence, but are directed against the same target or the same antigens or epitopes thereof. Alternatively, such multivalent constructs may be directed to different epitopes of the same target.
- a multivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be bivalent (two anti-EGFR single domain antibodies or two anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies), trivalent (3 anti- EGFR or anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodes), tetravalent (4 anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies) or higher valency molecules.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may comprise at least two anti-EGFR Nanobodies. It is an aspect of the invention that such a polypeptide may comprise additional components as described above.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention comprising two anti-EGFR Nanobodies or two anti-IGF-IR Nanobodies are the polypeptides described below in Table 4 (SEQ ID NO's: 122-133 and 141-143) and Table 6 (SEQ ID NO's: 134-135) respectively.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention may comprise 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 or more than 15 Nanobodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR respectively.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention may comprise at least two identical or non identical anti-EGFR Nanobody sequences. It may be an aspect of the invention that at least two of the aforementioned sequences do not have equal affinity for EGFR, so forming an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide combining weak and high affinity binding sequences.
- bivalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the invention comprising two identical Nanobodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, include sequences given below in Table 4 (SEQ IS NO's: 122-133) and Table 6 (SEQ ID NO's: 134- 135) respectively.
- Nanobodies may be combined with or without linker sequences.
- bivalent polypeptides are known in the art (e.g. US 2003/0088074), and are also described below.
- Nanobody-fusions with certain Fc domains may be advantageous, especially with Fc domains of human origin.
- the present invention also relates to the finding that an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein further comprising one or more Nanobodies each directed against a serum protein of a subject, surprisingly has significantly prolonged half-life in the circulation of said subject compared with the half-life of the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR Nanobody when not part of said polypeptide.
- said anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides were found to exhibit the same favourable properties of Nanobodies as described above, such as, for example, high stability remaining intact in mice, extreme pH resistance, high temperature stability and high target specificity and affinity.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein comprising one or more Nanobodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, and one or more Nanobodies with specificity to a serum protein is much more efficient than a polypeptide only targeting EGFR or IGF-IR respectively.
- bispecific anti-EGFR polypeptides e.g. comprising one Nanobody against EGFR and one Nanobody against serum albumin may be essentially as described in WO 05/044858 and WO 04/041867.
- the serum protein may be any suitable protein found in the serum of a subject, or fragment thereof.
- the serum protein is any of serum albumin, serum immunoglobulins, thyroxine-binding protein, transferrin or fibrinogen.
- the subject may be, for example, rabbit, goat, mice, rat, cow, calve, camel, llama, monkey, donkey, guinea pig, chicken, sheep, dog, cat, horse, and preferably human.
- the Nanobody partner can be directed to one of the above serum proteins.
- the number of Nanobodies directed against a serum protein in an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 or more than 15.
- Another aspect of the invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide further comprising at least one substance, covalently (joined) or non-covalently bound, directed to improving the half-life of the polypeptide in vivo.
- substances which improve the half-lives include, for example, polyethylene glycol and serum albumin.
- Nanobodies and other substances to form bi- and multi-specific polypeptides are known to the skilled person, and described below.
- Polypeptides of the invention not modified according to the present invention to increase-half life have the characteristic of rapid clearance from the body.
- bispecif ⁇ c polypeptides comprising one or more Nanobodies directed against EGFR and one or more anti-serum protein Nanobodies are able to circulate in the subject's serum for several days, reducing the frequency of treatment, increasing the persistence times of the functional activity in the body, reducing the inconvenience to the subject and resulting in a decreased cost of treatment.
- the same advantageous characteristics are observable for polypeptides of the present invention comprising other substances aimed at improving the half life.
- the half-life of the anti-EGFR or anti- IGF-IR polypeptides disclosed herein may be controlled by the number of anti-serum protein Nanobodies present in the polypeptide.
- a controllable half-life is desirable in several circumstances, for example, in the application of a timed dose of a therapeutic anti-EGFR polypeptide.
- polypeptides are capable of binding to one or more molecules which can increase the half-life of the polypeptide in vivo.
- Half-life is the time taken for the serum concentration of the polypeptide to reduce by 50%, in vivo, for example due to degradation of the ligand and/or clearance or sequestration of the ligand by natural mechanisms.
- the polypeptides of the invention are stabilised in vivo and their half-life increased by binding to molecules which resist degradation and/or clearance or sequestration. Typically, such molecules are naturally occurring proteins which themselves have a long half-life in vivo.
- the half-life of a polypeptide of the invention is increased if its functional activity persists, in vivo, for a longer period than a similar polypeptide which is not specific for the half-life increasing molecule.
- a polypeptide of the invention specific for HSA and a target molecule is compared with the same polypeptide wherein the specificity for HSA is not present, that it does not bind HSA but binds another molecule. For example, it may bind a second epitope on the target molecule.
- the half-life is increased by 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50% or more.
- molecules which can increase the half-life of the polypeptide in vivo are polypeptides which occur naturally in vivo and which resist degradation or removal by endogenous mechanisms which remove unwanted material from the organism.
- the molecule which increases the half-life of the organism may be selected from the following:
- Proteins from the extracellular matrix for example collagen, laminins, integrins and f ⁇ bronectin.
- Collagens are the major proteins of the extracellular matrix.
- about 15 types of collagen molecules are currently known, found in different parts of the body, e.g. type I collagen (accounting for 90% of body collagen) found in bone, skin, tendon, ligaments, cornea, internal organs or type II collagen found in cartilage, invertebral disc, notochord, vitreous humour of the eye;
- Plasma proteins such as fibrin, alpha-2 macroglobulin, serum albumin, fibrinogen A, fibrinogen B, serum amyloid protein A, heptaglobin, profilin, ubiquitin, uteroglobulin and beta-2-microglobulin; Enzymes and inhibitors such as plasminogen, lysozyme, cystatin C, alpha- 1 -antitrypsin and pancreatic trypsin inhibitor.
- Plasminogen is the inactive precursor of the trypsin-like serine protease plasmin. It is normally found circulating through the blood stream.
- Immune system proteins such as IgE, IgG, IgM.
- Transport proteins such as retinol binding protein, alpha- 1 microglobulin.
- Defensins such as beta-defensin 1, Neutrophil defensins 1, 2 and 3. Proteins found at the blood brain barrier or in neural tissues, such as melanocortin receptor, myelin, ascorbate transporter. Transferrin receptor specific ligand-neuropharmaceutical agent fusion proteins (see
- brain capillary endothelial cell receptor transferrin, transferrin receptor, insulin, insulinlike growth factor 1 (IGF 1) receptor, insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF 2) receptor, insulin receptor.
- IGF 1 insulinlike growth factor 1
- IGF 2 insulin-like growth factor 2
- Proteins localised to the kidney such as polycystin, type IV collagen, organic anion transporter KI, Heymann's antigen.
- Proteins localised to the liver for example alcohol dehydrogenase, G250. Blood coagulation factor X, Alpha 1 antitrypsin, HNF 1 alpha.
- Proteins localised to the lung such as secretory component (binds IgA).
- HSP 27 Proteins localised to the heart, for example HSP 27. This is associated with dilated cardiomyopathy.
- Bone specific proteins such as bone morphogenic proteins (BMPs), which are a subset of the transforming growth factor beta superfamily that demonstrate osteogenic activity.
- BMPs bone morphogenic proteins
- Examples include BMP-2, -4, -5, -6, -7 (also referred to as osteogenic protein (OP-I) and -8 (OP-2)).
- Tumour specific proteins including human trophoblast antigen, herceptin receptor, oestrogen receptor, cathepsins e.g., cathepsin B (found in liver and spleen).
- Disease-specific proteins such as antigens expressed only on activated T-cells: including
- LAG-3 lymphocyte activation gene
- osteoprotegerin ligand OPGL
- OX40 a member of the TNF receptor family, expressed on activated T cells and the only costimulatory T cell molecule known to be specifically up-regulated in human T cell leukaemia virus type-I (HTLV-I)-producing cells
- Metalloproteases associated with arthritis/cancers
- angiogenic growth factors including acidic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-I), basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF-2), Vascular endothelial growth factor / vascular permeability factor (VEGF/VPF), transforming growth factor- a (TGF a), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), angiogenin, interleukin-3 (IL-3), interleukin-8 (IL-8), plateletderived endothelial growth factor (PD-ECGF),
- FGF-I acidic fibroblast growth factor
- FGF-2 basic fibroblast growth factor
- VEGF/VPF Vascular end
- Brambell receptor also known as FcRB.
- This Fc receptor has two functions, both of which are potentially useful for delivery. The functions are: the transport of IgG from mother to child across the placenta, and the protection of IgG from degradation thereby prolonging its serum half life of IgG. It is thought that the receptor recycles IgG from endosome.
- Polypeptides according to the invention may be designed to be specific for the above targets without requiring any increase in or increasing half life in vivo.
- polypeptides according to the invention can be specific for targets selected from the foregoing which are tissue-specific, thereby enabling tissue-specific targeting of the polypeptide, irrespective of any increase in half-life, although this may result.
- the polypeptide targets kidney or liver this may redirect the polypeptide to an alternative clearance pathway in vivo (for example, the polypeptide may be directed away from liver clearance to kidney clearance).
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as described herein in which one or more Nanobodies is humanized.
- the humanized Nanobody may be an anti-EGFR Nanobody, an anti-IGF-IR Nanobody, an antiserum albumin, another Nanobody useful according to the invention, or a combination of these.
- One embodiment of the invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide comprising one or more humanized anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR Nanobodies and one or more humanized anti-human serum albumin Nanobodies.
- Humanized is meant mutated so that potential immunogenicity upon administration in human patients is minor or nonexistent.
- Humanizing a polypeptide may comprise a step of replacing one or more of the non-human immunoglobulin amino acids by their human counterpart as found in a human consensus sequence or human germline gene sequence, without that polypeptide losing its typical character, i.e. the humanization does not significantly affect the antigen binding capacity of the resulting polypeptide.
- a humanized Nanobody is defined as a Nanobody having at least 50% homology (e.g. 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 98%, 100%) to the human framework region.
- the inventors have determined the amino acid residues of a Nanobody which may be modified without diminishing the native affinity, in order to reduce its immunogenicity with respect to a heterologous species.
- Nanobody polypeptides requires the introduction and mutagenesis of only a limited number of amino acids in a single polypeptide chain without dramatic loss of binding and/or inhibition activity. This is in contrast to humanization of scFv, Fab, (Fab)2 and IgG, which requires the introduction of amino acid changes in two chains, the light and the heavy chain, and the preservation of the assembly of both chains.
- Nanobodies of the invention comprising framework sequences highly homologous to human germline sequences such as DP29, DP47 and DP51 are highly effective. They occur naturally in some species such as those of the Camelidae. Such nanobodies are characterised in that they carry an amino acid from the group consisting of glycine, alanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, proline, phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan, methionine, serine, threonine, asparagine, or glutamine at position 45, such as, for example, L45.
- Nanobodies belonging to the class mentioned above, or Nanobodies carrying mutations of this class show a high amino acid sequence homology to human VH framework regions and polypeptides of the invention comprising these might be administered to a human directly without expectation of an unwanted immune response therefrom, and without the burden of further humanization.
- the invention also relates to nucleic acids capable of encoding said polypeptides.
- a humanization technique may be performed by a method comprising the replacement of any of the Nanobody residues with the corresponding framework 1, 2 and 3 (FRl, FR2 and FR3) residues of germline VH genes (such as DP 47, DP 29 and DP 51) either alone or in combination.
- FRl, FR2 and FR3 framework 1, 2 and 3 residues of germline VH genes
- humanization of Nanobodies is performed by substituting in said Nanobodies one or more of the amino acids at the positions described below, with the corresponding amino acids from the framework of germline VH genes, the numbering in accordance with the Kabat numbering:
- a framework region of the Nanobody which is unsubstituted remains as the original Nanobody framework.
- the residues of one or more of FRl, FR2 and FR3 are substituted according to the above scheme.
- At least 1, 2, 3 or all the residues of FRl are substituted according to the above scheme.
- At least 1, 2, 3 or all the residues of FR2 are substituted according to the above scheme.
- At least 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or all the residues of FR3 are substituted according to the above scheme.
- At least 1, 2, 3 or all the residues of FR4 are substituted according to the above scheme.
- a humanized Nanobody is obtained by grafting all or part of the Nanobody CDR regions onto the germline human VH framework scaffold.
- humanization of a Nanobody is performed by substituting one or more of CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 of said Nanobody onto the germline human VH framework scaffold.
- suitable framework scaffold include those of DP47, DP29 and DP51.
- Nanobodies of the invention obtained according to the above mentioned humanization methods are part of the present invention.
- Conventional four chain antibodies directed against EGFR or IGF-IR may be camelized, i.e. mutated such that the light chains are removed and one or more amino acid residues are substituted with Camelidae-specif ⁇ c residues (see for example, WO 94/04678 which is incorporated herein by reference).
- Such positions may preferentially occur at the VH-VL interface and at the so-called Camelidae hallmark residues, comprising positions 37, 44, 45, 47, 103 and 108.
- Such camelized antibodies are Nanobodies according to the invention.
- Nanobodies Polypeptides wherein at least one Nanobody is a VH wherein one or more amino acid residues have been partially substituted by specific sequences or amino acid residues of Nanobodies are Nanobodies according to the invention.
- the Nanobodies as described above may be joined to form any of the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides disclosed herein comprising more than one Nanobody using methods known in the art. For example, they may be fused by chemical cross-linking by reacting amino acid residues with an organic derivatising agent such as described by Blattler et al (Biochemistry 24, 1517-1524; EP294703).
- the Nanobodies may be fused genetically at the DNA level i.e.
- Nanobodies can be linked to each other either directly or via a linker sequence. Such constructs are difficult to produce with conventional antibodies where due to steric hindrance of the bulky subunits, functionality will be lost or greatly diminished. As seen with the Nanobodies of the invention functionality is increased considerably when they are joined together, compared to the monovalent anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide.
- the Nanobodies are linked to each other directly, without use of a linker. Contrary to joining bulky conventional antibodies where a linker sequence is needed to retain binding activity in the two subunits, polypeptides of the invention can be linked directly thereby avoiding potential problems of the linker sequence, such as antigenicity when administered to a human subject, or instability of the linker sequence leading to dissociation of the subunits.
- the Nanobodies are linked to each other via a peptide linker sequence.
- a linker sequence may be a naturally occurring sequence or a non-naturally occurring sequence.
- the linker sequence is expected to be non- immunogenic in the subject to which the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide is administered.
- the linker sequence may provide sufficient flexibility to the multivalent anti- EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide, at the same time being resistant to proteolytic degradation.
- a non-limiting example of a linker sequence is one that can be derived from the hinge region of Nanobodies as described in WO 96/34103. Another example is the linker sequence 3a (Ala- Ala-Ala).
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a homologous sequence of a full-length anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a functional portion of a full-length anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a functional portion of a homologous sequence of a full-length anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may comprise a sequence of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide.
- a Nanobody used to form an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a complete Nanobody or a homologous sequence thereof.
- a Nanobody used to form an anti-EGFR or anti- IGF-IR polypeptide may be a functional portion of a complete Nanobody.
- a Nanobody used to form an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a homologous sequence of a complete Nanobody.
- a Nanobody used to form an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may be a functional portion of a homologous sequence of a complete Nanobody.
- a homologous sequence of the present invention may comprise additions, deletions or substitutions of one or more amino acids, which do not substantially alter the functional characteristics of the polypeptides of the invention.
- the number of amino acid deletions or substitutions is preferably up to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 or 70 amino acids.
- a homologous sequence according to the present invention may be an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide modified by the addition, deletion or substitution of amino acids, said modification not substantially altering the functional characteristics compared with the unmodified polypeptide.
- a homologous sequence according to the present invention may be a sequence which exists in other Camelidae species such as, for example, camel, dromedary, llama, alpaca, guanaco etc.
- homologous sequence indicates sequence identity, it means a sequence which presents a high sequence identity (more than 70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95% or 98% sequence identity) with the parent sequence and is preferably characterised by similar properties of the parent sequence, namely binding to the same target .
- a homologous nucleotide sequence according to the present invention may refer to nucleotide sequences of more than 50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 800 or 1000 nucleotides able to hybridize to the reverse-complement of the nucleotide sequence capable of encoding the parent sequence, under stringent hybridisation conditions (such as the ones described by Sambrook et al., Molecular Cloning, Laboratory Manuel, Cold Spring, Harbor Laboratory press, New York).
- a functional portion refers to a sequence of a Nanobody that is of sufficient size such that the interaction of interest is maintained with affinity of 1 x 10 "6 M or better.
- a functional portion comprises a partial deletion of the complete amino acid sequence and still maintains the binding site(s) and protein domain(s) necessary for the binding of and interaction with the target.
- a functional portion of a Nanobody of the invention comprises a partial deletion of the complete amino acid sequence and still maintains the binding site(s) and protein domain(s) necessary for the binding of and interaction with the target.
- a functional portion is a polypeptide which comprises a partial deletion of the complete amino acid sequence and which still maintains the binding site(s) and protein domain(s) necessary for the inhibition of binding of EGFR to another EGFR.
- a functional portion is a polypeptide which comprises a partial deletion of the complete amino acid sequence and which still maintains the binding site(s) and protein domain(s) necessary for the binding of and interaction with EGFR.
- a functional portion comprises a partial deletion of the complete amino acid sequence of a polypeptide and which still maintains the binding site(s) and protein domain(s) necessary for the binding of and interaction with the antigen against which it was raised. It includes, but is not limited to Nanobodies.
- a functional portion refers to less than 100% of the complete sequence (e.g., 99%, 90%, 80%, 70%, 60%, 50%, 40%, 30%, 20%, 10%, 5%, 1% etc.), but comprises 5 or more amino acids or 15 or more nucleotides.
- a homologous sequence of the present invention may include an anti-EGFR or anti- IGF-IR polypeptide which has been humanized.
- the humanization of antibodies of the new class of Nanobodies would further reduce the possibility of unwanted immunological reaction in a human individual upon administration.
- Yet other examples of Nanobodies include "functional fragments ", meaning fragments that are functional in antigen binding (as described in WO03/035694). Such fragments comprise active antigen binding regions.
- Such fragments may be fragments of functional Nanobodies as described above, fragments of molecules that behave like functional Nanobodies, fragments of functionalized antibodies, or fragments of Nanobodies derived from conventional four chain antibodies which have been modified by substituting one or more amino acid residues with Camelidae-specific residues.
- “Functional” in reference to a heavy chain antibody, a Nanobody, a VH domain or fragments thereof means that the same retains a significant binding (dissociation constant in the micromolar range or better) to its epitope, compared with its binding in vivo, and that it shows no or limited aggregation (soluble and non-aggregated above 1 mg/ml), so allowing the use of the antibody as a binder.
- “Functionalized” in reference to a heavy chain antibody, a Nanobody or fragments thereof means to render said heavy chain antibody, Nanobody or fragments thereof functional.
- fragments thereof as used in the sense of functional fragments is meant a portion corresponding to more than 95% of the sequence, more than 90% of the sequence, more than 85% of the sequence, more than 80% of the sequence, more than 75% of the sequence, more than 70% of the sequence, more than 65% of the sequence, more than 60% of the sequence, more than 55% of the sequence, or more than 50% of the sequence.
- a target is any of EGFR, IGF-IR or serum protein.
- Said targets are mammalian, and are derived from species such as rabbits, goats, mice, rats, cows, calves, camels, llamas, monkeys, donkeys, guinea pigs, chickens, sheep, dogs, cats, horses, and preferably humans.
- Targets as mentioned herein such as EGFR, IGF-IR and serum proteins (e.g. serum albumin, serum immunoglobulins, thyroxine-binding protein, transferrin, fibrinogen) may be JL J£
- a target is also a fragment of said target, capable of eliciting an immune response.
- a target is also a fragment of said target, capable of binding to a Nanobody raised against the full length target.
- a Nanobody directed against a target preferably means a Nanobody that it is capable of binding to its target with an affinity of better than 10 ⁇ 6 M.
- EGFR is to be understood as full-length EGFR or any fragment of EGFR. It is also expected that the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention will generally bind to all naturally occurring or synthetic analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of EGFR, or at least to those analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of EGFR that contain one or more antigenic determinants or epitopes that are essentially the same as the antigenic determinant(s) or epitope(s) to which the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind in EGFR (e.g. in wild-type EGFR).
- IGF-IR (also called IGF-IR) is to be understood as full-length IGF-IR or any fragment of IGF-IR. It is also expected that the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention will generally bind to all naturally occurring or synthetic analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of IGF-IR, or at least to those analogs, variants, mutants, alleles, parts and fragments of IGF-IR that contain one or more antigenic determinants or epitopes that are essentially the same as the antigenic determinant(s) or epitope(s) to which the Nanobodies and polypeptides of the invention bind in IGF-IR (e.g. in wild-type IGF-IR).
- a fragment as used herein refers to less than 100% of the sequence (e.g., 99%, 90%, 80%, 70%, 60%, 50%, 40%, 30%, 20%, 10% etc.), but comprising 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 or more amino acids.
- a fragment is preferably of sufficient length such that the interaction of interest is maintained with affinity of 1 x 10 "6 M or better.
- a fragment as used herein also refers to optional insertions, deletions and substitutions of one or more amino acids which do not substantially alter the ability of the target to bind to a Nanobody raised against the wild-type target.
- the number of amino acid insertions deletions or substitutions is preferably up to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41 ; 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69 or 70 amino acids.
- One embodiment of the present invention relates to a polypeptide comprising at least one Nanobody wherein one or more amino acid residues have been substituted without substantially altering the antigen binding capacity.
- Targets as mentioned herein such as EGFR, IGF-IR and serum proteins may be a sequence which exists in any species including, but not limited to mouse, human, camel, llama, shark, pufferfish, goat, rabbit, bovine.
- a target may be a homologous sequence of a complete target.
- a target may be a fragment of a homologous sequence of a complete target.
- the anti-EGFR and anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention may be modified, and such modifications are within the scope of the invention.
- the polypeptides may be used as drug carriers, in which case they may be fused to a therapeutically active agent, or their solubility properties may be altered by fusion to ionic/bipolar groups, or they may be used in imaging by fusion to an appropriate imaging marker, or they may comprise modified amino acids etc. They may be also be prepared as salts.
- modifications which retain essentially the binding to EGFR and/or IGF-IR are within the scope of the invention.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides can be used for oral administration.
- Conventional antibody-based therapeutics have significant potential as drugs because they have extraordinarily specificity to their target and a low inherent toxicity, however, they have one important drawback: they are relatively unstable, and are sensitive to breakdown by proteases. This means that conventional antibody drugs cannot be administered orally, sublingually, topically, nasally, vaginally, rectally or by inhalation because they are not resistant to the low pH at these sites, the action of proteases at these sites and in the blood and/or because of their large size. They have to be administered by injection (intravenously, subcutaneously, etc.) to overcome some of these problems.
- Administration by injection requires specialist training in order to use a hypodermic syringe or needle correctly and safely. It further requires sterile equipment, a liquid formulation of the therapeutic polypeptide, vial packing of said polypeptide in a sterile and stable form and, of the subject, a suitable site for entry of the needle. Furthermore, subjects commonly experience physical and psychological stress prior to and upon receiving an injection. Nevertheless, the polypeptides of the invention may be used for administration through injection.
- An aspect of the present invention overcomes these problems of the prior art, by providing the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention.
- Said polypeptides are sufficiently small, resistant and stable to be delivered orally, sublingually, topically, nasally, vaginally, rectally or by inhalation substantial without loss of activity.
- the polypeptides of the present invention avoid the need for injections, are not only cost/time savings, but are also more convenient and more comfortable for the subject.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, which is able to pass through the gastric environment without the substance being inactivated.
- formulation technology may be applied to release a maximum amount of polypeptide in the right location (in the stomach, in the colon, etc.). This method of delivery is important for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders whose targets are located in the gut system.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of a disorder susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, which is able to pass through the gastric environment without being inactivated, by orally administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, which is able to pass through the gastric environment without being inactivated.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the gut system without said substance being inactivated, by orally administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the bloodstream of a subject without the substance being inactivated, by orally administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms or disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide of the invention delivered to the vaginal and/or rectal tract. Examples of disorders are any that cause inflammation, including, but not limited to rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, inflammatory bowl syndrome, and multiple sclerosis.
- a formulation according to the invention comprises an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein, in the form of a gel, cream, suppository, film, or in the form of a sponge or as a vaginal ring that slowly releases the active ingredient over time (such formulations are described in EP 707473, EP 684814, US 5629001).
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein delivered to the vaginal and/or rectal tract, by vaginally and/or rectally administering to a subject a Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein delivered to the vaginal and/or rectal tract.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein to the vaginal and/or rectal tract without said substance being inactivated, by administering to the vaginal and/or rectal tract of a subject an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein to the bloodstream of a subject without said substance being inactivated, by administering to the vaginal and/or rectal tract of a subject an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein, for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, delivered to the nose, upper respiratory tract and/or lung.
- a formulation according to the invention comprises an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein in the form of a nasal spray (e.g. an aerosol) or inhaler. Since the polypeptide is small, it can reach its target much more effectively than therapeutic IgG molecules.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, delivered to the upper respiratory tract and lung, by administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein, by inhalation through the mouth or nose.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, delivered to the nose, upper respiratory tract and/or lung, without said polypeptide being inactivated.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the nose, upper respiratory tract and lung without inactivation, by administering to the nose, upper respiratory tract and/or lung of a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the bloodstream of a subject without inactivation by administering to the nose, upper respiratory tract and/or lung of a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, which is able pass through the tissues beneath the tongue effectively.
- a formulation of said polypeptide as disclosed herein, for example, a tablet, spray, drop is placed under the tongue and adsorbed through the mucus membranes into the capillary network under the tongue.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, which is able pass through the tissues beneath the tongue effectively, by sublingually administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, which is able to pass through the tissues beneath the tongue.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the tissues beneath the tongue without being inactivated, by administering sublingually to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the bloodstream of a subject without being inactivated, by administering orally to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein which is able to pass through the skin effectively.
- disorders are any that cause inflammation, including, but not limited to rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, inflammatory bowl syndrome, and multiple sclerosis.
- a formulation of said polypeptide construct for example, a cream, film, spray, drop, patch, is placed on the skin and passes through.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein which is able to pass through the skin effectively, by topically administering to a subject an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein which is able to pass through the skin effectively.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein to the skin without being inactivated, by administering topically to a subject an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a Nanobody or polypeptide as described herein to the bloodstream of a subject, by administering topically to a subject an Nanobody or polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, delivered to the intestinal mucosa, wherein said disorder increases the permeability of the intestinal mucosa. Because of its small size, an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein can pass through the intestinal mucosa and reach the bloodstream more efficiently in subjects suffering from disorders which cause an increase in the permeability of the intestinal mucosa.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, delivered to the intestinal mucosa, wherein said disorder increases the permeability of the intestinal mucosa, by orally administering to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein.
- a Nanobody is fused to a carrier that enhances the transfer through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.
- this "carrier” is a second a Nanobody which is fused to the therapeutic a Nanobody.
- Such fusion polypeptides are made using methods known in the art.
- the "carrier” Nanobody binds specifically to a receptor on the intestinal wall which induces an active transfer through the wall.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein for the preparation of a medicament for treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders susceptible to modulation by a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, delivered to the intestinal mucosa, wherein said disorder increases the permeability of the intestinal mucosa.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the intestinal mucosa without being inactivated, by administering orally to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention.
- An aspect of the invention is a method for delivering a substance that controls EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, to the bloodstream of a subject without being inactivated, by administering orally to a subject an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide of the invention.
- This process can be even further enhanced by an additional aspect of the present invention - the use of active transport carriers.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF- IR polypeptide as described herein is fused to a carrier that enhances the transfer through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.
- this "carrier” is a Nanobody which is fused to said polypeptide. Such fusion polypeptides can be made using methods known in the art.
- the "carrier" Nanobody binds specifically to a receptor on the intestinal wall which induces an active transfer through the wall.
- an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein further comprises a carrier Nanobody (e.g. Nanobody) which acts as an active transport carrier for transport of said polypeptide via the lung lumen to the blood.
- a carrier Nanobody e.g. Nanobody
- An anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide may further comprise a carrier that binds specifically to a receptor present on the mucosal surface (bronchial epithelial cells) resulting in the active transport of the polypeptide from the lung lumen to the blood.
- the carrier Nanobody may be fused to the polypeptide. Such fusion polypeptidescan be made using methods known in the art and are describe herein.
- the "carrier" Nanobody binds specifically to a receptor on the mucosal surface which induces an active transfer through the surface. Another aspect of the present invention is a method to determine which Nanobodies (e.g. Nanobodies) are actively transported into the bloodstream upon nasal administration.
- a naive or immune Nanobody phage library can be administered nasally, and after different time points after administration, blood or organs can be isolated to rescue phages that have been actively transported to the bloodstream.
- a non-limiting example of a receptor for active transport from the lung lumen to the bloodstream is the Fc receptor N (FcRn).
- FcRn Fc receptor N
- One aspect of the invention includes the Nanobodies identified by the method. Such Nanobodies can then be used as a carrier Nanobody for the delivery of a therapeutic Nanobody to the corresponding target in the bloodstream upon nasal administration.
- polypeptides of the invention may be used as the following administrations: as repeat dose administration in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic and radiation therapies; as intracavitary administration through stereotactic surgery, such as the treatment of brain cancers; or as a diagnostic to identify patients whose tumors over-express EGFR.
- One embodiment of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein, or a nucleic acid capable of encoding said polypeptide for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders relating to inflammatory processes, or cancer.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is an anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein, or a nucleic acid capable of encoding said polypeptide for use in treating, preventing and/or alleviating the symptoms of disorders relating to cancer.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein, or a nucleic acid capable of encoding said polypeptide for the preparation of a medicament for treating a disorder relating to inflammatory processes or cancer.
- EGFR is involved in inflammatory processes, and the blocking of EGFR action can have an anti-inflammatory effect, which is highly desirable in certain disease states such as, for example, inflammatory arthritis or psoriasis.
- blocking of the EGFR and IGF- IR can inhibit the growth of human tumors, therefore, the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the invention can have a cytostatic or cytotoxic effect on tumors.
- Our Examples demonstrate V HH S according to the invention which bind EGFR and moreover, block ligand binding to the EGFR, prevent (hetero) dimerization of the receptor and/or induce apoptosis.
- polypeptides and method of the present invention are applicable to the treatment and diagnosis of epithelial cancers, such as lung, liver, central nervous system, bone, blood and lymphatic system, colon, breast, prostate, rectum, bladder, head and neck, ovarian, testis, pancreatic, testis, kidney, and squamos cell carcinoma.
- epithelial cancers such as lung, liver, central nervous system, bone, blood and lymphatic system, colon, breast, prostate, rectum, bladder, head and neck, ovarian, testis, pancreatic, testis, kidney, and squamos cell carcinoma.
- epithelial cancers such as lung, liver, central nervous system, bone, blood and lymphatic system, colon, breast, prostate, rectum, bladder, head and neck, ovarian, testis, pancreatic, testis, kidney, and squamos cell carcinoma.
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides and methods of the present invention are also applicable to other diseases associated with (the over-expression) of EGFR and/or IGF- IR. Examples of such diseases and disorders will be clear to the skilled person.
- the present invention provides a therapeutic composition
- a therapeutic composition comprising an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide which inhibits or kills human tumor cells by said V HH binding to the human EGFR or IGF-IR respectively of said tumor cells either alone or in combination with anti-neoplastic or chemotherapeutic agents.
- Anti-neoplastic or chemotherapeutic agents such as doxorubicin and cisplatin are well known in the art.
- Therapeutic compositions containing both anti-EGFR and anti-IGF-IR single domain antibodies are also within the scope of the invention.
- the present invention also provides diagnostic methods which utilize an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed here for detection of the corresponding conditions. Diagnostic methods are well known in the art and include screening assays and imaging techniques (discussed further below).
- step (b) detecting binding of said polypeptide to said sample, and (c) comparing the binding detected in step (b) with a standard, wherein a difference in binding relative to said sample is diagnostic of a disorder characterized by aberrant signaling of EGFR.
- Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of diagnosing a disorder characterised by the presence of IGF-IR comprising: o
- step (c) comparing the binding detected in step (b) with a standard, wherein a difference in binding relative to said sample is diagnostic of a disorder characterized by the presence of IGF-IR.
- agents may to be subjected to functional testing to determine whether they would modulate the action of the EGFR or IGF-IR in vivo.
- therapeutically effective amount "therapeutically effective dose” and
- an “effective amount” means the amount needed to achieve the desired result or results (modulating EGFR or IGF-IR binding; treating or preventing cancer or inflammation).
- an “effective amount” can vary for the various compounds that modulate EGFR or IGF-IR binding used in the invention.
- One skilled in the art can readily assess the potency of the compound.
- the term “compound” refers to an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR Nanobody or polypeptide of the present invention, or a nucleic acid capable of encoding said polypeptide or an agent identified according to the screening method described herein or said polypeptide comprising one or more derivatized amino acids.
- pharmaceutically acceptable is meant a material that is not biologically or otherwise undesirable, i.e., the material may be administered to an individual along with the compound without causing any undesirable biological effects or interacting in a deleterious manner with any of the other components of the pharmaceutical composition in which it is contained.
- polypeptides of a human-like class of V HH 'S as disclosed herein are useful for treating or preventing conditions in a subject and comprises administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound or composition.
- polypeptides of the present invention are useful for treating or preventing conditions relating to cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis in a subject and comprises administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound or composition that binds EGFR or IGF-IR or both.
- anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as disclosed herein are useful for treating or preventing conditions relating to cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis in a subject and comprise administering a therapeutically effective amount of a compound combination with another, such as, for example, doxorubicin.
- the present invention is not limited to the administration of formulations comprising a single compound of the invention. It is within the scope of the invention to provide combination treatments wherein a formulation is administered to a patient in need thereof that comprises more than one compound of the invention.
- Conditions mediated by EGFR or/and IGF-IR include, but are not limited to cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.
- a compound useful in the present invention can be formulated as pharmaceutical compositions and administered to a mammalian host, such as a human patient or a domestic animal in a variety of forms adapted to the chosen route of administration, i.e., orally or parenterally, intranassally by inhalation, intravenous, intramuscular, topical or subcutaneous routes.
- a pharmaceutical composition of the present invention may comprise a compound and a suitable pharmaceutical vehicle as listed below.
- a compound of the present invention can also be administered using gene therapy methods of delivery. See, e.g., U.S. Patent No. 5,399,346, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.
- gene therapy methods of delivery See, e.g., U.S. Patent No. 5,399,346, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.
- primary cells transfected with the gene for the compound of the present invention can additionally be transfected with tissue specific promoters to target specific organs, tissue, grafts, tumors, or cells and can additionally be transfected with signal and stabilization sequences for subcellularly localized expression.
- the present compound may be systemically administered, e.g., orally, in combination with a pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle such as an inert diluent or an assimilable edible carrier. They may be enclosed in hard or soft shell gelatin capsules, may be compressed into tablets, or may be incorporated directly with the food of the patient's diet.
- a pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle such as an inert diluent or an assimilable edible carrier.
- the active compound may be combined with one or more excipients and used in the form of ingestible tablets, buccal tablets, troches, capsules, elixirs, suspensions, syrups, wafers, and the like.
- Such compositions and preparations should contain at least 0.1% of active compound.
- the percentage of the compositions and preparations may, of course, be varied and may conveniently be between about 2 to about 60% of the weight of a given unit dosage form.
- the amount of active compound in such therapeutically useful compositions is such that an effective dosage level will be obtained.
- the tablets, troches, pills, capsules, and the like may also contain the following: binders such as gum tragacanth, acacia, corn starch or gelatin; excipients such as dicalcium phosphate; a disintegrating agent such as corn starch, potato starch, alginic acid and the like; a lubricant such as magnesium stearate; and a sweetening agent such as sucrose, fructose, lactose or aspartame or a flavoring agent such as peppermint, oil of wintergreen, or cherry flavoring may be added.
- a liquid carrier such as a vegetable oil or a polyethylene glycol.
- any material used in preparing any unit dosage form should be pharmaceutically acceptable and substantially non-toxic in the amounts employed.
- the active compound may be incorporated into sustained- release preparations and devices.
- the active compound may also be administered intravenously or intraperitoneally by infusion or injection.
- Solutions of the active compound or its salts can be prepared in water, optionally mixed with a nontoxic surfactant.
- Dispersions can also be prepared in glycerol, liquid polyethylene glycols, triacetin, and mixtures thereof and in oils. Under ordinary conditions of storage and use, these preparations contain a preservative to prevent the growth of microorganisms.
- the pharmaceutical dosage forms suitable for injection or infusion can include sterile aqueous solutions or dispersions or sterile powders comprising the active ingredient which are adapted for the extemporaneous preparation of sterile injectable or infusible solutions or dispersions, optionally encapsulated in liposomes.
- the liquid carrier or vehicle can be a solvent or liquid dispersion medium comprising, for example, water, ethanol, a polyol (for example, glycerol, propylene glycol, liquid polyethylene glycols, and the like), vegetable oils, nontoxic glyceryl esters, and suitable mixtures thereof.
- the proper fluidity can be maintained, for example, by the formation of liposomes, by the maintenance of the required particle size in the case of dispersions or by the use of surfactants.
- microorganisms can be brought about by various antibacterial and antifungal agents, for example, parabens, chlorobutanol, phenol, sorbic acid, thimerosal, and the like.
- antibacterial and antifungal agents for example, parabens, chlorobutanol, phenol, sorbic acid, thimerosal, and the like.
- isotonic agents for example, sugars, buffers or sodium chloride.
- Prolonged absorption of the injectable compositions can be brought about by o
- compositions of agents delaying absorption for example, aluminum monostearate and gelatin.
- Sterile injectable solutions are prepared by incorporating the active compound in the required amount in the appropriate solvent with various of the other ingredients enumerated above, as required, followed by filter sterilization.
- the preferred methods of preparation are vacuum drying and the freeze drying techniques, which yield a powder of the active ingredient plus any additional desired ingredient present in the previously sterile-filtered solutions.
- the present compound may be applied in pure form, i.e., when they are liquids. However, it will generally be desirable to administer them to the skin as compositions or formulations, in combination with a dermatologically acceptable carrier, which may be a solid or a liquid.
- a dermatologically acceptable carrier which may be a solid or a liquid.
- Useful solid carriers include finely divided solids such as talc, clay, microcrystalline cellulose, silica, alumina and the like.
- Useful liquid carriers include water, hydroxyalkyls or glycols or water-alcohol/glycol blends, in which the present compound can be dissolved or dispersed at effective levels, optionally with the aid of non-toxic surfactants.
- Adjuvants such as fragrances and additional antimicrobial agents can be added to optimize the properties for a given use.
- the resultant liquid compositions can be applied from absorbent pads, used to impregnate bandages and other dressings, or sprayed onto the affected area using pump-type or aerosol sprayers.
- Thickeners such as synthetic polymers, fatty acids, fatty acid salts and esters, fatty alcohols, modified celluloses or modified mineral materials can also be employed with liquid carriers to form spreadable pastes, gels, ointments, soaps, and the like, for application directly to the skin of the user.
- Examples of useful dermatological compositions which can be used to deliver the compound to the skin are known to the art; for example, see Jacquet et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,392), Geria (U.S. Pat. No. 4,992,478), Smith et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,157) and Wortzman (U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,508).
- Useful dosages of the compound can be determined by comparing their in vitro activity, and in vivo activity in animal models. Methods for the extrapolation of effective dosages in mice, and other animals, to humans are known to the art; for example, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,938,949.
- the concentration of the compound(s) in a liquid composition will be from about 0.1-25 wt-%, preferably from about 0.5-10 wt-%.
- concentration in a semi-solid or solid composition such as a gel or a powder will be about 0.1-5 wt-%, preferably about 0.5-2.5 wt-%.
- the amount of the compound, or an active salt or derivative thereof, required for use in treatment will vary not only with the particular salt selected but also with the route of administration, the nature of the condition being treated and the age and condition of the patient and will be ultimately at the discretion of the attendant physician or clinician. Also the dosage of the compound varies depending on the target cell, tumor, tissue, graft, or organ.
- the desired dose may conveniently be presented in a single dose or as divided doses administered at appropriate intervals, for example, as two, three, four or more sub-doses per day.
- the sub-dose itself may be further divided, e.g., into a number of discrete loosely spaced administrations; such as multiple inhalations from an insufflator or by application of a plurality of drops into the eye.
- An administration regimen could include long-term, daily treatment.
- long-term is meant at least two weeks and preferably, several weeks, months, or years of duration. Necessary modifications in this dosage range may be determined by one of ordinary skill in the art using only routine experimentation given the teachings herein. See Remington's Pharmaceutical Sciences (Martin, E.W., ed. 4), Mack Publishing Co., Easton, PA. The dosage can also be adjusted by the individual physician in the event of any complication.
- the pharmaceutical compounds of the present invention may be administered in combination with conventional chemotherapeutic and radiation therapies.
- a high throughput screening kit comprises all the necessary means and media for performing the detection of an agent that modulates EGFR/ligand or IGF-IR/ligand interactions by interacting with EGFR or IGF-IR respectively, or fragment thereof in the presence of a polypeptide, preferably at a concentration in the range of l ⁇ M to 1 mM.
- the kit comprises the following. Recombinant cells of the invention, comprising and expressing the nucleotide sequence encoding EGFR, or fragment thereof, which are grown according to the kit on a solid support, such as a microtiter plate, more preferably a 96 well microtiter plate, according to methods well known to the person skilled in the art especially as described in WO 00/02045.
- a solid support such as a microtiter plate, more preferably a 96 well microtiter plate, according to methods well known to the person skilled in the art especially as described in WO 00/02045.
- EGFR, or fragment thereof is supplied in a purified form to be immobilized on, for example, a 96 well microtiter plate by the person skilled in the art.
- EGFR, or fragment thereof is supplied in the kit pre-immobilized on, for example, a 96 well microtiter plate.
- the EGFR may be whole EGFR or a fragment thereof. Similar
- Modulator agents according to the invention at concentrations from about 1 ⁇ M to 1 mM or more, are added to defined wells in the presence of an appropriate concentration of anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide, an homologous sequence thereof, a functional portion thereof or a functional portion of an homologous sequence thereof, said concentration of said polypeptide preferably in the range of 1 ⁇ M to 1 mM.
- Kits may contain one or more anti- EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides as described herein.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the present invention when labeled with suitable imaging agents, provide good markers for in vivo imaging. Good specificity without abolishing the high anti-IGF-IR affinity of IGF-IR Nanobody was obtained with superior tumor localization in vivo.
- One aspect of the present invention is an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide as disclosed herein further comprising one or more imaging agents.
- Imaging agents are any suitable for in vivo use, including, but not limited to 99m Tc, u 'indium, 123 Iodine.
- Other imaging agents suitable for magnetic resonance imaging include paramagnetic compounds, MR paramagnetic chelates.
- Other imaging agents include optical dyes.
- Another aspect of the present invention is a use of an anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide further comprising one or more imaging agents, for in vivo imaging.
- the anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides may be labeled with imaging agents using methods known in the art.
- the labelled polypeptides are incorporated in microparticles, ultrasound bubbles, microspheres, emulsions, or liposomes. Such preparations allow for a more efficient delivery.
- Anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptides of the invention may be used to direct a dose of radiotherapy treatment directly to a tumor.
- the polypeptides are labelled with one or more radioisotopes which cause damage or destruction to the tumor.
- suitable radioisotopes include, but are not limited to 188 Re 5 131 I and 211 At. These isotopes may be attached to the polypeptide using conventional techniques or to tags (e.g. His-tag) fused to the polypeptide of the invention.
- polypeptides of the invention can also be linked to one or more anti-tumor agents, which cause destruction or damage to the tumor upon anti-EGFR or anti-IGF-IR polypeptide o
- chemotherapeutic agents include anthracyclines, methotraxate, vindesine, cis-platinum, ricin and calicheamicin.
- the anti-tumor agent which is attached to the polypeptide of the invention may also be an enzyme which activates a prodrug. This allows activation of an inactive prodrug to its active cytotoxic form.
- the anti-tumor agent conjugated to the polypeptide of the invention may also be a cytokine such as interleukin-2, interleukin-4 or tumor necrosis factor alpha.
- the therapeutically labelled polypeptides are incorporated in microparticles, ultrasound bubbles, microspheres, emulsions, or liposomes. Such preparations allow for a more efficient delivery of the labelled polypeptides.
- the present invention provides one or more nucleic acid molecules encoding a Nanobody as herein defined.
- the multivalent or multispecif ⁇ c Nanobody may be encoded on a single nucleic acid molecule; alternatively, each Nanobody may be encoded by a separate nucleic acid molecule.
- the Nanobodies forming part of it may be expressed as a fusion polypeptide, in the manner of a scFv molecule, or may be separately expressed and subsequently linked together, for example using chemical linking agents.
- Multivalent or multispecif ⁇ c Nanobodies expressed from separate nucleic acids will be linked together by appropriate means.
- the nucleic acid may further encode a signal sequence for export of the polypeptides from a host cell upon expression and may be fused with a surface component of a filamentous bacteriophage particle (or other component of a selection display system) upon expression.
- the present invention provides a vector comprising nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide according to the present invention.
- the present invention provides a host cell transfected with a vector encoding a polypeptide according to the present invention.
- Expression from such a vector may be configured to produce, for example on the surface of a bacteriophage particle, Nanobodies for selection. This allows selection of displayed Nanobodies and thus selection of polypeptides using the method of the present invention.
- the present invention further provides a kit comprising at least a polypeptide according to the present invention.
- a cell that is useful according to the invention are any bacterial cells such as for example E. coli, yeast cells such as for example S. cerevisiae and P. pastoris, insect cells, oo
- mammalian cells or molds comprising those belonging to the genera Aspergillus or Trichoderma.
- a cell that is useful according to the invention can be any cell into which a nucleic acid sequence encoding a Nanobody or polypeptide according to the invention can be introduced such that the polypeptide is expressed at natural levels or above natural levels, as defined herein.
- a polypeptide of the invention that is expressed in a cell exhibits normal or near normal pharmacology, as defined herein.
- a cell is selected from the group consisting of COS7-cells, a CHO cell, a LM (TK-) cell, a NIH-3T3 cell, HEK-293 cell, K-562 cell or a 1321N1 astrocytoma cell but also other transfectable cell lines.
- Nanobodies of the invention as defined herein
- polypeptides of the invention are much preferred, it will be clear that on the basis of the description herein, the skilled person will also be able to design and/or generate, in an analogous manner, other (single) domain antibodies against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, as well as polypeptides comprising such (single) domain antibodies (in which the terms "domain antibody” and “single domain antibody” have their usual meaning in the art, see for example the prior art referred to herein).
- one further aspect of the invention relates to domain antibodies or single domain antibodies against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, and to polypeptides that comprise at least one such (single) domain antibody and/or that essentially consist of such a (single) domain antibody.
- such a (single) domain antibody against EGFR or IGF-IR may comprise 3 CDR's, in which said CDR's are as defined above for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- such (single) domain antibodies may be the single domain antibodies known as "dAb's", which are for example as described by Ward et al, supra, but which have CDR's that are as defined above for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- dAb's the single domain antibodies known as “dAb's”
- the use of such "dAb's” will usually have several disadvantages compared to the use of the corresponding Nanobodies of the invention.
- any (single) domain antibodies against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, according to this aspect of the invention will preferably have framework regions that provide these (single) domain antibodies against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively, with properties that make them substantially equivalent to the Nanobodies of the invention.
- This aspect of the invention also encompasses nucleic acids that encode such (single) domain antibodies and/or polypeptides, compositions that comprise such (single) domain antibodies, polypeptides or nucleic acids, host cells that (can) express such (single) domain antibodies or polypeptides, and methods for preparing and using such (single) domain antibodies, polypeptides or nucleic acids, which may be essentially analogous to the polypeptides, nucleic acids, compositions, host cells, methods and uses described above for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- Suitable scaffolds and techniques for such CDR grafting will be clear to the skilled person and are well known in the art, see for example US-A-6, 180,370, WO 01/27160, EP 0 605 522, EP 0 460 167, US-A-6,054,297, Nicaise et al., Protein Science (2004), 13:1882-1891; Ewert et al., Methods, 2004 Oct; 34(2): 184-199; Kettleborough et al., Protein Eng. 1991 Oct; 4(7): 773-783; O'Brien and Jones, Methods MoI. Biol. 2003: 207: 81-100; and Skerra, J. MoI. Recognit.
- the invention comprises a chimeric polypeptide comprising at least one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of CDRl sequences, CDR2 sequences and CDR3 sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- a chimeric polypeptide comprises at least one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention, and optionally also at least one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl sequences and CDR2 sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- such a chimeric polypeptide may comprise one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of the CDR3 sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention, one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of the CDRl sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention and one CDR sequence chosen from the group consisting of the CDR2 sequences mentioned herein for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- the combinations of CDR's that are mentioned herein as being preferred for the Nanobodies of the invention will usually also be preferred for these chimeric polypeptides.
- the CDR' s may be linked to further amino acid sequences sequences and/or may be linked to each other via amino acid sequences, in which said amino acid sequences are preferably framework sequences or are amino acid sequences that act as framework sequences, or together form a scaffold for presenting the CDR' s.
- the amino acid sequences are human framework sequences, for example V H 3 framework sequences.
- non-human, synthetic, semi-synthetic or non- immunoglobulin framework sequences may also be used.
- the framework sequences used are such that (1) the chimeric polypeptide is capable of binding EGFR or IGF- IR, respectively, i.e. with an affinity that is at least 1%, preferably at least 5%, more preferably at least 10%, such as at least 25% and up to 50% or 90% or more of the affinity of the corresponding Nanobody of the invention; (2) the chimeric polypeptide is suitable for pharmaceutical use; and (3) the chimeric polypeptide is preferably essentially non- immunogenic under the intended conditions for pharmaceutical use (i.e. indication, mode of administration, dosis and treatment regimen) thereof (which may be essentially analogous to the conditions described herein for the use of the Nanobodies of the invention).
- the chimeric polypeptide comprises at least two CDR sequences (as mentioned above) linked via at least one framework sequence, in which preferably at least one of the two CDR sequences is a CDR3 sequence, with the other CDR sequence being a CDRl or CDR2 sequence.
- the chimeric polypeptide comprises at least three CDR sequences (as mentioned above) linked at least two framework sequences, in which preferably at least one of the three CDR sequences is a CDR3 sequence, with the other two CDR sequences being CDRl or CDR2 sequences, and preferably being one CDRl sequence and one CDR2 sequence.
- the chimeric polypeptides have the structure FRl' - CDRl - FR2' - CDR2 - FR3' - CDR3 - FR4', in which CDRl, CDR2 and CDR3 are as defined herein for the CDR's of the Nanobodies of the invention, and FRl', FR2', FR3' and FR4' are framework sequences.
- FRl', FR2', FR3' and FR4' may in particular be Framework 1, Framework 2, Framework 3 and Framework 4 sequences, respectively, of a human antibody (such as V H 3 sequences) and/or parts or fragments of such Framework sequences.
- parts or fragments of a chimeric polypeptide with the structure FRl' - CDRl - FR2' - CDR2 - FR3' - CDR3 - FR4'.
- such parts or fragments are such that they meet the criteria set out in the preceding paragraph.
- the invention also relates to proteins and polypeptides comprising and/or essentially consisting of such chimeric polypeptides, to nucleic acids encoding such proteins or polypeptides; to methods for preparing such proteins and polypeptides; to host cells expressing or capable of expressing such proteins or polypeptides; to compositions, and in particular to pharmaceutical compositions, that comprise such proteins or polypeptides, nucleic acids or host cells; and to uses of such proteins or polypeptides, such nucleic acids, such host cells and/or such compositions, in particular for prophylactic, therapeutic or diagnostic purposes, such as the prophylactic, therapeutic or diagnostic purposes mentioned herein.
- such proteins, polypeptides, nucleic acids, methods, host cells, compositions and uses may be analogous to the proteins, polypeptides, nucleic acids, methods, host cells, compositions and use described herein for the Nanobodies of the invention.
- Nanobodies of the inventions contain one or more other CDR sequences than the preferred CDR sequences mentioned above, these CDR sequences can be obtained in any manner known per se, for example from Nanobodies (preferred), V H domains from conventional antibodies (and in particular from human antibodies), heavy chain antibodies, conventional 4-chain antibodies (such as conventional human 4-chain antibodies) or other immunoglobulin sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively.
- Such immunoglobulin sequences directed against EGFR or IGF-IR, respectively can be generated in any manner known per se, as will be clear to the skilled person, i.e.
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (5)
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JP2008534933A JP2009511032A (en) | 2005-10-11 | 2006-10-11 | Nanobodies and polypeptides for EGFR and IGF-IR |
AU2006301426A AU2006301426A1 (en) | 2005-10-11 | 2006-10-11 | NanobodiesTM and polypeptides against EGFR and IGF-IR |
US12/083,406 US20090252681A1 (en) | 2005-10-11 | 2006-10-11 | Nanobodies and Polypeptides Against EGFR and IGF-IR |
EP06792421A EP1934259A2 (en) | 2005-10-11 | 2006-10-11 | Nanobodies and polypeptides against egfr and igf-ir |
CA002624781A CA2624781A1 (en) | 2005-10-11 | 2006-10-11 | Nanobodies tm and polypeptides against egfr and igf-ir |
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JP (1) | JP2009511032A (en) |
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CA2624781A1 (en) | 2007-04-19 |
WO2007042289A3 (en) | 2007-10-04 |
EP1934259A2 (en) | 2008-06-25 |
JP2009511032A (en) | 2009-03-19 |
AU2006301426A1 (en) | 2007-04-19 |
CN101321784A (en) | 2008-12-10 |
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