US scientists have reported a new method to create antibody mimics that could be used to make new and improved therapeutics.
Fusion proteins contain segments derived from two or more different precursors. The proteins allow multiple biological functions to be combined in a single entity. The most successful fusion protein therapeutics contain the crystallisable fragment (Fc) region of antibodies. But they are not easy to make and modify. The team has come up with two strategies to modify antibody Fc fragments using chemical modification, leading to the creation of novel Fc-synthetic molecule hybrids.
The strategy also allows Fc domains to be used as building blocks that can be appended to virtually any class of synthetic molecules. This allows the pharmacokinetic improvements imparted by Fc to be used in many different drug delivery contexts, and could add potential immunological function to many different constructs.
Read the ‘HOT’ Chemical Science article today:
Synthetically Modified Fc Domains as Building Blocks for Immunotherapy Applications
C Netirojjanakul et al, Chem. Sci., 2012, DOI: 10.1039/c2sc21365f
