Nanobody: A Small Antibody with Big Implications for Tumor Therapeutic Strategy

Shuyang Sun,1,2 Ziqiang Ding,1 Xiaomei Yang,1,3 Xinyue Zhao,1,3 Minlong Zhao,1,2 Li Gao,1,3 Qu Chen,1,2 Shenxia Xie,1,4 Aiqun Liu,1 Shihua Yin,1 Zhiping Xu,5 Xiaoling Lu1,2 1International Nanobody Research Center, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Stomatology, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Preclinical Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Pharmacology, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China; 5Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, AustraliaCorrespondence: Xiaoling LuNanobody Research Center, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86 771-2387 518Email luxiaoling@gxmu.edu.cnZhiping XuAustralian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, AustraliaEmail gordonxu@uq.edu.auAbstract: The development of monoclonal antibody treatments for successful tumor-targeted therapies took several decades. However, the efficacy of antibody-based therapy is still confined and desperately needs further improvement. Nanobodies are the recombinant variable domains of heavy-chain-only antibodies, with many unique properties such as small size (∼ 15kDa), excellent solubility, superior stability, ease of manufacture, quick clearance from blood, and deep tissue penetration, which gain increasing acceptance as therapeutical tools and are considered also as building blocks for chimeric antigen receptors as well as for targeted drug delivery. Thus, one of the promising novel developments that may address the deficiency of monoclonal antibody-based therapies is the utilization of nanobodies. This article provides readers the significant factors that the structural and biochemical properties of nanobodies and the research progress on nanobodies in the fields of tumor treatment, as well as their application prospect.Keywords: nanobody, drug delivery, immunotherapy, CAR-T, tumor treatment