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Because monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have exceptional specificity and favorable pharmacology, substantial efforts have been made to functionalize them, either with potent cytotoxins, biologics, radionuclides, or fluorescent groups for therapeutic benefit and/or use as theranostic agents. To exploit our recently discovered meditope-Fab interaction as an alternative means to efficiently functionalize mAbs, we used insights from the structure to enhance the affinity and lifetime of the interaction by four orders of magnitude. To further extend the lifetime of the complex, we created a mechanical bond by incorporating an azide on the meditope, threading the azide through the Fab, and using click chemistry to add a steric group. The mechanically interlocked, meditope-Fab complex retains antigen specificity and is capable of imaging tumors in mice. These studies indicate it is possible to "snap" functionality onto mAbs, opening the possibility of rapidly creating unique combinations of mAbs with an array of cytotoxins, biologics, and imaging agents.

Meditope, a cyclic 12-residue peptide, binds to a unique binding side between the light and heavy chains of the cetuximab Fab. In an effort to improve the affinity of the interaction, it was sought to extend the side chain of Arg8 in the meditope, a residue that is accessible from the other side of the meditope binding site, in order to increase the number of interactions. These modifications included an n-butyl and n-octyl extension as well as hydroxyl, amine and carboxyl substitutions. The atomic structures of the complexes and the binding kinetics for each modified meditope indicated that each extension threaded through the Fab `hole' and that the carboxyethylarginine substitution makes a favorable interaction with the Fab, increasing the half-life of the complex by threefold compared with the unmodified meditope. Taken together, these studies provide a basis for the design of additional modifications to enhance the overall affinity of this unique interaction.

Herein, multiple crystal structures of meditope peptide derivatives incorporating natural and unnatural amino acids bound to the cetuximab Fab domain are presented. The affinity of each derivative was determined by surface plasmon resonance and correlated to the atomic structure. Overall, it was observed that the hydrophobic residues in the meditope peptide, Phe3, Leu5 and Leu10, could accommodate a number of moderate substitutions, but these invariably reduced the overall affinity and half-life of the interaction. In one case, the substitution of Phe3 by histidine led to a change in the rotamer conformation, in which the imidazole ring flipped to a solvent-exposed position. Based on this observation, Phe3 was substituted by diphenylalanine and it was found that the phenyl rings in this variant mimic the superposition of the Phe3 and His3 structures, producing a moderate increase, of 1.4-fold, in the half-life of the complex. In addition, it was observed that substitution of Leu5 by tyrosine and glutamate strongly reduced the affinity, whereas the substitution of Leu5 by diphenylalanine moderately reduced the half-life (by approximately fivefold). Finally, it was observed that substitution of Arg8 and Arg9 by citrulline dramatically reduced the overall affinity, presumably owing to lost electrostatic interactions. Taken together, these studies provide insight into the meditope-cetuximab interaction at the atomic level.

Recently, a unique binding site for a cyclic 12-residue peptide was discovered within a cavity formed by the light and heavy chains of the cetuximab Fab domain. In order to better understand the interactions that drive this unique complex, a number of variants including the residues within the meditope peptide and the antibody, as well as the cyclization region of the meditope peptide, were created. Here, multiple crystal structures of meditope peptides incorporating different cyclization strategies bound to the central cavity of the cetuximab Fab domain are presented. The affinity of each cyclic derivative for the Fab was determined by surface plasmon resonance and correlated to structural differences. Overall, it was observed that the disulfide bond used to cyclize the peptide favorably packs against a hydrophobic `pocket' and that amidation and acetylation of the original disulfide meditope increased the overall affinity ∼2.3-fold. Conversely, replacing the terminal cysteines with serines and thus creating a linear peptide reduced the affinity over 50-fold, with much of this difference being reflected in a decrease in the on-rate. Other cyclization methods, including the formation of a lactam, reduced the affinity but not to the extent of the linear peptide. Collectively, the structural and kinetic data presented here indicate that small perturbations introduced by different cyclization strategies can significantly affect the affinity of the meditope-Fab complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]