Medical Research Council

Medimmune Limited

Cambridge Antibody Technology Limited

Other

Kaspar Philipp Holliger

Gregory Paul Winter

Andrew David Griffiths

James David Marks

John Gerald McCafferty

Kevin Stuart Johnson

Anthony Richard Pope

Ronald Henry Jackson

David John Chiswell

Timothy Peter Bonnert

Timothy Piers Clackson

Henricus Renerus Jacobus Mattheus Hoogenboom

Hendricus Renerus Jacobus Mattheus Hoogenboom

Ahuva Nissim

Hendricus Reneus Jacobus Mattheus Hoogenboom

Igor Fisch

Henricus Renerus Hoogenboom

A member of a specific binding pair (sbp) is identified by expressing DNA encoding a genetically diverse population of such sbp members in recombinant host cells in which the sbp members are displayed in functional form at the surface of a filamentous bacteriophage particle containing DNA encoding the sbp member, wherein the sbp member has a binding domain that consists of a dAb fragment. The displayed sbps may be selected by affinity with a complementary sbp member, and the DNA recovered from selected filamentous bacteriophage particles for expression of the selected sbp members.

Methods for producing members of specific binding pairs

A member of a specific binding pair (sbp) is identified by expressing DNA encoding a genetically diverse population of such sbp members in recombinant host cells in which the sbp members are displayed in functional form at the surface of a secreted recombinant genetic display package (rgdp) containing DNA encoding the sbp member or a polypeptide component thereof, by virtue of the sbp member or a polypeptide component thereof being expressed as a fusion with a capsid component of the rgdp. The displayed sbps may be selected by affinity with a complementary sbp member, and the DNA recovered from selected rgdps for expression of the selected sbp members. A phagemid may be used as an expression vector, with said capsid fusion helping to package the phagemid DNA.

A member of a specific binding pair (sbp) is identified by expressing DNA encoding a genetically diverse population of such sbp members in recombinant host cells in which the sbp members are displayed in functional form at the surface of a secreted recombinant genetic display package (rgdp) containing DNA encoding the sbp member or a polypeptide component thereof, by virtue of the sbp member or a polypeptide component thereof being expressed as a fusion with a capsid component of the rgdp. The displayed sbps may be selected by affinity with a complementary sbp member, and the DNA recovered from selected rgdps for expression of the selected sbp members. Antibody sbp members may be thus obtained, with the different chains thereof expressed, one fused to the capsid component and the other in free form for association with the fusion partner polypeptide. A phagemid may be used as an expression vector, with said capsid fusion helping to package the phagemid DNA. Using this method libraries of DNA encoding respective chains of such multimeric sbp members may be combined, thereby obtaining a much greater genetic diversity in the sbp members than could easily be obtained by conventional methods.

Antibodies are retargeted to a target for which they have no functional specificity under normal circumstances. Use is made of a multi-specific binding substance which has binding specificity for the target and anti-antibody binding specificity. The binding substance may comprise an immunoglobulin antigen binding site and may be a &ldquo;diabody&rdquo;. Depending on the antibody bound, effector functions such as Complement, ADCC and immune blocking are recruited to act on the target. Example targets are human cells. In vivo and in vitro utilities are exemplified, including lysis of tumor cells and agglutination of red blood cells.

Retargetting antibodies

DNA constructs comprise a first exon sequence of nucleotides encoding a first peptide or polypeptide, a second exon sequence of nucleotides encoding a second peptide or polypeptide and a third sequence of nucleotides between the first and second sequences encoding a heterologous intron, for example that of Tetrahymena thermophila nuclear pre-rRNA, between RNA splice sites and a site-specific recombination sequence, such as loxP, within the intron, the exons together encoding a product peptide or polypeptide. Such constructs are of use in methods of production of peptides or polypeptides, transcription leading to splicing out of the intron enabling translation of a single chain product peptide or polypeptide. Isolated nucleic acid constructs consisting essentially of a sequence of nucleotides encoding a self-splicing intron with a site-specific recombination sequence within the intron, for use in creation of constructs for expression of peptides or polypeptides, are also provided.

Recombinant binding proteins and peptides

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Cambridge, United Kingdom

Kaspar Philipp Holliger