Studies on polyethylene glycol-monoclonal antibody conjugates for fabrication of nanoparticles for biomedical applications

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this work is to synthesize and characterize PEGylated monoclonal antibody using the reactivity of oligosaccharide residues in the Fc region of trastuzumab and pertuzumab with a view to preserving their activities. METHODS: The hydrazide-functionalized PEG monomethacrylate was synthesized and reacted with NaIO4-generated aldehyde groups on glycans in the Fc-domain of trastuzumab and pertuzumab. The conjugates were purified by HPLC. SAMSA-fluorescein substitution method and MALDI MS spectroscopy were used to determine the number of PEG per antibody. Preliminary biological studies involved antiproliferative studies and binding (flow cytometry) following treatments with SKBR3 (HER2-overexpressing) cells and the control. RESULTS: 1H NMR and 13C NMR confirmed the formation of hydrazide- functionalized PEG monomethacrylate. MALDI mass-spectrometry showed that there are two PEGs per each antibody and it appears more reliable than the degree of SAMSA-fluorescein substitution method. HER-2 binding assay showed that PEGylated monoclonal antibody bound less efficiently to SKBR3 (high HER-2 expressing) cells than unmodified trastuzumab and pertuzumab. In vitro growth inhibitory effects of unmodified monoclonal antibodies increased with increase in concentration; while the in vitro growth inhibitory effects of PEGylated monoclonal antibodies also increased (but less than the pure antibody) with concentration and it appeared to be more active than unmodified mAbs at higher concentration. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that PEG can be site-specifically attached via the oxidized glycans in the Fc domain of monoclonal antibodies but the process needs further optimization in terms of PEG size and biological testing at each stage of development.