Identification and epitope mapping of anti-p72 single-chain antibody against African swine fever virus based on phage display antibody library

African swine fever virus(ASFV)is a lethal pathogen that causes severe threats to the global swine industry and it has already had catastrophic socio-economic effects.To date,no licensed prophylactic vaccine exists.Limited knowledge exists about the major immunogens of ASFV and the epitope mapping of the key antigens.As such,there is a considerable requirement to understand the functional monoclonal antibodies(mAbs)and the epitope mapping may be of utmost importance in our understanding of immune responses and designing improved vaccines,therapeutics,and diagnostics.In this study,we generated an ASFV antibody phage-display library from ASFV convalescent swine PBMCs,further screened a specific ASFV major capsid protein(p72)single-chain antibody and fused with an IgG Fc fragment(scFv-83-Fc),which is a specific recognition antibody against ASFV Pig/HLJ/2018 strain.Using the scFv-83-Fc mAb,we selected a conserved epitope peptide(221MTGYKH226)of p72 retrieved from a phage-displayed random peptide library.Moreover,flow cytometry and cell uptake experiments demonstrated that the epitope peptide can significantly promote BMDCs maturation in vitro and could be effectively uptaken by DCs,which indicated its potential application in vaccine and diagnostic reagent development.Overall,this study provided a valuable platform for identifying targets for ASFV vaccine development,as well as to facilitate the optimization design of subunit vaccine and diagnostic reagents.

Phage display: development of nanocarriers for targeted drug delivery to the brain

The blood brain barrier represents a formidable obstacle for the transport of most systemati- cally administered neurodiagnostics and neurotherapeutics to the brain. Phage display is a high throughput screening strategy that can be used for the construction of nanomaterial peptide libraries. These libraries can be screened for finding brain targeting peptide ligands. Surface functionalization of a variety of nanocarriers with these brain homing peptides is a sophisticated way to develop nanobiotechnology-based drug delivery platforms that are able to cross the blood brain barrier. These efficient drug delivery systems raise our hopes for the diagnosis and treatment of various brain disorders in the future.

Construction of Human ScFv Phage Display Library against Ovarian Tumor

In order to construct a single chain fragment variable （ScFv） phage display library against ovarian tumor, by using RT-PCR, the human heavy chain variable region genes （VH） and light chain variable region genes （VL） were amplified from lymphocytes of ovarian tumor patients and subsequently assembled into ScFv genes by SOE. The resulting ScFv genes were electrotransformed into E. coli TG1 and amplified with the co-infection of helper phage M13KO7 to obtain phage display library. The capacity and titer of the resulting library were detected. The phage antibody library with a capacity of approximately 3 × 10^9 cfu/μg was obtained. After amplification with helper phage, the titer of antibody library reached 5 μ 10^12 cfu/mL. Human ScFv library against ovarian tumor was constructed successfully, which laid a foundation for the screening of ovarian tumor specific ScFv for the radioimmunoimaging diagnosis of ovarian tumor.

Screening and Identification of a Novel Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cell Binding Peptide by Using a Phage Display Library

The purpose of this study was to screen peptides that can specifically bind to human hepatocellular carcinoma （hHCC） cells using phage display of random peptide library in order to develope a peptide-based carrier for the diagnosis or therapy of hHCC. A peptide 12-mer phage display library was employed and 4 rounds of subtractive panning were performed using the hHCC cell line HepG2 as the target. After panning, the phages that specifically bound to and internalized in hHCC cells were selected. The selected phages demonstrated highly specific affinity to HepG2 cells analyzed by ELISA and immunofluorescence analysis. 57.3% of the selected phage clones displayed repeated sequence FLLEPHLMDTSM, and 4 amino acid residues, FLEP were extremely conservative. Based on the sequencing results, a 16-mer peptide （WH-16） was synthesized. The competitive EL1SA showed that the binding of the phage clones displayed sequence FLLEPHLMDTSM to HepG2 cells was efficiently inhibited by WH-16. Our findings indicate that cellular binding of phage is mediated via its displayed peptide and the synthesized 16-mer peptide may have the potential to be a delivery carrier in target diagnosis or therapy for hHCC.

Rapid Selection of Phage Se-scFv with GPX Activity via Combination of Phage Display Antibody Library with Chemical Modification

Glutathione peroxidase（GPX） plays an important role in scavenging reactive oxygen species. A series of catalytic antibodies with GPX activity have been generated by the authors of＇ this study. To obtain humanized catalytic antibodies, the phage-displayed human antibody library was used to select novel antibodies by repetitive screening, Phage antibodies, scFv-B8 and scFv-H6 with the GSH-binding site, were obtained from the library by enzyme-linked immu- nosorbent assay（ELISA） analysis with 4 rounds of scelection against their respective haptens, S-2,4-dinitriphenyl t-butyl ester（GStI-s-DNP-Bu） and S-2,4-dinit,-iphenyl t-hexyl ester（GSH-s-I）NP-He）. Nevertheless, several studies need to be condueted to determine whether scFv-B8 and seFv-tI6 possess GPX activity. 1＇o enhance the speed of the selection, selenocysteine（Sec, the catalytic group of GPX） was incorporated directly into the phages, scFv-B8 and seFv-H6, by chemical mutation to form the phages Se-scFv-B8 and Se-scFv-H6. The GPX activities were found to be 3012 units/μmol and 2102 units/μmol, respectively. To improve the GPX activity of the phage Se-scFv-B8, DNA shuffling was used to construct a secondary library and another positive phage antibody scFv-B9 was screened out by another panning against GSH-s-DNP-Bu. When Sec was incorporated via chemical mutation into the phage antibody scFv-B9, its GPX activity reached 3560 units/μmol, which is 1.17-fold higher than the phage antibody Se-scFv-B8 and almost approached the order of magnitude of native GPX. The rapid selection is the prerequisite for generating humanized Se-seFv with GPX activity.

Screening of scFvs against cTnI from Phage Display Antibody Library and Their Expression in E.coli Rosetta

The single chain variable fragments of antibodies(scFvs) against cTnI were screened from the phage display antibody library by using cTnI as the target antigen. After four rounds of panning, four clones(H2, G5, A9, B9) from the phage display antibody library were verified to show higher binding affinity for cTnI by ELISA and to contain the variable region genes of the light and heavy chains of scFvs by sequencing. The variable region genes of scFvs H2 and G5 were successfully amplified by polymerase chain reactions(PCR) and cloned into expression vector pPELB and expressed as a soluble protein in E.coli Rosetta, whose expression yield was about 2% of total proteins. The expressed proteins were purified by nickel(Ni) affinity chromatography and a single band is shown in the position of 28 kDa on SDS-PAGE. The western blot analysis result verifies that the expressed scFv proteins are capable of binding with monoclonal antibodies against hexa-histidine, indicating that they are hexa-histidin-tagged aim proteins. The immunoassay demonstrates that the expressed scFv proteins are able to specifically react with cTnI molecules. The association constant(K_A) values range from 1.2×10 4 to 1.7 ×10 5 L/mol that are correspondent to the affinities of polyclonal antibodies against cTnI from rabbits. These antibodies can be valuable reagents for the immunoassay of cTnI.

Screening of TACE Peptide Inhibitors from Phage Display PeptideLibrary

Summary： To obtain the recombinant tumor necrosis factor-α converting enzyme （TACE） ectodomain and use it as a selective molecule for the screening of TACE peptide inhibitors, the cDNA coding catalytic domain （TS00） and full-length ectodomain （T1300） of TACE were amplified by RT-PCR, and the expres.sion plasmids were constructed by inserting T800 and T1300 into plasmid pET-28a and pET-28c respectively. The recombinant TS00 and T1300 were induced by IPTG, and SDS-PAGE and Western blotting analysis results revealed that TS00 and T1300 were highly expressed in the form of inclusion body. After Ni^2＋-NTA resin affinity chromatography, the recombinant proreins were used in the screening of TACE-binding peptides from phage display peptide library respectively. After 4 rounds of biopanning, the positive phage clones were analyzed by ELISA, competitive inhibition assay and DNA sequencing. A common amino acid sequence （TRWLVYFSRPYLVAT） was found and synthesized. The synthetic peptide could inhibit the TNF-α release from LPS-stimulated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells （PBMC） up to 60.3%. FACS analysis revealed that the peptide mediated the accumulation of TNF-α on the cell surface. These results demonstrate that the TACE binding peptide is an effective antagonist of TACE.

Screening and Identification of a Targeting Peptide to nGLP-1R from Phage Display Peptide Library

In order to provide the structure information for designing new exendin-4 analogues, a phage display peptide library was screened by targeting the N-terminal extracellular domain of GLP-1R（nGLP-1R）. After four rounds of selection, nine sequences were obtained, four of them have higher affinity for nGLP-1R than the others. We chose two of them named X and Y peptides. Islet β-cell proliferation assay suggested that X and Y peptides didn＇t have any activity to increase islet β-cell proliferation. In other words, X and Y peptides were not agonists to GLP-1R. However, the conservative motifs of X and Y peptides provided us useful information to design new exendin-4 analogues.

Identification and Characterization of Peptides Binding AgEG1 from a Phage Display Library

Endoglucanases are the main cellulolytic enzymes digestion as well as its good kinetic properties make it an attractive of Anoplophora glabripennis. Their high activities in cellulose target for development of cellulase inhibitors. In this study, random pepfide phage display technology was employed to identify peptides that bound the AgEG1, a member of endoglucanase isozymes. Phage clones with peptide LPPNPTK and XPP （X is residue T, L, A or H） motif frequently occurred in the selected phage population and showed a higher phage recovery than other clones. Peptide LPPNPTK was chemically synthesized and characterized tor its binding activities to AgEG1. The synthetic peptide exhibited high specificity for AgEG1. The peptide LPPNPTK has the potential to be developed into inhibitors of the endoglucanase of A. glabripennis.

Construction of a Multipurpose M13KE Phage Display System

In this study, a multipurpose M13KE phage display vector was constructed from wild-type M13KE phage for long peptide or protein display libraries without helper phage to expand the scope of targeted high-throughput screening. Based on the relationship between the structure and function of minor coat protein of wild-type MI3KE （wt-plII）, a truncated gene III （tglll） encoding minor coat protein from M13KE phage was cloned. A fusion gene fragment harboring a hw/tac promoter, signal peptide and C-terminal region sequence of gill was assembled with SOEing-PCR （splice-overlapping-extension polymerase chain reaction） method and inserted into M13KE vector. SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis with anti-M13 pIII moneclonal antibody were employed to detect the expression of re- combinant protein, c-Myc and HA tag sequences were fused into the recombinant protein. The results showed that tglll was inserted into an unessential region of M13KE. According to the results of SDS-PAGE and Western blot with anti-M13 pIII antibody, pIII was expressed by wt-gIII and tgIII, glII harboring two tags ex- pressed both c-Myc and HA peptides using SDS-PAGE and Western blot with the corresponding monoclonal antibodies. In this study, a multipurpose M13KE phage display system was successfully constructed, which could express both short and long peptide libraries without helper phage. In future, the obtained M13KE phage display system may be used for targeted high-throughput screening of long peptide libraries without helper phage.

Construction of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) whole genome phage display library

A rebuilt vector pCANTAB 5 EE was obtained by inserting a 34 bp double-stranded oligonucleotide which contained a EcoRV recognition sequence into pCANTAB 5 E. White spot syndrome virus （WSSV） genome DNA was fragmented by sonication to isolate fragments mainly in the range of 0.8 ～2.0 kb, then the fragments were blunt-ended with T4 DNA polymerase and cloned into the EcoRV site of pCANTAB 5 EE. The primary recombinant clone of the library was 3.0 × 10^5.Colony PCR of random selected recombinants showed that the size of the inserts was 0.12 ～ 1.77 kb. After the whole library recombinant phages infected Escherichia coli HB2151 cells, the extracellular and periplasmic extracts were dropped on PVDF membranes to perform dot blot, using polyclonal mouse anti-VP24 serum,anti-WSV026 serum,anti-WSV063 serum,anti-WSV069 serum,anti-WSV112 serum, anti WSV238 serum,anti-WSV303 serum and anti-VP26 serum as the primary antibody, respectively. The results showed that the display library could express the viral proteins.

Phage Display Technology, Phage Display System, Antibody Library, Prospects and Challenges

Phage display technology is a unique gene recombination expression technology, and it is also a simple and effective screening tool. Through panning, a protein or peptide with high affinity and selectivity to the target is obtained. Antibody phage display has become the first and most widely used in vitro screening technology. Phage display derivatives play an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. This article reviews the phage display system of phage display technology, the size and classification of antibody libraries and their applications, and discusses the application prospects and challenges of phage display technology. This thesis lays the foundation for the theoretical and experimental research of bacteriophages.

MAPPING EPITOPES OF HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS TYPE 16 L1 PROTEIN WITH A PHAGE DISPLAY EPITOPE LIBRARY

The objective of this study is to map epitopes on HPMAPV16 L1 protein and provide information to the design of HPV16 prophylactic peptide vaccine. The epitopes on L1 protein were screenedby polyclonal and two monoclonal antibodies (BS and F4G3) against RPV16 L1 protin from a 6-merfd phage display epitope library with the method or immuuo-afrinity screening (Biopauuing). Aferthree rounds or Bio-Panning, the Positive phages were detected by L1 antibodies again with ELISA.The positive phages reacted strongly with L1 antibodies were then identified by DNA sequencing.Three mimotopes have been screened by polycloual and two monoclonal antibodies. The mimotope(LSLFSC) reacted with mouoclonal antibody B8 showed 50% pomology with the sequence 270275a. a (DSLFFY) of prototype HPV16 L1. Another mimotope (LTSSYS) reacted with polyclonalantibodies had 66% pomology with the L1 sequence 516~521a. A(TTSSTS), also a mimotope (DRWDRF) was found had the bomologic RF with the known L1 sequence 441 ~446a. a. The mimotopesLSLFSC and DRWDRF were adjacent to the epitopes at 267~269a. a and 422~441 a. a reported byother researchers Previously. Our results suggest that there might be a batch of epitopes on HPV16L1 ppotein, and the predominant epitopes of HPV16 L1 protein are located in the above two domains. These results will be helpful for design or HPV16 prophylactic peatide vaccines and HPVpolyvalent vaccines.

Screening and evaluation of human single-chain fragment variable antibody against hepatitis B virus surface antigen

BACKGROUND: Phage display technology has become a vital tool in studies aimed at identifying molecules binding to a specific target. It enables the rapid generation and selection of high affinity, fully human antibody product candidates to essentially any disease target appropriate for antibody therapy. In this study, we prepared the recombinant single-chain fragment variable ( ScFv) antibody to hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) by the phage display technology for obtaining a virus-targeting mediator. METHODS: mRNA was isolated from B-lymphocytes from a healthy volunteer and converted into cDNA. The fragment variables of heavy and light chain were amplified separately and assembled into ScFv DNA with a specially constructed DNA linker by polymerase chain reaction. The ScFv DNA was ligated into the phagmid vector pCANT-AB5E and the ligated sample was transformed into competent E. coli TG1. The transformed cells were infected with M13K07 helper phage to form a human recombinant phage antibody library. The volume and recombinant rate of the library were evaluated by bacterial colony count and restriction analysis. After two rounds of panning with HBsAg. the phage clones displaying ScFv of the antibody were selected by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay ( ELISA) from the enriched phage clones. The antigen binding affinity of the positive clone was detected by competition ELISA. HB2151 E. coli was transfected with the positive phage clone demonstrated by competition ELISA for production of a soluble form of the anti-HBsAg ScFv. ELISA assay was used to detect the antigen binding affinity of the soluble anti-HBsAg ScFv. Finally, the relative molecular mass of soluble anti-HBsAg ScFv was measured by SDS-PAGE. RESULTS: The variable heavy ( VH ) and variable light (VL) and ScFv DNAs were about 340bp, 320bp and 750bp, respectively. The volume of the library was up to 2 × 106 and 8 of 10 random clones were recombinants. Two phage clones could strongly compete with the original HBsAb for binding to HBsAg. Within 2 strong positive phage clones, the soluble anti-HBsAg ScFv from one clone was found to have the binding activity with HBsAg. SDS-PAGE showed that the relative molecular weight of soluble anti-HBsAg ScFv was 32 kDa. CONCLUSION: The anti-HBsAg ScFv successfully produced by phage antibody technology may be useful for broadening the scope of application of the antibody.

Recombinant Human IgG antibodies against Human Cytomegalovirus

Objective To study the passive immunization with human monoclonal antibodies as for prophylaxis of human cytomegalovirus （HCMV） infection. Methods Fab monoclonal antibodies to HCMV were recovered by repertoire cloning of mRNA from a HCMV infected individual. Antigen binding specificity, CDR sequence of VH and VL and neutralizing activity on HCMV AD169 stain were analyzed in vitro. The light and heavy chain Fd fragment genes of Fab antibodies were further cloned into a recombinant baculovirus expression vector pAC-K-Fc to express intact IgG. Secreted products were purified with affinity chromatography using protein G. Results SDS-PAGE and Western blot confirmed the expression of the intact IgG. Immuno-blotting and -precipitation were used to identify HCMV proteins. One Fab monoclonal antibody recognized a conformational HCMV protein. Conclusion IgG antibodies can neutralize the HCMV AD169 strain efficiently at a titer of 2.5 μg/mL and may prove valuable for passive immunoprophylaxis against HCMV infection in humans.

SARS Patients-derived Human Recombinant Antibodies to S and M Proteins Efficiently Neutralize SARS-Coronavirus Infectivity

Objective To develop a specific SARS virus-targeted antibody preparation for emergent prophylaxis and treatment of SARS virus infection. Methods By using phage display technology, we constructed a naive antibody library from convalescent SARS patient lymphocytes. To obtain the neutralizing antibody to SARS virus surface proteins, the library panning procedure was performed on purified SARS virions and the specific Fab antibody clones were enriched by four rounds of repeated panning procedure and screened by highthroughput selection. The selected Fab antibodies expressed in the periplasma of E. coli were soluble and further purified and tested for their binding properties and antiviral function to SARS virus. The functional Fab antibodies were converted to full human IgG antibodies with recombinant baculovirus/insect cell systems and their neutralizing activities were further determined. Results After four rounds of the panning, a number of SARS-CoV virus-targeted human recombinant Fab antibodies were isolated from the SARS patient antibody library. Most of these were identified to recognize both natural and recombinant SARS spike （S） proteins, two Fab antibodies were specific for the virus membrane （M） protein, only one bound to SARS-CoV nucleocapsid protein. The SARS-CoV S and M protein-targeted Fab or IgG antibodies showed significant neutralizing activities in cytopathic effect （CPE） inhibition neutralization test, these antibodies were able to completely neutralize the SARS virus and protect the Vero cells from CPE after virus infection. However, the N protein-targeted Fab or IgG antibodies failed to neutralize the virus. In addition, the SARS N protein-targeted human Fab antibody reacted with the denatured N proteins, whereas none of the S and M protein specific neutralizing antibodies did. These results suggested that the S and M protein-specific neutralizing antibodies could recognize conformational epitopes which might be involved in the binding of virions to cellular receptors and the fusion activity of the virus Conclusion The SARS-CoV spike protein and membrane proteins are able to elicite efficient neutralizing antibodies in SARS patients. The neutralizing antibodies we generated in this study may be more promising candidates for prophylaxis and treatment of SARS infection.

Development of novel-nanobody-based lateral-flow immunochromatographic strip test for rapid detection of recombinant human interferon a2b

Recombinant human interferon a2b(rhIFNa2b)is widely used as an antiviral therapy agent for the treatment of hepatitis B and hepatitis C.The current identification test for rhIFNa2b is complex.In this study,an anti-rhIFNa2b nanobody was discovered and used for the development of a rapid lateral flow strip for the identification of rhIFNa2b.RhIFNa2b was used to immunize an alpaca,which established a phage nanobody library.After five steps of enrichment,the nanobody I22,which specifically bound rhIFNa2b,was isolated and inserted into the prokaryotic expression vector pET28a.After subsequent purification,the physicochemical properties of the nanobody were determined.A semiquantitative detection and rapid identification assay of rhIFNa2b was developed using this novel nanobody.To develop a rapid test,the nanobody I22 was coupled with a colloidal gold to produce lateral-flow test strips.The developed rhIFNa2b detection assay had a limit of detection of 1 mg/mL.The isolation of I22 and successful construction of a lateral-flow immunochromatographic test strip demonstrated the feasibility of performing ligand-binding assays on a lateral-flow test strip using recombinant protein products.The principle of this novel assay is generally applicable for the rapid testing of other commercial products,with a great potential for routine use in detecting counterfeit recombinant protein products.

Improving antibody affinity through in vitro mutagenesis in complementarity determining regions

High-affinity antibodies are widely used in diagnostics and for the treatment of human diseases.However,most antibodies are isolated from semi-synthetic libraries by phage display and do not possess in vivo affinity maturation,which is triggered by antigen immunization.It is therefore necessary to engineer the affinity of these antibodies by way of in vitro assaying.In this study,we optimized the affinity of two human monoclonal antibodies which were isolated by phage display in a previous related study.For the 42A1 antibody,which targets the liver cancer antigen glypican-3,the variant T57H in the second complementarity-determining region of the heavy chain(CDR-H2)exhibited a 2.6-fold improvement in affinity,as well as enhanced cell-binding activity.For the I4A3 antibody to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2,beneficial single mutations in CDR-H2 and CDR-H3 were randomly combined to select the best synergistic mutations.Among these,the mutation S53P-S98T improved binding affinity(about 3.7 fold)and the neutralizing activity(about 12 fold)compared to the parent antibody.Taken together,single mutations of key residues in antibody CDRs were enough to increase binding affinity with improved antibody functions.The mutagenic combination of key residues in different CDRs creates additive enhancements.Therefore,this study provides a safe and effective in vitro strategy for optimizing antibody affinity.

THE CONSTRUCTION AND EXPRESSION OF THE MURINE SCFV GENE IN E.COLI AGAINST HUMAN CERVICAL CANCER

Objective To obtain the gene of murine Single chain Fv fragment (ScFv) against human cervical cancer and to express it in E.coli . Methods The variable region gene fragments of the heavy and light chains, which were amplified respectively using recombinant DNA techniques from CsA125 hybridoma cells, were spliced together through a flexible linker to ScFv against human cervical cancer. The ScFv genes were then cloned into expression vector pCANTAB 5E and expressed in E.coli HB2151 and TG1 respectively. The soluble ScFv were characterized by SDS-PAGE and Western blot. The antigen-binding activities of the soluble and phage displayed ScFv were assayed by ELISA and cell immunohistochemical analysis. Results The expressed ScFv antibodies were soluble and phage displayed. The soluble ScFv secreted and expressed in E.coli HB2151 induced by IPTG were confirmed with SDS-PAGE, Western blot and ELISA. The specific binding capacity of the soluble and phage displayed ScFv to the surface associated antigen of human cervical cancer cell line was further confirmed with immunohistochemical studies. Conclusion The soluble and phage displayed ScFv expressed in E.coli against human cervical cancer showed high, specific affinity for the cervical cancer cell line surface associated antigen.

Identification of a gene engineering antibody against cystic echinococcosis in liver

OBJECTIVE: To identify a gene engineering antibody against cystic echinococcosis in liver. METHODS: A single chain of variable fragment of human antibodies (ScFvs) was selected from the library by using affinity selection technique with the recombinant antigen on solid surface. The positive clones were demonstrated by ELISA and their DNA sequences were also determined. RESULTS: The DNA sequence data showed that the antibody gene is composed of 768bp. In addition, a specific combination capacity with recombinant Echinococcus granulosus antigen B (r-EgB) was demonstrated by ELISA. CONCLUSION: The obtained gene engineering antibody against r-EgB may have potential implications in immunological treatment and drug targeting delivery.