TransCon IL-2 ß/γ: a novel long-acting prodrug with sustained release of an IL-2Rß/γ-selective IL-2 variant with improved pharmacokinetics and potent activation of cytotoxic immune cells for the treatment of cancer.

BACKGROUND: Recombinant interleukin-2 (IL-2, aldesleukin) is an approved cancer immunotherapy but causes severe toxicities including cytokine storm and vascular leak syndrome (VLS). IL-2 promotes antitumor function of IL-2Rß/γ+ natural killer (NK) cells and CD8+, CD4+ and gamma delta (γδ) T cells. However, IL-2 also potently activates immunosuppressive IL-2Rα+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) and IL-2Rα+ eosinophils and endothelial cells, which may promote VLS. Aldesleukin is rapidly cleared requiring frequent dosing, resulting in high Cmax likely potentiating toxicity. Thus, IL-2 cancer immunotherapy has two critical drawbacks: potent activation of undesired IL-2Rα+ cells and suboptimal pharmacokinetics with high Cmax and short half-life. METHODS: TransCon IL-2 ß/γ was designed to optimally address these drawbacks. To abolish IL-2Rα binding yet retain strong IL-2Rß/γ activity, IL-2 ß/γ was created by permanently attaching a small methoxy polyethylene glycol (mPEG) moiety in the IL-2Rα binding site. To improve pharmacokinetics, IL-2 ß/γ was transiently attached to a 40 kDa mPEG carrier via a TransCon (transient conjugation) linker creating a prodrug, TransCon IL-2 ß/γ, with sustained release of IL-2 ß/γ. IL-2 ß/γ was characterized in binding and primary cell assays while TransCon IL-2 ß/γ was studied in tumor-bearing mice and cynomolgus monkeys. RESULTS: IL-2 ß/γ demonstrated selective and potent human IL-2Rß/γ binding and activation without IL-2Rα interactions. TransCon IL-2 ß/γ showed slow-release pharmacokinetics with a low Cmax and a long (>30 hours) effective half-life for IL-2 ß/γ in monkeys. In mouse tumor models, TransCon IL-2 ß/γ promoted CD8+ T cell and NK cell activation and antitumor activity. In monkeys, TransCon IL-2 ß/γ induced robust activation and expansion of CD8+ T cells, NK cells and γδ T cells, relative to CD4+ T cells, Tregs and eosinophils, with no evidence of cytokine storm or VLS. Similarly, IL-2 ß/γ enhanced proliferation and cytotoxicity of primary human CD8+ T cells, NK cells and γδ T cells. SUMMARY: TransCon IL-2 ß/γ is a novel long-acting prodrug with sustained release of an IL-2Rß/γ-selective IL-2. It has remarkable and durable pharmacodynamic effects in monkeys and potential for improved clinical efficacy and tolerability compared with aldesleukin. TransCon IL-2 ß/γ is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial (NCT05081609).

Encapsidated atom-transfer radical polymerization in Qß virus-like nanoparticles.

Virus-like particles (VLPs) are unique macromolecular structures that hold great promise in biomedical and biomaterial applications. The interior of the 30 nm-diameter Qß VLP was functionalized by a three-step process: (1) hydrolytic removal of endogenously packaged RNA, (2) covalent attachment of initiator molecules to unnatural amino acid residues located on the interior capsid surface, and (3) atom-transfer radical polymerization of tertiary amine-bearing methacrylate monomers. The resulting polymer-containing particles were moderately expanded in size; however, biotin-derivatized polymer strands were only very weakly accessible to avidin, suggesting that most of the polymer was confined within the protein shell. The polymer-containing particles were also found to exhibit physical and chemical properties characteristic of positively charged nanostructures, including the ability to easily enter mammalian cells and deliver functional small interfering RNA.

The integrin ligand c(RGDf(NMe)Nal) reduces neointimal hyperplasia in a polymer-free drug-eluting stent system.

The use of highly active and selective integrin ligands in combination with stent implantation is emerging as a promising alternative to the release of classical immunosuppressive drugs by current drug-eluting stents (DES), which has been associated with delayed vascular healing and late stent thrombosis. Herein we present the development and biological evaluation of the integrin ligand c(RGDf(NMe)Nal) as a potent anti-proliferative molecule that targets coronary artery smooth muscle cells (CASMCs). This peptide showed an antagonistic activity for αvß3 and αvß5 in the low-nanomolar range, and selectivity against the platelet receptor αIIbß3. In vitro, it efficiently inhibited the proliferation of CASMCs, displaying higher potency than the anti-tumor drug candidate cilengitide. This peptide was then loaded into a polymer-free bare metal stent (BMS), and its release studied at different time points. Up to seven days of elution, the peptide-coated stents retained high anti-proliferative activity toward CASMCs. Finally, the peptide was examined in vivo in a polymer-free DES system in a rabbit iliac artery model. After 28 days of implantation, histopathological analysis revealed that the peptide clearly decreased neointimal growth and improved vessel healing and re-endothelialization compared with the FDA-approved Cypher DES. Our study shows that this type of lipophilic integrin ligand, when eluted from a polymer-free stent system, has the potential to successfully decrease in-stent restenosis in the absence of delayed vascular healing.

Intestinal permeability of cyclic peptides: common key backbone motifs identified.

Insufficient oral bioavailability is considered as a key limitation for the widespread development of peptides as therapeutics. While the oral bioavailability of small organic compounds is often estimated from simple rules, similar rules do not apply to peptides, and even the high oral bioavailability that is described for a small number of peptides is not well understood. Here we present two highly Caco-2 permeable template structures based on a library of 54 cyclo(-D-Ala-Ala(5)-) peptides with different N-methylation patterns. The first (all-trans) template structure possesses two ß-turns of type II along Ala(6)-D-Ala(1) and Ala(3)-Ala(4) and is only found for one peptide with two N-methyl groups at D-Ala(1) and Ala(6) [(NMe(1,6)]. The second (single-cis) template possesses a characteristic cis peptide bond preceding Ala(5), which results in type VI ß-turn geometry along Ala(4)-Ala(5). Although the second template structure is found in seven peptides carrying N-methyl groups on Ala(5), high Caco-2 permeability is only found for a subgroup of two of them [NMe(1,5) and NMe(1,2,4,5)], suggesting that N-methylation of D-Ala(1) is a prerequisite for high permeability of the second template structure. The structural similarity of the second template structure with the orally bioavailable somatostatin analog cyclo(-Pro-Phe-NMe-D-Trp-NMe-Lys-Thr-NMe-Phe-), and the striking resemblance with both ß-turns of the orally bioavailable peptide cyclosporine A, suggests that the introduction of bioactive sequences on the highly Caco-2 permeable templates may result in potent orally bioavailable drug candidates.

Guiding plant virus particles to integrin-displaying cells.

Viral nanoparticles (VNPs) are structurally regular, highly stable, tunable nanomaterials that can be conveniently produced in high yields. Unmodified VNPs from plants and bacteria generally do not show tissue specificity or high selectivity in binding to or entry into mammalian cells. They are, however, malleable by both genetic and chemical means, making them useful scaffolds for the display of large numbers of cell- and tissue-targeting ligands, imaging moieties, and/or therapeutic agents in a well-defined manner. Capitalizing on this attribute, we modified the genetic sequence of the Cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV) coat protein to display an RGD oligopeptide sequence derived from human adenovirus type 2 (HAdV-2). Concurrently, wild-type CPMV was modified via NHS acylation and Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) chemistry to attach an integrin-binding cyclic RGD peptide. Both types of particles showed strong and selective affinity for several different cancer cell lines that express RGD-binding integrin receptors.

Synthesis of N-methylated cyclic peptides.

This protocol presents a detailed description of the synthesis of N-methylated cyclic peptides. N-methylation is a powerful technique to modulate the physicochemical properties of peptides by introducing one or more methyl groups into the peptidic amide bonds. Together with peptide cyclization, this procedure confers unprecedented pharmacokinetic properties to the peptides, including metabolic stability, membrane permeability and even oral bioavailability. Here we describe two simplified methods of N-methylation of linear peptides on solid supports, which can be performed in less than 2 h and are applicable to any amino acid. Finally, we also describe two methods of peptide cyclization, which can be used to obtain the N-methylated cyclic peptide and which are not limited to specific peptide sequences. With this protocol, multiply N-methylated cyclic peptides can be synthesized in as little as 4-5 d.

Polymer-free immobilization of a cyclic RGD peptide on a nitinol stent promotes integrin-dependent endothelial coverage of strut surfaces.

This study examined the utility of a stabilized cyclic RGD peptide chemically modified to selectively bind to titanium-oxide for enhanced biocompatibility of self-expanding nitinol stents. Endothelial cells express integrin receptors that promote attachment to subendothelial matrix proteins. Integrin binding to arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) peptide derivatives mimic naturally occurring adherent interactions. Irreversible covalent surface coating of conventional nitinol stents with a cyclic RGD (cRGD) peptide highly specific for integrin alpha v beta 3 might foster endothelialization after stent implantation. A selective cRGD peptide was irreversibly immobilized onto titanium oxide-rich nitinol coupons or self-expanding stents. Functionality of the engrafted RGD peptide was demonstrated using in vitro endothelial bioassays. A subsequent 7-day in vivo endothelialization study was performed using cRGD-coated self-expanding nitinol stents in rabbits. cRGD peptide coating effectively promoted endothelial cell anchorage, migration, and proliferation confirmed by increased focal adhesions. Proof-of-concept studies of rabbit cRGD stent implants showed a significant increase in endothelial coverage above stent struts relative to stents coated with BSA (cRGD = 70.1 ± 21.9 vs. BSA = 49.9 ± 21.8%, p < 0.03). Immobilization of cRGD peptides on strut surfaces represents an innovative strategy to improve endothelialization, which may facilitate vascular healing after stent implantation.

The effect of multiple N-methylation on intestinal permeability of cyclic hexapeptides.

Recent progress in peptide synthesis simplified the synthesis of multiple N-methylation of peptides. To evaluate how multiple N-methylation affects the bioavailability of peptides, a poly alanine cyclic hexapeptide library (n = 54), varying in the number of N-methyl (N-Me) groups (1-5 groups) and their position, was synthesized. The peptides were evaluated for their intestinal permeability in vitro using the Caco-2 model. Further evaluation of the transport route of chosen analogues was performed using rat excised viable intestinal tissue, a novel colorimetric liposomal model and the parallel artificial membrane permeability assay (PAMPA). While most members were found to have poor permeability (permeability coefficient, P(app) < 1 x 10⁻6 cm/s, lower than mannitol, the marker for paracellular permeability), 10 analogues were found to have high Caco-2 permeability, (P(app) > 1 x 10⁻5 cm/s, similar to testosterone, a marker of transcellular permeability). No correlation was found between the number of N-methylated groups and the enhanced permeability. However, 9/10 permeable peptides in the Caco-2 model included an N-Me placed adjacently to the D-Ala position. While the exact transport route was not fully characterized, the data suggests a facilitated diffusion. It can be concluded that multiple N-methylation of peptides may improve intestinal permeability, and therefore can be utilized in the design of orally available peptide-based therapeutics.

N-Methylated sst2 Selective Somatostatin Cyclic Peptide Analogue as a Potent Candidate for Treating Neurogenic Inflammation.

A focused multiply N-methylated library of a cyclic hexapeptidic somatostatin analogue: MK678 cyclo(-MeAYwKVF-) was generated, which resulted in the unexpected observation of an efficacious tetra-N-methylated analogue, cyclo(-MeAYMewMeKVMeF-) with a potent inhibitory action on sensory neuropeptide release in vitro and on acute neurogenic inflammatory response in vivo. The analogue shows selectivity toward somatostatin receptor subtype 2 (sst2). Extensive 2D NMR spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulation revealed the solution conformation of the analogue, which can be adopted as a lead for the further structure-activity relationship studies targeting neurogenic inflammation.

The impact of amino acid side chain mutations in conformational design of peptides and proteins.

Local energetic effects of amino acid replacements are often considered to have only a moderate influence on the backbone conformation of proteins or peptides. As these effects are difficult to determine experimentally, no comparison has yet been performed. However, knowledge of the influence of side chain mutations is essential in protein homology modeling and in optimizing biologically active peptide ligands in medicinal chemistry. Furthermore, the tool of N-methylation of peptides is of increasing importance for the design of peptidic drugs to gain oral availability or receptor selectivity. However, N-methylation is often accompanied by considerable population of cis-peptide bond structures, resulting in completely different conformations compared with the parent peptide. To retain a favored structure, it might be important to understand the effect of different side chains on the backbone conformation and to enable the introduction of an N-methylation at the right position without disturbing a biologically active conformation. In order to detect even small energetic effects due to side chain mutations, we employed a trick to investigate the structural equilibrium of a selected cyclic pentapeptide in which two conformations are equally populated. Very small energetic differences between both conformations could easily be determined experimentally by identifying shifts in the population of both isomers.

Improvement of drug-like properties of peptides: the somatostatin paradigm.

IMPORTANCE OF THE FIELD: Peptides are promising candidates as therapeutic agents due to their wide involvement in physiological processes. However, their often non-selective activity and their poor drug-like properties, mainly their inherent low stability to enzymatic degradation and poor oral bioavailability, limit their clinical potential. Somatostatin is a peptide hormone involved in many different biological functions. The role of its five different receptor subtypes and their interplay in medicinal processes is only partially understood. In addition, it suffers from poor drug-like properties. AREAS COVERED IN THIS REVIEW: We review several promising chemical modifications, including head-to-tail and backbone cyclization as well as N-methylation, which were applied throughout the years in the development of various somatostatin analogs. WHAT THE READER WILL GAIN: These modifications led to enhanced metabolic stability and intestinal permeability. In addition, several analogs exhibited specific receptor subtype activation. TAKE HOME MESSAGE: The results presented in this review suggest a potential use of these chemical modifications in order to achieve required characteristics for a bioactive peptide, mainly for clinical usage.

Ligands for mapping alphavbeta3-integrin expression in vivo.

The alpha(v)beta(3)- and alpha(5)beta(1)-integrins play a key role in angiogenesis, the formation of new vessels in tissues that lack them. By serving as receptors for a variety of extracellular matrix proteins containing an arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) sequence, these integrins mediate migration of endothelial cells into the basement membrane and regulate their growth, survival, and differentiation. Besides being involved in angiogenesis, the alpha(v)beta(3)-integrin is also presented on tumor cells of various origin, where it is involved in the processes that govern metastasis. Because the alpha(v)beta(3)-integrin is an attractive target for cancer treatment, high-affinity ligands containing the RGD sequence, for example, cyclic pentapeptides, have been developed. They inhibit angiogenesis, induce endothelial apoptosis, decrease tumor growth, and reduce invasiveness and spread of metastasis. This development finally resulted in cyclo(RGDf(NMe)V) (cilengitide), which is a drug for the treatment of glioblastoma (currently in phase III clinical trials). With the growing focus on individualized medicine, clinicians would like to be able to assess the severity of the disease and monitor therapy for each patient. Such measurements would be based on a noninvasive visualization and quantification the alpha(v)beta(3)-integrin expression levels before, during, and after antiangiogenic therapy. A wide spectrum of in vivo imaging probes for the nuclear imaging modalities positron emission tomography (PET) and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), for optical imaging, and for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been developed with these goals in mind. In this Account, we describe the synthesis and preclinical and clinical assessments of dedicated targeting probes. These molecules ideally accumulate selectively and in high concentrations in alpha(v)beta(3)-integrin-expressing tissues, have low uptake and retention in nontarget tissues, and are highly stable against in vivo degradation. [(123)I]cyclo(RGDyV) was the first radiolabeled "imaging analogue" of cilengitide that we evaluated preclinically in detail. Subsequent studies focused on cyclo(RGDfK) and cyclo(RGDyK), which allowed conjugation with various signaling moieties, such as prosthetic groups, bifunctional chelators (DTPA, DOTA, NOTA, TETA, and TE2A for labeling with (111)In or (177)Lu for SPECT and (86)Y, (68)Ga, or (64)Cu for PET), or fluorescent dyes (Cy5.5, cypate). Furthermore, pharmacokinetic modifiers such as carbohydrates, charged amino acids, or PEG analogues were coupled to the peptide core without significantly affecting the binding affinity. Finally, dimers, tetramers, octamers, and polymers and decorated quantum dots with several dozens of peptide units were constructed and investigated. Some of these multimers demonstrated significantly improved affinity (avidity) and targeting efficiency in vivo. Besides peptidic alpha(v)beta(3)-integrin ligands, researchers have investigated radiolabeled antibodies such as Abegrin and used molecular modeling to design small peptidomimetics with improved activity, in vivo stability, and subtype selectivity (e.g., (111)In-TA138). Furthermore, there is an increasing interest in nanoparticles such as nanotubes, quantum dots, or paramagnetic particles coated with cyclic RGD analogues as targeting agents. [(18)F]Galacto-RGD, a glycosylated cyclo(RGDfK) analogue, was the first such substance applied in patients and has been successfully assessed in more than 100 patients so far. Because of modification with carbohydrates, rapid renal excretion, and inherently low background activity in most regions of the body, imaging of alpha(v)beta(3) expression with high tumor/background ratios and high specificity is possible. Other (18)F-labeled RGD analogues recently developed by Siemens and GE Healthcare have entered clinical trials.

Breaking the dogma of the metal-coordinating carboxylate group in integrin ligands: introducing hydroxamic acids to the MIDAS to tune potency and selectivity.

A suitable substitute: All integrin receptors bind their ligands, which contain an aspartate residue, in the metal-ion- dependent adhesion site (MIDAS). So far all attempts to replace the carboxyl group of aspartate with other, pharmacologically favorable isosteric groups have failed. Now it has been shown that a hydroxamic acid group can replace the carboxyl group; the resulting ligand retains its high binding activity. The picture shows one such ligand in the binding site of alphavbeta3.

Can N-methylated amino acids serve as substitutes for prolines in conformational design of cyclic pentapeptides?

The incorporation of proline into cyclic peptides seems to be the most promising way to induce beta-turn structures. Recently, however, it was shown that N-methylated amino acids might be even better suited than proline for introducing turn structures. Another property of proline, the ability to effect cis-peptide bonds, has also been reported for N-methylated amino acids. These findings raise the question if it might be possible to replace a proline by an N-methylated amino acid without altering the desired conformational features. The most important benefit of replacing proline by an N-methylated residue is that one recovers the side-chain functionalities, which could be used for enhancing binding selectivity, or to tune a cyclic peptide concerning its pharmacological properties.Here, we compare cyclic peptides containing one or two prolines or N-methylated alanines and a combination of both with respect to preferred conformations and cis-peptide bonds. In addition, the positions have been investigated where an N-alkylated amino acid has to be incorporated to mimic structural aspects usually introduced by proline residues.

Rational design of highly active and selective ligands for the alpha5beta1 integrin receptor.

The inhibition of integrin function is a major challenge in medicinal chemistry. Potent ligands are currently in different stages of clinical trials for the antiangiogenic therapy of cancer and age-related macula degeneration (AMD). The subtype alpha5beta1 has recently been drawn into the focus of research because of its genuine role in angiogenesis. In our previous work we could demonstrate that the lack of structural information about the receptor could be overcome by a homology model based on the X-ray structure of the alphavbeta3 integrin subtype and the sequence similarities between both receptors. In this work, we describe the rational design and synthesis of high affinity alpha5beta1 binders, and the optimisation of selectivity against alphavbeta3 by means of extensive SAR studies and docking experiments. A first series of compounds based on the tyrosine scaffold resulted in affinities in the low and even subnanomolar range and selectivities of 400-fold against alphavbeta3. The insights about the structure-activity relationship gained from tyrosine-based ligands could be successfully transferred to ligands that bear an aza-glycine scaffold to yield alpha5beta1 ligands with affinities of approximately 1 nm and selectivities that exceed 10(4)-fold. The ligands have already been successfully employed as selective alpha5beta1 ligands in biological research and might serve as lead structures for antiangiogenic cancer therapy.

Development of a peptidomimetic ligand for efficient isolation and purification of factor VIII via affinity chromatography.

Hemophilia A, one of the most severe bleeding disorders, results from an inherited deficiency of factor VIII (FVIII) function. Treatment by injection of FVIII has been a common procedure for decades. Nevertheless, the production and purification of FVIII remains a challenging task. Current procedures using immunoaffinity chromatography are expensive and suffer from the instability of the applied antibody ligands, which elute along with the product and contaminate it. Recently, FVIII was purified by use of octapeptide ligands, but their low protease-resistance limits their application. We here report the systematic rational and combinatorial optimization procedure that allowed us to transfer the octapeptide ligands into a small peptidomimetic. This compound is the smallest ligand known for separation of such a large protein (330 kDa). It not only binds and purifies FVIII with high efficiency but also is stable, protease-resistant, and cheap to produce in preparative scale. Hence it offers a valuable alternative to antibody-based purification procedures.

Efficient enantioselective synthesis of condensed and aromatic-ring-substituted tyrosine derivatives.

An efficient access to both condensed and conjugated tyrosine analogues of high enantiomeric purity is described. Novel ring-substituted tyrosines were synthesized by Suzuki cross couplings of appropriately protected l-3-iodotyrosine with a series of activated and deactivated boronic acid derivatives to achieve the target compounds in high yields. d- and l-4-hydroxy-1-naphthylalanines were readily prepared from the corresponding alpha-enamide in two different approaches, by asymmetric hydrogenation as well as by unselective hydrogenation and enzymatic resolution of the racemic mixture.