Targeted tumor therapy with a fusion protein of an antiangiogenic human recombinant scFv and yeast cytosine deaminase.

In adults, endothelial cell division occurs only in wound healing, during menstruation, or in diseases such as wet age-related macular degeneration or development of benign or malignant tissues. Angiogenesis is one of the major requirements to supply the fast developing tumor tissue with oxygen and nutrients, and enables it to spread into other tissues far from its origin. We selected the extradomain B (ED-B), a splice variant of fibronectin, which is exclusively expressed in ovaries, uterus, during wound healing, and in tumor tissues, as a target for the development of an innovative antiangiogenic, prodrug-based targeted tumor therapy approach. We designed a fusion protein termed L19CDy-His, consisting of the antibody single chain fragment L19 for targeting ED-B and yeast cytosine deaminase for the conversion of 5-fluorocytosine into cytotoxic 5-fluorouracil. We purified high amounts of the fusion protein from Pichia pastoris that is stable, enzymatically active, and retains 75% of its activity after incubation with human plasma for up to 72 hours. The binding of L19CDy-His to ED-B was confirmed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and quantified by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy determining a KD value of 81±7 nM. L19CDy-His successfully decreased cell survival of the murine ED-B-expressing teratocarcinoma cell line F9 upon addition of the prodrug 5-fluorocytosine. Our data demonstrate the suitability of targeting ED-B by L19CDy-His for effective prodrug-based tumor therapy.

Biodistribution and efficacy of [131I]A33scFv::CDy, a recombinant antibody-enzyme protein for colon cancer.

In antibody-directed enzyme-prodrug therapy (ADEPT), an antibody-bound enzyme localizes to tumor tissue, where it selectively converts a subsequently administered non-toxic prodrug into a cytotoxic drug. A33scFv::CDy is a bifunctional fusion construct comprising a single chain antibody against the gpA33 antigen and the prodrug-converting enzyme cytosine deaminase. gpA33 is highly and homogeneously expressed in >95% of all colorectal cancers. Here we describe the biodistribution and tumor-targeting capacity of 131I labeled A33scFv::CDy. 131I labeling of A33scFv::CDy was performed by the chloramine-T method, and the properties of the resulting [131I]A33scFv::CDy conjugate were determined in vivo and in vitro, including biodistribution studies in nude mice bearing human LIM1215 colon carcinoma xenografts. The [131I]A33scFv::CDy conjugate bound specifically to colorectal cancer cells in vitro with KD = 15.8 nM as determined by a saturation assay. in vivo, the tumor uptake of [131I]A33scFv::CDy peaked at 87% injected dose/g 47 h post injection. Normal tissue uptake was low, and activity in blood was lower than in tumor at all time-points studied (6-92 h). The tumor-to-blood ratio increased over time with a maximum of 8.1 at 67 h post injection. [131I]A33scFv::CDy thus shows a biodistribution that makes it attractive for both radioimmunotherapy (RIT) and ADEPT. Preliminary therapeutic experiments showed a significant reduction of tumor size in mice treated with the A33scFv::CDy-5-fluorocytosine/5-fluorouracil ADEPT system. This work demonstrates the feasibility of ADEPT and RIT based on the A33scFv::CDy recombinant construct.