ANTI-TUMOR ANTIGEN NANOBODY AND NUCLEIC ACID CODING THEREWITH AND USES THEREOF

Description

1. Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to an anti-tumor antigen heavy chain variable domain (VHH) antibody and nucleic acid encoding sequences thereof, and uses of the same.2. The Prior Art

[0002] Cancer, also known as malignancy, is a state of abnormal proliferation of cells, and these proliferating cells may invade other parts of the body as a disease caused by a malfunction in the control of cell division and proliferation. The number of people suffering from cancer worldwide has a growing trend. Cancer is one of the top ten causes of death for the Chinese people and has been the top ten causes of death for consecutive years.

[0003] Conventional cancer treatments include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and target therapy. Cancer immunotherapy is another method for treating cancer except the above methods. The immune system of the patient is activated in the cancer immunotherapy by using tumor cells or tumor antigens to induce specific cellular and humoral immune responses for enhancing the anti-cancer ability of the patient, preventing the growth, spread, and recurrence of tumors, and achieving the purpose of removing or controlling tumors. However, the current tumor treatments still have the problems of ineffectiveness and strong side effects, and even lead to other immune-related disorders.

[0004] Human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G) has been found to be highly expressed on a variety of solid tumors, and has the property of suppressing immune cells. Therefore, researchers have been committed to developing HLA-G as target molecules for tumor identification and to find out whether these target molecules have the potential to become anticancer drugs.

[0005] WO 2019 / 202040 A1 relates to anti-HLA-G antibodies and pharmaceutical compositions comprising these antibodies. Also provided are detection and treatment methods of using these antibodies.

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, those skilled in the art urgently need to develop a novel and effective medicament for treating cancer and immune-related disorders for the benefit of a large group of people in need thereof.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The invention is set out in the appended set of claims.

[0008] A primary objective of the present invention is to provide an anti-tumor antigen heavy chain variable domain (VHH) antibody that specifically binds to a human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G), consisting of an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of: SEQ ID NO:1, SEQ ID NO:2, and SEQ ID NO:3.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody is conjugated with a fragment crystallizable region (Fc region).

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody is conjugated with a second antibody to form a bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE), triple specific T-cell engager (TriTE), bispecific killer cell engager (BiKE), triple specific killer cell engager (TriKE), or any bispecific antibody.

[0011] According to an embodiment disclosed but not part of the present invention, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody blocks interaction and / or binding of the HLA-G with a receptor of the HLA-G.

[0012] According to an embodiment disclosed but not part of the present invention, the receptor is killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4 (KIR2DL4) or leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1 (LILRB1).

[0013] Another objective of the present invention is to provide an isolated nucleic acid encoding the above mentioned anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody, wherein the isolated nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from the group consisting of: SEQ ID NO:4, SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:6, and any combination thereof, preferably encoding for an anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody that is further conjugated with a fragment crystallizable region (Fc region).

[0014] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a pharmaceutical composition, comprising the above mentioned anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.

[0015] Another objective of the present invention is to provide the above mentioned pharmaceutical composition for use in the treatment of cancer, comprising administering to a subject in need thereof the pharmaceutical composition.

[0016] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for detecting expression levels of HLA-G, comprising contacting a biological sample with the above mentioned anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody, and detecting a binding to HLA-G in said sample, e.g. by immunocytochemistry.

[0017] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the biological sample is blood, urine, sputum, saliva, body fluid or human placenta.

[0018] In summary, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody of the present invention has the following effect. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4 (KIR2DL4) and leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1 (LILRB1) within the 50% blocking activity as IC50 by competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), enhances cytolysis and cytotoxicity of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with natural killer cells (NK cells), could recognize HLA-G protein from cellular lysate of human cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by Western blotting analysis, and is used for flow cytometric analysis. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody also could recognize HLA-G protein on cell membrane, the expression of HLA-G is co-localized with the plasma membrane marker pan-cadherin on MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by immunocytochemistry, and is used to detect the expression of HLA-G by immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining, thereby achieving the effect of treating cancer and immune-related disorders. In particular, compared with the conventional antibodies, which have the disadvantages of low yield and poor effect, the gene must be transfected into cells by a vector to express the antibody function, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody of the present invention can be prepared in vitro on a large scale, and directly administered to the individual in need for treatment. In addition, the present invention can also achieve the effect of detecting the expression level of HLA-G.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] The following drawings form part of the present specification and are included here to further demonstrate some aspects of the present invention, which can be better understood by reference to one or more of these drawings, in combination with the detailed description of the embodiments presented herein. FIGs. 1A-1H show that the HLA-G / killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4 (KIR2DL4) or leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1 (LILRB1) axis blockade of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies are determined by competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), wherein LILRB1 represents leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1; KIR2DL4 represents killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4; nb represents VHH antibody; 87G represents commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody. FIG. 2 is a data diagram, showing that the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody enhances cytolysis of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with natural killer cells (NK cells), wherein HLA-G mAB (87G) represents commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G). FIG. 3A shows the result of Western blotting analysis of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody, the used cell line is human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231, the commercial antibody is HLA-G (E8N9C) XP ®< Rabbit mAb#79769, the number in the upper row represents the amount of cell lysate of MDA-MB-231 cell line (µg), the concentration of the primary antibody is 1 ng / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is anti-rabbit-horseradish peroxidase (anti-Rab-HRP)(1:1000), anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (1 ng / ml), the secondary antibody of the experimental groups (#9 and #20) is anti-VHH-HRP (1:1000). FIG. 3B shows the result of Western blotting analysis of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody, the used cell line is non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549, the commercial antibody is HLA-G (E8N9C) XP ®< Rabbit mAb#79769, the number in the upper row represents the amount of cell lysate of A549 cell line (µg), the concentration of the primary antibody is 1 ng / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is anti-rabbit-horseradish peroxidase (anti-Rab-HRP)(1:1000), anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (1 ng / ml), the secondary antibody of the experimental groups (#9 and #20) is anti-VHH-HRP (1:1000). FIG. 4 shows the result of flow cytometric analysis of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody, wherein the amount of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 and human non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549 is 1 × 10 6< , the commercial antibodies (Ab) are PE (#12-9957-42) (an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody, 0.25 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution) and 87G, the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (0.25 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution), the secondary antibody is rabbit anti-camelid VHH, iFluor555 (0.5 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution), MFI represents mean fluorescence intensity. FIGs. 5A and 5B show the immunocytochemistry result of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody, wherein the cell line used in FIG. 5A is human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231, the cell line used in FIG. 5B is human non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549, the commercial antibody 4H84 is an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody, the concentration of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is 1ng / ml, and the secondary antibody is anti-VHH-fluorescein (FITC)(1:5000). FIG. 6 shows the immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining result of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody, wherein the used sample is human placenta, the commercial antibody is 4H84 (an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody)(#sc-21799), concentration is 200 µ g / ml, working concentration is 4 µ g / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is goat anti-rabbit HRP, DAB represents diaminobenzidine (the most sensitive and commonly used chromogenic reactant for horseradish peroxidase), the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (working concentration of 4 µg / ml), the antibodies of the experimental group (#9) include rabbit anti-camelid VHH antibody, biotin (0.5 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution) and goat anti-rabbit HRP. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0020] In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which are shown to illustrate the specific embodiments in which the present disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the present disclosure. It is understood that other embodiments may be used and that changes can be made to the embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. The following description is therefore not to be considered as limiting the scope of the present invention.Definition

[0021] As used herein, the data provided represent experimental values that can vary within a range of ±20%, preferably within ±10%, and most preferably within ±5%.

[0022] As used herein, the terms "anti-human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G) nanobody (NB)" and "anti-tumor antigen nanobody" can be used interchangeably.

[0023] As used herein, the term "second antibody" refers to the antibody conjugated with the nanobody to form a bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE), triple specific T-cell engager (TriTE), bispecific killer cell engager (BiKE), triple specific killer cell engager (TriKE), or any bispecific antibody. Preferably, the second antibody includes, but is not limited to, anti-CD3ε antibody, anti-programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) antibody, anti-programmed cell death ligand 2 (PD-L2) antibody, anti-T-cell immunoglobulin domain and mucin domain 3 (Tim3) antibody, anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) antibody, anti-EGFRvIII antibody, anti- human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her2) antibody, anti-B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) antibody, anti-CD19 antibody, anti-CD20 antibody, anti-CD34 antibody, anti-CD16 antibody, Fc, anti-epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) antibody, anti-mesothelin antibody, anti-New York esophageal squamous cell carcinoma-1 (NY-ESO-1) antibody, anti-glycoprotein 100 (gp100) antibody, and anti-Muc1 antibody.

[0024] As used herein, the term "treating" or "treatment" refers to alleviating, reducing, ameliorating, relieving or controlling one or more clinical signs of a disease or disorder, and lowering, stopping, or reversing the progression of severity regarding the condition or symptom being treated.

[0025] According to the present invention, the pharmaceutical composition can be manufactured to a dosage form suitable for parenteral or oral administration, using techniques well known to those skilled in the art, including, but not limited to, injection (e.g., sterile aqueous solution or dispersion), sterile powder, tablet, troche, lozenge, pill, capsule, dispersible powder or granule, solution, suspension, emulsion, syrup, elixir, slurry, and the like.

[0026] The pharmaceutical composition according to the present invention may be administered by a parenteral route selected from the group consisting of: intraperitoneal injection, subcutaneous injection, intraepidermal injection, intradermal injection, intramuscular injection, intravenous injection, and intralesional injection.

[0027] According to the present invention, the pharmaceutical composition may further comprise a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier which is widely used in pharmaceutically manufacturing techniques. For example, the pharmaceutically acceptable carrier can comprise one or more reagents selected from the group consisting of solvent, emulsifier, suspending agent, decomposer, binding agent, excipient, stabilizing agent, chelating agent, diluent, gelling agent, preservative, lubricant, absorption delaying agent, liposome, and the like. The selection and quantity of these reagents fall within the scope of the professional literacy and routine techniques of those skilled in the art.

[0028] According to the present invention, the pharmaceutically acceptable carrier comprises a solvent selected from the group consisting of water, normal saline, phosphate buffered saline (PBS), sugar-containing solution, aqueous solution containing alcohol, and combinations thereof.

[0029] As used herein, the term "nucleic acid", "nucleic acid sequence" or "nucleic acid fragment" refers to a sequence of deoxyribonucleotides or ribonucleotides in single- or double-stranded forms, and comprises known naturally occurring nucleotides or artificially chemical mimics. As used herein, the term "nucleic acid" is used interchangeably with the terms "gene", "cDNA", "mRNA", "oligonucleotide" and "polynucleotide".Example 1 Preparation of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody

[0030] In this example, the preparation process of the anti-human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G) VHH antibody (NB) is as follows. The heavy chain variable domain (VHH) production protocol is as follows. The VHH gene was constructed in expression vector pET22b (Amp resistance) or pSB-init (CmR resistance); The plasmid was identified by restriction enzyme digestion and sequenced verification. 1 µL identified plasmid (about 50 ng) was added to BL21(DE3), and incubated overnight at 37 °C. LB culture medium containing resistance was inoculated with a single colony and the cultures were incubated overnight at 37 °C, 220 r / min. Overnight culture was inoculated in a fresh LB medium (10 L-20 L) containing resistance at a ratio of 1: 100, and cultured at 37 °C and 220 r / min. It was cooled to room temperature when the OD 600 reaches 0.8. Isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) was added with a final concentration of 0.1 mM and induced overnight at 20°C, 220 r / min. The cells and supernatant were harvested after cell disruption by centrifugation (20 mM Tris pH 8.0, 150 mM NaCl). Supernatant was combined with Ni-NTA beads (1mL) by flow-through. The Ni-NTA beads were washed and eluted with buffers containing suitable gradient imidazole (10 mM, 20 mM, 50 mM, 100 mM, 250 mM and 500 mM). Elution fraction was analyzed by SDS-PAGE, and the subsequent purification scheme was determined according to the purity and yield of the protein (ion exchange chromatography or gel filtration chromatography). The protein that meets the requirements was separated and purified by gel filtration chromatography, and buffer was replaced with PBS buffer. The protein component was analyzed by SDS-PAGE, the components were merged and concentrated that meet the requirements, filtered with 0.22µm filter and aliquot. The protein was stored at -20°C or lower.

[0031] The production and purification of VHH antibodies are from E. coli. For producing VHH antibody form E. coli is modified in view of Microb Cell Fact . 2019 Mar 11;18(1):47. In brief, the E. coli strain HB2151 was used. The plasmid pET (Creative Biolab) coding an ampicillin resistance was used for cytoplasmic protein production. Freshly transformed E. coli HB2151 with pET-HLA-G or HLA-G multyspecific VHH antibody plasmids would be inoculated in 5 mL of media containing 50 µg / mL of ampicillin and cultivated at 37°C for overnight. After that, 1 mL of this pre-culture was inoculated into 100 mL medium and grown at 37°C. After overnight cultivation, two EnPresso booster tablets and an additional dose of the glucose releasing enzyme (0.6 U / L) would be added to each 100 mL culture. At the same time, recombinant VHH antibody protein expression would be induced by the addition of 1 mM IPTG continued as for 24 hours. Then the cultures would be collected and chilled on ice for 5 min and centrifuged for 15 min at 6,000 × g and 4°C. After removal of the supernatant, the cell pellets would be purified by high-capacity Myc-tag binding resin using immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC). The gravity-flow-based chromatography would be carried out under native conditions according to the manufacturer protocol (Clontech Laboratories). Efficient cell lysis would be achieved by addition of 1 mL xTractor cell lysis buffer (Clontech Laboratories) supplemented with EDTA-free protease inhibitor cocktail (Roche Diagnostics) and 25 U endonuclease (Thermo Scientific Pierce) to each 200 mg bacterial cell pellet. After incubation on ice for 15 min and centrifugation at 10,000 × g and 4°C for 20 min for removal of cellular debris, the clarified supernatant would be loaded onto a gravity-flow column containing 1 mL of prepacked resin and incubated at room temperature for 30 min. Before elution of the VHH antibodies by addition of elution buffer containing 300 mM imidazole, the column would be washed twice with increasing imidazole concentrations of 20 and 40 mM. Removal of imidazole and buffer exchange would be achieved by dialysis against PBS using a cellulose ester membrane with a molecular weight cut-off of 3.5-5 kDa (Spectrum ®< Laboratories).

[0032] The alignment and amino acid sequences of the complementarity determining regions (CDRs) for each clone of anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies are shown in Table 1. The amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#9 is SEQ ID NO:1; The amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#20 is SEQ ID NO:2; The amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#33 is SEQ ID NO:3; The nucleotide sequence encoding the amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#9 is SEQ ID NO:4; The nucleotide sequence encoding the amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#20 is SEQ ID NO:5; The nucleotide sequence encoding the amino acid sequence of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#33 is SEQ ID NO:6. Table 1CloneCDR1CDR2CDR3#9GRTYSSNC (SEQ ID NO:7)IYTGGDGI (SEQ ID NO:8)AADPNRRRMGVGGSC (SEQ ID NO:9)#20GFTVDDSD (SEQ ID NO:10)ITSGGGK (SEQ ID NO:11)VAPAWTGYGCT (SEQ ID NO:12)#33AYTFSASG (SEQ ID NO: 13)AATYTRSAKT (SEQ ID NO:14)AVARCAGRPDRSTLTSFAW (SEQ ID NO:15) Example 2 HLA-G / killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4 (KIR2DL4) or leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1 (LILRB1) axis blockade of anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies are determined by competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)

[0033] In this example, the HLA-G / KIR2DL4 axis blockade of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies were determined by competitive ELISA. The procedure is as follows. HLA-G recombinant protein (CAT#: TP305216, Origene) (0.2 mg / ml, 100 µl each well) was coated on 96-well plate overnight at 4°C. Next day, the coating buffer was discarded, and blocked with 3% skin milk for 2 hr at room temperature, followed by washing 5 times with PBST (0.05% Tween in PBS). Different concentrations of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody (clone#9, #20 or #33) or commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) were added overnight at 4°C. After 5 times of washing, biotinylated KIR2DL4 (Sino Biological, Cat: 13052-H02S) (0.2 mg / ml, 100 µl each well) was added for 2 hr at room temperature. After 9 times of washing, each well was incubated with 100 µl PBST containing streptavidin-HRP conjugates (ThermoFisher, Cat No: N100, dilution titer: 5000:1) for 2 hr at room temperature. After 9 times of washing with PBST, 50 µl of TMB substrate for detecting HRP activity (ThermoFisher, Cat No:N301) was added. The reactions were stopped by adding 50 µl stop solution (ThermoFisher, Cat No:N600), and it was measured by ELISA reader using 450 nm channel. The highest concentration of commercial HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) was set to 100 % blockade of KIR2DL4 / HLA-G interaction for calculating other reactions.

[0034] In addition, the HLA-G / LILRB1 axis blockade of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies were also determined by competitive ELISA. The procedure is basically the same as above, the differences are: biotinylated KIR2DL4 was replaced with biotinylated LILRB1 (Sino Biological, Cat: 16014-H08H), and the highest concentration of commercial HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) was set to 100 % blockade of LILRB 1 / HLA-G interaction for calculating other reactions.

[0035] The results of this example are shown in FIGs. 1A-1H, wherein LILRB1 represents leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1; KIR2DL4 represents killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4; nb represents VHH antibody; 87G represents commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody. The result of this example demonstrates that commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor KIR2DL4 within the 50% blocking activity as 41.4 ng / ml (IC50). The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#9 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor KIR2DL4 within the 50% blocking activity as 6.14 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#20 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor KIR2DL4 within the 50% blocking activity as 814 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#33 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor KIR2DL4 within the 50% blocking activity as 53.3 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G. Commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) blocks the interaction between HLA-G and its another one receptor LILRB1 within the 50% blocking activity as 100.9 ng / ml (IC50). The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#9 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and its another one receptor LILRB1 within the 50% blocking activity as 0.825 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#20 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and its another one receptor LILRB1 within the 50% blocking activity as 0.174 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clone#33 blocks the interaction between HLA-G and its another one receptor LILRB1 within the 50% blocking activity as 0.074 ng / ml (IC50), the blocking activity was normalized to 87G.Example 3 Evaluation of effect of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody on enhancing cytolysis of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with natural killer cells (NK cells)

[0036] In this example, effect of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody on enhancing cytolysis of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 (purchased from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC)) with natural killer cells (NK cells) is evaluated. The procedure is as follows. 1 x 10 5< of MDA-MB-231 cells were plating on 12-well plate overnight. Next day, the 5 x 10 5< of primary NK cells were added into the wells containing MDA-MB-231 cells. 1 mg / ml of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody (clone#9, #20 or #33) or 10 µg / ml commercial HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G, ThermoFisher, Cat No: 14-9957-82) were added. After 48 hr, the specific lysis to MDA-MB-231 cells by primary NK cells were determined by LIVE / DEAD cell-mdeaited cytotoxicity assay using flow cytometry analysis.

[0037] The result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody on enhancing cytolysis of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with NK cells is shown in FIG. 2. The result of this example demonstrates that anti-HLA-G VHH antibody clones #9, #20 and #33 enhance NK-induced cytotoxicity to tumor cells (MDA-MB-231).Example 4 Western blotting result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody

[0038] In this example, the procedures of Western blotting for anti-HLA-G VHH antibody are as follows. Cells would be harvested in PRO-PREP protein extraction solution (iNtRON, Taipei, Taiwan) containing a protease inhibitor cocktail and vigorously shaken at 4°C for 15 min, followed by centrifugation. The supernatants would be collected then the protein concentrations were determined by using the Bio-Rad BCA reagent (Bio-Rad Hercules, CA, USA). A 30 µg of each sample lysate would be subjected to electrophoresis on SDS-polyacrylamide gels then electroblotted onto PVDF membranes. After 5% BSA in TBST blocking, the membranes would be incubated with primary antibodies in TBST at 4°C overnight. They would be then washed 4 times and incubated with horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-conjugated goat antimouse or rabbit IgG (Upstate, Billerica, MA, USA) for 2 hours. After washing with TBST 4 times, the blots would be incubated for 1 min with the SuperSignal West Pico ECL reagent (Pierce Biotechnology, Rockford, IL, USA), and chemiluminescence would be detected using by exposure to Kodak-X-Omat film.

[0039] The Western blotting result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is shown in FIGs. 3A and 3B, wherein the cell line used in FIG. 3A is human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231, the commercial antibody is HLA-G (E8N9C) XP ®< Rabbit mAb#79769, the number in the upper row represents the amount of cell lysate of MDA-MB-231 cell line (µg), the concentration of the primary antibody is 1 ng / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is anti-rabbit-horseradish peroxidase (anti-Rab-HRP)(1:1000), anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (1 ng / ml), the secondary antibody of the experimental groups (#9 and #20) is anti-VHH-HRP (1:1000).

[0040] The cell line used in FIG. 3B is non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549 (purchased from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC)), the commercial antibody is HLA-G (E8N9C) XP ®< Rabbit mAb#79769, the number in the upper row represents the amount of cell lysate of A549 cell line (µg), the concentration of the primary antibody is 1 ng / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is anti-rabbit-horseradish peroxidase (anti-Rab-HRP)(1:1000), anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (1 ng / ml), the secondary antibody of the experimental groups (#9 and #20) is anti-VHH-HRP (1:1000). The result of this example shows that anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies clone#9 and #20 could recognize HLA-G protein from cellular lysate of human cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by western blotting analysis.Example 5 Flow cytometric analysis result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody

[0041] In this example, the procedures of flow cytometric analysis of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody are as follows. HLA-G recombinant protein (CAT#: TP305216, Origene) (0.2 mg / ml, 100 µl each well) was coated on 96-well plate overnight at 4°C. Next day, the coating buffer was discarded, and blocked with 3% skin milk for 2 hr at room temperature, followed by washing 5 times with PBST (0.05% Tween in PBS). Different concentrations of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody (clone#9, #20 or #33) or commercial anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) were added overnight at 4°C. After 5 times of washing, biotinylated KIR2DL4 (Sino Biological, Cat: 13052-H02S) (0.2 mg / ml, 100 µl each well) was added for 2 hr at room temperature. After 9 times of washing, each well was incubated with 100 µl PBST containing streptavidin-HRP conjugates (ThermoFisher, Cat No: N100, dilution titer: 5000:1) for 2 hr at room temperature. After 9 times of washing with PBST, 50 µl of TMB substrate for detecting HRP activity (ThermoFisher, Cat No:N301) was added. The reactions were stopped by adding 50 µl stop solution (ThermoFisher, Cat No:N600), and it was measured by ELISA reader using 450 nm channel. The highest concentration of commercial HLA-G monoclonal antibody (87G) was set to 100 % blockade of KIR2DL4 / HLA-G interaction for calculating other reactions.

[0042] The flow cytometric analysis result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is shown in FIG. 4, wherein the amount of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 and human non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549 is 1 × 10 6< , the commercial antibodies (Ab) are PE (#12-9957-42) (an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody, 0.25 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution) and 87G, the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (0.25 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution), the secondary antibody is rabbit anti-camelid VHH, iFluor555 (0.5 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution), MFI represents mean fluorescence intensity.Example 6 Immunocytochemistry result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody

[0043] In this example, the procedures of immunocytochemistry of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody are as follows. Tumor cells (1 x 10 5< ) were seeded on coverslips in a 6-well plate, incubated overnight. After the indicated treatments, cells were fixed in 1% paraformaldehyde, washed with PBS, permeabilized using 0.1% Triton X-100 in PBS containing 0.5% BSA for 30 min, blocked with 2% BSA, and incubated with specific antibodies in 2% BSA / PBS containing 0.05% Tween-20 (PBST). After washing, the cells were incubated with fluorescein-conjugated secondary antibodies, washed with PBST, and mounted using a water-based mounting medium containing an anti-fade agent and 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI). Images were analyzed under a Leica TCS SP8 X confocal microscope (Leica).

[0044] The immunocytochemistry result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is shown in FIGs. 5A and 5B, wherein the cell line used in FIG. 5A is human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231, the cell line used in FIG. 5B is human non-small cell lung cancer cell line A549, the commercial antibody 4H84 is an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody, the concentration of the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is 1ng / ml, and the secondary antibody is anti-VHH-fluorescein (FITC)(1:5000). As shown in FIGs. 5A and 5B, anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies clone#9 and #20 could recognize HLA-G protein on cell membrane, the expression of HLA-G was co-localized with the plasma membrane marker Pan-cadherin on MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by immunocytochemistry using anti-HLA-G VHH antibodies clone#9 and clone#20, HLA-G commercial antibody 4H84 and commercial pan-cadherin antibody.Example 7 Immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining result of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody

[0045] In this example, the procedures of IHC staining of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody are as follows. The human planceta samples would be fixed in 10 % formaldehyde and embedded in paraffin. Sections (thickness= 3 µm) would be processed with antigen retrieval performed microwaving at 99°C, then the sections would be washed and incubated with H 2 O 2 for 20 min to block endogenous peroxidases, after then soaking in 5% BSA for 30 min for blocking. The primary antibodies would be incubated overnight at 4°C. After washing, the sections would be then incubated with diluted biotin-conjugated secondary antibodies for 2 h at room temperature or overnight at 4°C. Finally, the sections would be then incubated with polymer for 10 min at room temperature and following diaminobenzidine (DAB, the most sensitive and commonly used chromogenic reactant for horseradish peroxidase) staining, after then the sections would be stained lightly with hematoxylin and eosin and fixed using neutral balata. Quantification of the staining would be performed independently by optical microscope (Nikon) at 40 x and 400 × magnification.

[0046] The result of IHC staining of anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is shown in FIG. 6, the sample is human placenta, the commercial antibody is 4H84 (an anti-HLA-G monoclonal antibody)(#sc-21799), concentration is 200 µg / ml, working concentration is 4 µg / ml, the secondary antibody of the commercial antibody group is goat anti-rabbit HRP, DAB represents diaminobenzidine (the most sensitive and commonly used chromogenic reactant for horseradish peroxidase), the anti-HLA-G VHH antibody is heavy chain variable domain (VHH) VHH antibody (working concentration of 4 µg / ml), the antibodies of the experimental group (#9) include rabbit anti-camelid VHH antibody, biotin (0.5 µg in 100 µl of PBS solution) and goat anti-rabbit HRP. The result of this example demonstrates that anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody (i.e., anti-HLA-G VHH antibody) can be used to detect the expression of HLA-G by IHC staining.

[0047] In summary, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody (i.e., anti-HLA-G VHH antibody) of the present invention blocks the interaction between HLA-G and one of its receptor killer cell immunoglobulin like receptor, two Ig domains and long cytoplasmic tail 4 (KIR2DL4) and leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor subfamily B member 1 (LILRB1) within the 50% blocking activity as IC50 by competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), enhances cytolysis and cytotoxicity of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 with natural killer cells (NK cells), could recognize HLA-G protein from cellular lysate of human cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by Western blotting analysis, and is used for flow cytometric analysis. The anti-HLA-G VHH antibody also could recognize HLA-G protein on cell membrane, the expression of HLA-G is co-localized with the plasma membrane marker pan-cadherin on MDA-MB-231 and A549 cells by immunocytochemistry, and is used to detect the expression of HLA-G by immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining, thereby achieving the effect of treating cancer and immune-related disorders. In particular, compared with the conventional antibodies, which have the disadvantages of low yield and poor effect, the gene must be transfected into cells by a vector to express the antibody function, the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody of the present invention can be prepared in vitro on a large scale, and directly administered to the individual in need for treatment. In addition, the present invention can also achieve the effect of detecting the expression level of HLA-G.

Claims

1. An anti-tumor antigen heavy chain variable domain (VHH) antibody that specifically binds to a human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G), consisting of an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of: SEQ ID NO:1, SEQ ID NO:2, and SEQ ID NO:3.

2. The anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody according to claim 1, which is conjugated with a fragment crystallizable region (Fc region).

3. The anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody according to claim 1 or 2, which is conjugated with a second antibody to form a bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE), triple specific T-cell engager (TriTE), bispecific killer cell engager (BiKE), triple specific killer cell engager (TriKE), or any bispecific antibody.

4. An isolated nucleic acid encoding the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody according to claim 1, wherein the isolated nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from the group consisting of: SEQ ID NO:4, SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:6, and any combination thereof, preferably encoding for an anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody that is further conjugated with a fragment crystallizable region (Fc region).

5. The isolated nucleic acid according to claim 4, encoding for an anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody that is conjugated with a second antibody to form a bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE), triple specific T-cell engager (TriTE), bispecific killer cell engager (BiKE), triple specific killer cell engager (TriKE), or any bispecific antibody.

6. A pharmaceutical composition, comprising the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.

7. The pharmaceutical composition according to claim 6 for use in the treatment of cancer, comprising administering to a subject in need thereof the pharmaceutical composition.

8. A method for detecting the expression level of HLA-G, comprising contacting a biological sample with the anti-tumor antigen VHH antibody according to any one of claims 1 to 3, and detecting a binding to HLA-G in said sample, e.g. by immunocytochemistry.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the biological sample is selected from the group consisting of blood, urine, sputum, saliva, body fluids and human placenta.