A synthetic mimic of human Fc receptors: defined chemical modification of cell surfaces enables efficient endocytic uptake of human immunoglobulin-G

Binding of ligands to macromolecular receptors on the surface of mammalian cells often results in ligand uptake through receptor-mediated endocytosis. Certain human leukocytes and epithelial cells express Fc receptors (FcRs) that bind and internalize antibodies through this mechanism. To mimic this process, we synthesized an artificial FcR comprising the membrane anchor N-alkyl-3beta-amino-5alpha-cholestane linked to a disulfide-constrained cyclic peptide, termed FcIII, known to exhibit high affinity and specificity for the Fc region of human IgG. Treatment of human Jurkat lymphocytes that lack natural FcRs with the synthetic FcR (1 microM, 1 h) installed an average of approximately 6.2 x 10(5) synthetic receptor molecules per cell surface. These treated cells gained the capacity to internalize human IgG at levels greater than human THP-1 cells that express the natural receptors FcgammaRI and FcgammaRII. By linking binding motifs for circulating ligands to membrane anchors that cycle between the cell surface and intracellular endosomes, minimalistic cell surface receptors can be used to destroy targeted ligands by endocytosis. These small mimics of macromolecular receptors may be useful for controlling the extracellular abundance of ligands involved in disease.     

Tumor metastases and cell-mediated immunity in a model system in DBA/2 mice. VIII. Expression and shedding of Fc gamma receptors on metastatic tumor cell variants

The expression of receptors for the Fc portion of IgG immunoglobin molecules was studied on tumor cell lines with high and low metastatic capacity. Two tumor cell lines from DBA/2 mice that had high metastatic activity, ESb and MDAY-D2, contained a high percentage of Fc receptor positive cells, as detected in a rosette assay with IgG antibody-coated erythrocytes (EA). In contrast, the low metastatic parental line Eb, from which ESb was derived, contained only a low percentage of EA-rosette-forming cells. ESb ascites tumor cells adapted to tissue culture in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol (2ME) had a high expression of Fc receptors, whereas a cell line adapted to tissue culture in the absence of 2ME had a low expression of Fc receptors. "Soluble" Fc receptors were detectable by their ability to bind to EA and to cause blocking of rosette formation. They were found to be present in fluids from tumor-bearing animals, such as serum and cell-free ascites. Even animals with an ascites tumor of the low-metastatic line Eb contained "soluble" Fc receptors. The results are discussed with regard to their possible significance for tumor metastasis.     

亲和毛细管电泳法研究锌离子与人血清白蛋白的结合反应机制

建立了研究金属离子与人血清白蛋白(Human serum albumin,HSA)相互作用的亲和毛细管电泳(Affinity capillary electrophoresis,ACE)方法。生理条件下,构建配体(Zn2+)-受体(HSA)相互作用模型,以N,N-二甲基甲酰胺(N,N-Dimethylformamide,DMF)为内标物,基于Scatchard方程,依据有效淌度的变化,通过非线性模拟方程计算Zn2+-HSA结合反应的表观结合常数KB,定量表征了Zn2+-HSA相互作用的强度,并解析电泳谱图获得了Zn2+-HSA结合反应为一快平衡体系的结论。结果表明,建立的ACE方法简捷、有效,Zn2+-HSA相互作用的强度与Zn2+浓度之间存在明显的量效关系。     

Nanosensing of Fcγ receptors on macrophages

Determining the distribution of specific binding sites on biological samples with high spatial accuracy (in the order of several nanometer) is an important challenge in many fields of biological science. Combination of high-resolution atomic force microscope (AFM) topography imaging with single-molecule force spectroscopy provides a unique possibility for the detection of specific molecular recognition events. The identification and localization of specific receptor binding sites on complex heterogeneous biosurfaces such as cells and membranes are of particular interest in this context. Simultaneous topography and recognition imaging was used to unravel the nanolandscape of cells of the immune system such as macrophages. The most studied phagocytic receptors include the Fc receptors that bind to the Fc portion of immunoglobulins. Here, nanomapping of FcγRs (Fc receptors for immunoglobulin G (IgG)) was performed on fixed J774.A1 mouse macrophage cell surfaces with magnetically coated AFM tips functionalized with Fc fragments of mouse IgG via long and flexible poly(ethylene glycol) linkers. Because of possible AFM tip engulfment on living macrophages, appropriate cell fixation procedure leaving the binding activity of FcγRs practically intact was elaborated. The recognition maps revealed prominent spots (microdomains) more or less homogeneously distributed on the macrophage surface with the sizes from 4 to 300 nm. Typical recognition image contained about ∼4% of large clusters (>200 nm), which were surrounded by a massive number (∼50%) of small-size (4–30 nm) and the rest by middle-size (50, 150 nm) domains. These spots were detected from the decrease of oscillation amplitude during specific binding between Fc-coated tip and FcγRs on macrophage surfaces. In addition, the effect of osmotic swelling on the topographical landscape of macrophage surfaces and on the reorganization of FcγRs was investigated.     

Engineered Bacterial Fc Receptors

Five new-type Fc receptor molecules were constructed based on streptococcal protein G (SpG) and staphylococcal protein A (SpA). These protein molecules contain one to six Fc binding domains to immunoglobulins which are structurally different from native SpG or SpA. Their expression levels reached 17-30% of the total bacterial proteins after heat induction in E. colt. Immunodiffusion and ELISA results showed that the engineered protein TG (184 amino acid residues) composed of three SpG C3 domain could bind more broadly and efficiently than the native SpG to the IgGs of human, goat, rabbit, etc. , and its optimal pH for binding became wider (pH5-8) compared with the SpG (pH5) ; and the protein TGA (357AA), fused by protein TG and the A, B, C domains of SpA, displayed both the binding pattern of SpG and SpA.     

An Fc variant with two mutations confers prolonged serum half-life and enhanced effector functions on IgG antibodies

The pH-selective interaction between the immunoglobulin G (IgG) fragment crystallizable region (Fc region) and the neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) is critical for prolonging the circulating half-lives of IgG molecules through intracellular trafficking and recycling. By using directed evolution, we successfully identified Fc mutations that improve the pH-dependent binding of human FcRn and prolong the serum persistence of a model IgG antibody and an Fc-fusion protein. Strikingly, trastuzumab-PFc29 and aflibercept-PFc29, a model therapeutic IgG antibody and an Fc-fusion protein, respectively, when combined with our engineered Fc (Q311R/M428L), both exhibited significantly higher serum half-lives in human FcRn transgenic mice than their counterparts with wild-type Fc. Moreover, in a cynomolgus monkey model, trastuzumab-PFc29 displayed a superior pharmacokinetic profile to that of both trastuzumab-YTE and trastuzumab-LS, which contain the well-validated serum half-life extension Fcs YTE (M252Y/S254T/T256E) and LS (M428L/N434S), respectively. Furthermore, the introduction of two identified mutations of PFc29 (Q311R/M428L) into the model antibodies enhanced both complement-dependent cytotoxicity and antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity activity, which are triggered by the association between IgG Fc and Fc binding ligands and are critical for clearing cancer cells. In addition, the effector functions could be turned off by combining the two mutations of PFc29 with effector function-silencing mutations, but the antibodies maintained their excellent pH-dependent human FcRn binding profile. We expect our Fc variants to be an excellent tool for enhancing the pharmacokinetic profiles and potencies of various therapeutic antibodies and Fc-fusion proteins.Subject terms: Antibody therapy, Molecularly targeted therapy, Drug development     

Synthesis, aggregation, and binding behavior of synthetic amphiphilic receptors

Amphiphilic bowl-shaped receptor molecules have been synthesized starting from diphenylglycoluril. Upon dispersion in water, these molecules self-assemble to form vesicles that bind neutral guests and alkali metal ions. In the case of bis(alkylester)-modified receptor compound 4, electron microscopy reveals that an increase in the size of the alkali metal ion (from Na(+) or K(+) to Rb(+) and to Cs(+)) leads to a change in the shape of the aggregates, viz. from vesicles to tubules. Monolayer experiments suggest that this behavior is due to a change in the conformation of this amphiphilic receptor. In water, molecules of 4 have an elongated conformation that changes to a sandwich-like one upon binding of alkali metal ions. Binding studies with vesicles from the bis-ammonium receptors 6 and 9 and the guest 4-(4-nitrophenylazo)resorcinol (Magneson) reveal that below the critical aggregation concentration (CAC) of the amphiphile 1:1 host-guest complexes are formed with high host-guest association constants. Above the CAC, a host-guest ratio of 2:1 was observed that indicates that only the cavities on the outside of the vesicle can be occupied. In the case of the naphthalene walled compound 8 changes in the vesicle structure are induced by the organic guest Magneson.     

Estrogen-derived steroidal metal complexes: agents for cellular delivery of metal centers to estrogen receptor-positive cells

Targeted cellular delivery of drugs to specific tissues is an important goal in biomedical chemistry. Achieving this requires harnessing and applying molecular-level recognition events prevalent in (or specific to) the desired tissue type. Tissues rich in estrogen receptors (ERs), which include many types of breast cancer, accumulate molecules that have high binding affinities for these receptors. Therefore, molecules that (i) bind to the ER, (ii) have favorable cellular transport properties, and (iii) contain a second functionality (such as a center that may be used for diagnostic imaging or medical therapy) are exciting synthetic targets in the field of drug delivery. To this end, we have prepared a range of metallo-estrogens based on 17alpha-ethynylestradiol and examined their binding to the ER both as isolated receptor and in whole cell assays (ER positive MCF-7 cells). Estrogens functionalized with metal binding units are prepared by palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions and a wide range of metal centers introduced readily. All the compounds prepared and tested exhibit effective binding to the estrogen receptor and are delivered across the cell membrane into MCF-7 cells. In the whole cell assays, despite their monocationic nature, the palladium and platinum complexes prepared exhibit similar (and even enhanced) receptor binding affinities compared to their corresponding neutral free ligands. It is unprecedented for a higher ER binding affinity to be observed for a cationic complex than for its metal-free ligand.     

Concepts in receptor optimization: targeting the RGD peptide

Synthetic receptors have a wide range of potential applications, but it has been difficult to design low molecular weight receptors that bind ligands with high, "proteinlike" affinities. This study uses novel computational methods to understand why it is hard to design a high-affinity receptor and to explore the limits of affinity, with the bioactive peptide RGD as a model ligand. The M2 modeling method is found to yield excellent agreement with experiment for a known RGD receptor and then is used to analyze a series of receptors generated in silico with a de novo design algorithm. Forces driving binding are found to be systematically opposed by proportionate repulsions due to desolvation and entropy. In particular, strong correlations are found between Coulombic attractions and the electrostatic desolvation penalty and between the mean energy change on binding and the cost in configurational entropy. These correlations help explain why it is hard to achieve high affinity. The change in surface area upon binding is found to correlate poorly with affinity within this series. Measures of receptor efficiency are formulated that summarize how effectively a receptor uses surface area, total energy, and Coulombic energy to achieve affinity. Analysis of the computed efficiencies suggests that a low molecular weight receptor can achieve proteinlike affinity. It is also found that macrocyclization of a receptor can, unexpectedly, increase the entropy cost of binding because the macrocyclic structure further restricts ligand motion.     

Dual‐Functional Semithiobambusurils

Semithiobambusurils, which represent a new family of macrocyclic host molecules, have been prepared by a convenient, scalable synthesis. These new cavitands are double functional: they strongly bind a broad variety of anions in their interiors and metal ions at their sulfur‐edged portals. The solid‐state structure of semithiobambus[4]uril with HgCl₂ demonstrates the ability of these compounds to form linear chains of coordination polymers with thiophillic metal ions. The crystal structure of semithiobambus[6]uril with tetraphenylphosphonium bromide exhibits the unique anion‐binding properties of the host cavity and the characteristics of the binding site.     

Affinity capillary electrophoresis and density functional theory employed for the characterization of hexaarylbenzene-based receptor complexation with alkali metal ions

In this study, affinity capillary electrophoresis (ACE) and quantum mechanical density functional theory (DFT) calculations were combined to investigate non-covalent binding interactions between the hexaarylbenzene-based receptor (R) and alkali metal ions, Rb(+) and Cs(+) , in methanol. The apparent binding (stability) constants (K(b) ) of the complexes of receptor R with alkali metal ions in the methanolic medium were determined by ACE from the dependence of effective electrophoretic mobility of the receptor R on the concentration of Rb(+) and Cs(+) ions in the BGE using a non-linear regression analysis. The receptor R formed relatively strong complexes both with rubidium (log K(b) =4.04±0.21) and cesium ions (log K(b) =3.72±0.22). The structural characteristics of the above alkali metal ion complexes with the receptor R were described by ab initio density functional theory calculations. These calculations have shown that the studied cations bind to the receptor R because they synergistically interact with the polar ethereal fence and with the central benzene ring via cation-π interaction.     

Interactions of alkali metal chlorides with phosphatidylcholine vesicles

We study the interaction of alkali metal chlorides with lipid vesicles made of palmitoyloleoylphosphatidylcholine (POPC). An elaborate set of techniques is used to investigate the binding process at physiological conditions. The alkali cation binding to POPC is characterized thermodynamically using isothermal titration calorimetry. The isotherms show that for all ions in the alkali group the binding process is endothermic, counterintuitively to what is expected for Coulomb interactions between the slightly negatively charged POPC liposomes and the cations. The process is entropy driven and presumably related to the liberation of water molecules from the hydration shells of the ions and the lipid headgroups. The measured molar enthalpies of the binding of the ions follows the Hofmeister series. The binding constants were also estimated, whereby lithium shows the strongest affinity to POPC membranes, followed by the rest of the ions according to the Hofmeister series. Cation adsorption increases the net surface potential of the vesicles as observed from electrophoretic mobility and zeta potential measurements. While lithium adsorption leads to slightly positive zeta potentials above a concentration of 100 mM, the adsorption of the rest of the ions mainly causes neutralization of the membrane. This is the first study characterizing the binding equilibrium of alkali metal chlorides to phosphatidylcholine membranes at physiological salt concentrations.     

Tripodal,Squaramide-Based Ion Pair Receptor for Effective Extraction of Sulfate Salt

Combining three features—the high affinity of squaramides toward anions, cooperation in ion pair binding and preorganization of the binding domains in the tripodal platform—led to the effective receptor 2. The lack of at least one of these key elements in the structures of reference receptors 3 and 4 caused a lower affinity towards ion pairs. Receptor 2 was found to form an intramolecular network in wet chloroform, which changed into inorganic–organic associates after contact with ions and allowed salts to be extracted from an aqueous to an organic phase. The disparity in the binding mode of 2 with sulfates and with other monovalent anions led to the selective extraction of extremely hydrated sulfate anions in the presence of more lipophilic salts, thus overcoming the Hofmeister series.     

Mechanism of immunoglobulin G4 Fab-arm exchange

Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies are symmetrical molecules that may be regarded as covalent dimers of 2 half-molecules, each consisting of a light chain and a heavy chain. Human IgG4 is an unusually dynamic antibody, with half-molecule exchange ("Fab-arm exchange") resulting in asymmetrical, bispecific antibodies with two different antigen binding sites, which contributes to its anti-inflammatory activity. The mechanism of this process is unknown. To elucidate the elementary steps of this intermolecular antibody rearrangement, we developed a quantitative real-time FRET assay to monitor the kinetics of this process. We found that an intrinsic barrier is the relatively slow dissociation of the CH3 domains that noncovalently connect the heavy chains, which becomes rate determining in case disulfide bonds between the heavy chains are reduced or absent. Under redox conditions that mimic the previously estimated in vivo reaction rate, i.e., 1 mM of reduced glutathione, the overall rate is ca. 20 times lower because only a fraction of noncovalent isomers is present (with intra- rather than interheavy chain disulfide bonds), formed in a relatively fast pre-equilibrium from covalent isomers. Interestingly, Fab arms stabilize the covalent isomer: the amount of noncovalent isomers is ca. 3 times higher for Fc fragments of IgG4 (lacking Fab domains) compared to intact IgG4, and the observed rate of exchange is 3 times higher accordingly. Thus, kinetic data obtained from a sensitive and quantitative real-time FRET assay as described here yield accurate data about interdomain interactions such as those between Fab and/or Fc domains. The results imply that in vivo, the reaction is under control of local redox conditions.     

Differential interactions of plasmid DNA, RNA and endotoxin with immobilised and free metal ions

Separation of negatively charged molecules, such as plasmid DNA (pDNA), RNA and endotoxin forms a bottleneck for the development of pDNA vaccine production process. The use of affinity interactions of transition metal ions with these molecules may provide an ideal separation methodology. In this study, the binding behaviour of pDNA, RNA and endotoxin to transition metal ions, either in immobilised or free form, was investigated. Transition metal ions: Cu2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, Co2+ and Fe3+, typically employed in the immobilised metal affinity chromatography (IMAC), showed very different binding behaviour depending on the type of metal ions and their existing state, i.e. immobilised or free. In the alkaline cell lysate, pDNA showed no binding to any of the IMAC chemistries tested whereas RNA interacted significantly with Cu2+-iminodiacetic acid (IDA) and Ni2+-IDA but showed no substantial binding to the rest of the IMAC chemistries. pDNA and RNA, however, interacted to varying degrees with free metal ions in the solution. The greatest selectivity in terms of pDNA and RNA separation was achieved with Zn2+ which enabled almost full precipitation of RNA while keeping pDNA soluble. For both immobilised and free metal ions, ionic strength of solution affected the metal ion-nucleic acid interaction significantly. Endotoxin, being more flexible, was able to interact better with the immobilised metal ions than the nucleic acids and showed binding to all the IMAC chemistries. The specific interactions of immobilised and/or free metal ions with pDNA, RNA and endotoxin showed a good potential, by selectively removing RNA and endotoxin at high efficiency, to develop a simplified pDNA purification process with improved process economics.     

Characterization of the Fc receptors of the murine leukemia L1210

A glycoprotein extract prepared from the plasma membranes of L1210 cells was passed over columns of Sepharose 4B to which either heat-aggregated human IgG or F(ab')2 fragments has been coupled. The intact IgG column bound 35.7 percent of the applied counts, whereas the F(ab')2 columns bound 2.8 percent. The bound glycoproteins were eluted with citrate buffer (pH 3.2) and analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Three peaks with apparent molecular weights of 65,000 45,000, and 28,000 daltons were identified and purified by electroelution from polyacrylamide gels. The isolated proteins were able to bind to the same sub-classes of mouse IgG myeloma proteins as the intact L1210 cells, indicating that these molecules are related to L1210 surface Fc receptors. Amino acid analyses of the 3 proteins were markedly similar suggesting that the observed molecular heterogeneity might be due to carbohydrate differences. Neuraminidase digestion of the isolated proteins resulted in mobility shifts on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis which were consistent with the interpretation that either the isolated proteins have considerably different sialic acid contents, or that removal of the sialic acid results in disaggregation of an Fc receptor molecule.     

表面定向磁性印迹聚合物的制备及对槲皮素的选择性识别

利用硼酸功能化的磁性碳纳米管作为反应基质, 采用一种简便、 绿色的硼酸亲和表面定向印迹法制备了槲皮素磁性分子印迹聚合物, 并将其应用于银杏叶提取物中槲皮素的特异性识别. 透射电子显微镜、 X射线光电子能谱仪、 X射线衍射及振动样品磁强计测试结果表明, 制备的分子印迹聚合物具有良好的形貌和晶型结构. 吸附实验结果表明, 该分子印迹聚合物对模板分子槲皮素具有较好的吸附容量(4.57 μg/mg)、 良好的印迹效果(IF=8.44)和再生能力. 对实际中药样品银杏叶提取物的吸附实验结果表明, 所建立的方法能达到预期的槲皮素检测效果, 可作为中药有效成分槲皮素的特异性识别工具.     

Voltammetric Studies of the Interactions Between Ferrocene‐Labeled Glutathione and Proteins in Solution or Immobilized onto Surface

Glutathione (GSH) tagged with a ferrocene (Fc) label at its C‐terminal was synthesized via coupling ferrocenyl amine to glutathione using o‐(benzotriazol‐1‐yl)‐N,N,N′,N′‐tetramethyluronium (HBTU)/1‐hydroxybenzotrizole (HOBt). The presence of Fc yielded well defined voltammetric signals, rendering the Fc‐tagged GSH (GSH‐Fc) suitable for electrochemical studies of GSH binding to other biological species. The interaction of GSH‐Fc with bovine serum albumin (BSA) was investigated, and a binding ratio of 1.41±0.06 (GSH‐Fc/BSA) and an affinity constant K_a of 6.53±2.01×10⁶ M^?1 were determined. These results compare well with those measured by fluorescence using untagged GSH, suggesting that the attachment of Fc to GSH does not significantly perturb the GSH structure and binding behavior. By contrasting the binding behavior to several compounds that are known to conjugate to different domains of BSA, the voltammetric study confirmed that GSH‐Fc binds at subdomain IIA of BSA with high affinity. The versatility of GSH‐Fc for studying GSH binding to surface‐confined proteins was also demonstrated with the GSH binding to electroinactive Zn‐metallothionein (Zn₇‐MT) through hydrogen binding at the region between the Zn₇‐MT α and β domains.     

Stabilization of Guest Molecules inside Cation-Lidded Cucurbiturils Reveals that Hydration of Receptor Sites Can Impede Binding

Docking of alkali metal ions to water-soluble macrocyclic receptors generally reduces the affinity of guest molecules due to competitive binding. The idea that solvation water molecules could display a larger steric hindrance towards guest binding than cations has not been considered to date. We show that the docking of large cations to cucurbit[5]uril (CB5) unexpectedly increases (by a factor of 5–8) the binding of hydrophobic guests, methane and ethane. This is due to the removal of water molecules from the carbonyl portals of CB5 during cation binding, which frees up space for hydrophobe encapsulation. In contrast, smaller cations like sodium protrude deeply into the cavity of CB5 and cause the expected decrease in binding, such that the rational selection of alkali cations allows for a variation of up to a factor of 20 in binding of methane and ethane. The statistical analysis of crystallographic data shows that the cavity volume of CB5 can be enlarged by placing large alkali ions (Rb⁺ and Cs⁺) centro-symmetrically at the portals. The results reveal a hitherto elusive steric hindrance of solvation water molecules near receptor binding sites, which is pertinent for the design of supramolecular catalysts and the understanding of biological receptors.     

Interaction energy‐based drug–receptor interaction study of metal–bicyclam complexes

Bicyclams inhibit HIV replication by binding to the CXCR4 chemokine receptor, which is the main coreceptor for gp120 used by X4, T‐tropic strains of HIV for membrane fusion and cell entry. Bicyclam AMD3100 mainly interacts with the aspartic acid residues namely Asp171 and Asp262, which are located at the extracellular ends in the CXCR4 coreceptor. Incorporation of some metal ions by the macrocyclic rings of bicyclam enhances its binding affinity to the CXCR4 receptor and enhances their anti‐HIV activity because the acetate can make a strong coordination bond to the metal and one weaker hydrogen bond to nitrogen in the cyclam ring. The interaction energy (E_int) between 150 metal–bicyclam complexes and aspartic acid has been evaluated. The metal–bicyclam complexes are obtained by the incorporation of six metal ions namely Fe³⁺, Co³⁺, Ni²⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Pd²⁺ in 25 well‐known bicyclams including AMD3100. In most of the cases, Fe and Co–bicyclam complexes interact best with aspartic acid. The anti‐HIV activity of metal–bicyclam complexes can be predicted on the basis of interaction energy before the synthesis of the metal–bicyclam complex. On the basis of interaction energy, the anti‐HIV activity of bicyclam complexes can be predicted in advance to their synthesis. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2011