Retargeting T cells to GD2 pentasaccharide on human tumors using bispecific humanized antibody

H Xu, M Cheng, H Guo, Y Chen, M Huse… - Cancer immunology …, 2015 - aacrjournals.org
H Xu, M Cheng, H Guo, Y Chen, M Huse, NKV Cheung
Cancer immunology research, 2015aacrjournals.org
Anti-disialoganglioside GD2 IgG antibodies have shown clinical efficacy in solid tumors that
lack human leukocyte antigens (eg, neuroblastoma) by relying on Fc-dependent cytotoxicity.
However, there are pain side effects secondary to complement activation. T-cell retargeting
bispecific antibodies (BsAb) also have clinical potential, but it is thus far only effective
against liquid tumors. In this study, a fully humanized hu3F8-BsAb was developed, in which
the anti-CD3 huOKT3 single-chain Fv fragment (ScFv) was linked to the carboxyl end of the …
Abstract
Anti-disialoganglioside GD2 IgG antibodies have shown clinical efficacy in solid tumors that lack human leukocyte antigens (e.g., neuroblastoma) by relying on Fc-dependent cytotoxicity. However, there are pain side effects secondary to complement activation. T-cell retargeting bispecific antibodies (BsAb) also have clinical potential, but it is thus far only effective against liquid tumors. In this study, a fully humanized hu3F8-BsAb was developed, in which the anti-CD3 huOKT3 single-chain Fv fragment (ScFv) was linked to the carboxyl end of the anti-GD2 hu3F8 IgG1 light chain, and was aglycosylated at N297 of Fc to prevent complement activation and cytokine storm. In vitro, hu3F8-BsAb activated T cells through classic immunologic synapses, inducing GD2-specific tumor cytotoxicity at femtomolar EC50 with >105-fold selectivity over normal tissues, releasing Th1 cytokines (TNFα, IFNγ, and IL2) when GD2(+) tumors were present. In separate murine neuroblastoma and melanoma xenograft models, intravenous hu3F8-BsAb activated T cells in situ and recruited intravenous T cells for tumor ablation, significantly prolonging survival from local recurrence or from metastatic disease. Hu3F8-BsAb, but not control BsAb, drove T cells and monocytes to infiltrate tumor stroma. These monocytes were necessary for sustained T-cell proliferation and/or survival and contributed significantly to the antitumor effect. The in vitro and in vivo antitumor properties of hu3F8-BsAb and its safety profile support its further clinical development as a cancer therapeutic, and provide the rationale for exploring aglycosylated IgG-scFv as a structural platform for retargeting human T cells. Cancer Immunol Res; 3(3); 266–77. ©2014 AACR.
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