Agents that bind to CD3 and CD19, nucleic acids encoding the same and uses thereof
Multispecific antibodies targeting CD3, CD19, and albumin address the limitations of traditional immunotherapies by enhancing immune responses and improving pharmacokinetic properties, effectively treating cancer with reduced toxicity.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- PCT/CN2025/088099
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2024-06-20
- Filing Date
- 2025-04-09
- Publication Date
- 2025-10-16
AI Technical Summary
Existing monoclonal antibody-based immunotherapies for cancer are limited by drug resistance and off-target toxicity, necessitating the development of agents that enhance immune responses and improve pharmacokinetic properties.
Development of multispecific binding agents, such as bispecific and trispecific antibodies, that target CD3 and CD19, and optionally human serum albumin, with specific CDR sequences, to enhance immune activation and prolong circulatory half-life.
The multispecific antibodies effectively enhance immune responses against cancer cells, reducing drug resistance and off-target toxicity, while improving pharmacokinetic properties.
Smart Images

Figure PCTCN2025088099-FTAPPB-I100001 
Figure PCTCN2025088099-FTAPPB-I100002 
Figure PCTCN2025088099-FTAPPB-I100003
Abstract
Description
AGENTS THAT BIND TO CD3 AND CD19, NUCLEIC ACIDS ENCODING THE SAME AND USES THEREOFCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority to International Patent Application No.: PCT / CN2024 / 086753 filed on April 9, 2024 and to International Patent Application No.: PCT / CN2024 / 100327 filed on June 20, 2024, the content of each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety. SEQUENCE LISTING
[0002] This application contains an electronic Sequence Listing which has been submitted in XML file format with this application, the entire content of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. The Sequence Listing XML file submitted with this application is entitled “PCT2025TC3272_seql. xml” , was created on April 9, 2025, and is 227 bytes in size.1. FIELD
[0003] The present disclosure relates generally to binding agents, such as antibodies (including fragments thereof) that bind to both CD3 and CD19, nucleic acids encoding the same, and uses thereof.2. BACKGROUND
[0004] B-lymphocyte antigen Cluster of Differentiation 19, also known as CD19, is a transmembrane protein that in humans is encoded by the CD19 gene. In humans, CD19 is expressed in all B lineage cells, including B cell malignancies. Without being bound by any theory, it is understood that CD19 plays at least two roles in human B cells: on the one hand, it acts as an adaptor protein to recruit cytoplasmic signaling proteins to the membrane; on the other hand, it works within the CD19 / CD21 complex to decrease the threshold for B cell receptor signaling pathways. Due to its presence on all B cells, CD19 is a biomarker for B lymphocyte development, lymphoma diagnosis and can be utilized as a target for leukemia immunotherapies.
[0005] The multi-chain T cell receptor / CD3 complex (TCR / CD3) plays a key role in antigen recognition, T cell activation and in consequence in triggering an antigen specific immune response. The CD3 complex is composed of three pairs of dimers (εγ, εδ, ζζ) that are responsible for intracellular signaling, initiated by the phosphorylation of immunoreceptor tyrosine activation motifs (ITAMs) .
[0006] Initial expression of CD3 occurs in the cytoplasm in a peri-nuclear location of pro-thymocytes. As T cell maturation proceeds, cytoplasmic CD3 expression is lost and the CD3 antigen is found on the cell surface. CD3 is also weakly expressed by some macrophages, Purkinje cells in the brain and by Hodgkin’s and Reed-Sternberg cells, both of which are cells found in Hodgkin’s lymphoma usually derived from cells of the B cell lineage. The CD3 protein complex is an important T cell antigen responsible for T cell mediated immunity, such as immunity against cancer.
[0007] Certain tumor immunotherapy stimulates a patient’s own immune system to retard development and growth of cancerous cells. Efficacy of traditional monoclonal antibody-based immunotherapies is often limited by acquired drug resistance and off-target toxicity. There remains a need in the art for agents enhancing immune responses and treating diseases or disorders such as cancer, with improved pharmacokinetic properties. The multispecific binding agents, compositions and methods provided herein satisfy this need and provide related advantages.3. SUMMARY
[0008] The present disclosure provides multispecific binding agents that bind to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3. Such agents include multispecific antibodies (e.g., bispecific antibodies) or antigen binding fragments thereof that bind to CD3 and one or more additional targets that are not CD3. For example, in some embodiments, such agents include bispecific antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and a second binding domain that binds to CD19. In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1, 2, 13 and 14 or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1, 2, 13 and 14) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18 or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18.
[0009] Serum albumin is an abundant protein in serum. It has high stability, solubility, and a long circulatory half-life. Therapeutic proteins comprising a serum albumin binding domain (e.g., antibodies) or complexed with a serum albumin moiety, are expected to have increased circulatory half-life and improved pharmacokinetic properties. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3, and also binds to albumin (such as human serum albumin (ALB) ) . Such agents include multispecific antibodies (e.g., trispecific antibodies) or antigen binding fragments thereof that bind to CD3 and one or more additional targets that are not CD3 including ALB. For example, in some embodiments, such agents include trispecific antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to albumin (e.g., ALB) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in any one of Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a third binding domain that binds to ALB, wherein the third binding domain binds to albumin (e.g., ALB) , wherein the third binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 6 and 17 , or wherein the multispecific antibodies compete for the binding of albumin (e.g., ALB) with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region described in any one of Tables 6 and 17.
[0010] The present disclosure also provides nucleic acids encoding a multispecific binding agent provided herein (e.g., an antibody or fragment thereof) , vectors comprising one or more of such nucleic acids, and cells comprising the nucleic acid, the vector, or both (such as cells expressing the multispecific binding agent) .
[0011] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a polynucleotide encoding a multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3, a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to human serum albumin (ALB) .
[0012] In some embodiments, the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises a single chain variable fragment (scFv) comprising a first heavy chain variable region (VH) and a first light chain variable region (VL) , the second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises a scFv comprising a second VH and a second VL. In some embodiments, the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) .
[0013] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus the second binding domain that binds to CD19, the first binding domain that binds to CD3, and the third binding domain that binds to ALB.
[0014] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus the third binding domain that binds to ALB, the second binding domain that binds to CD19, the first binding domain that binds to CD3.
[0015] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus or the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH. In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus the VHH, the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, and the first VL.
[0016] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a polynucleotide encoding a multispecific antibody or fragment thereof described herein, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3, a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to human serum albumin (ALB) , wherein the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises: a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; the second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises: a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises a VHH comprising: a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.
[0017] In some embodiments, the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises: (a) a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3; and (b) a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6; and / or the second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises: (a) a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and (b) a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19; and / or the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises a VHH comprising a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 25. In some embodiments, the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and / or the second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises a VH region comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL region comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21; and / or the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises a VHH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.
[0018] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH. In some embodiments, the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 53.
[0019] In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a nucleotide sequence having at least about 80% (for example, at least about 90%, at least about 95%, at least about 96%, at least about 97%, at least about 98%or at least about 99%) sequence identity to a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 73-76, 149, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 73-76, and 149.
[0020] In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 73 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 74 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 75 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 76 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 149 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof.
[0021] In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding comprises one or more fragments encoding one or more fragments each encoding a fragment of the multispecific antibody. In specific embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 189 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 190 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 191 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR1 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 192 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR2 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 193 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR3 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 194 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 197 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 198 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 199 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR1 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 200 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR2 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 201 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VL CDR3 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 202 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 205 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 206 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 207 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof.
[0022] In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding comprises one or more fragments encoding one or more fragments each encoding a fragment of the multispecific antibody. In specific embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the first VH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 195 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the first VL having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 196 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the second VH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 203 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the second VL having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 204 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide comprises a fragment encoding the VHH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 208 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof.
[0023] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises one or more nucleotide sequences selected from SEQ ID NOs: 189-194, 197-202, and 205-207, or a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 189-194, 197-202, and 205-207. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises one or more nucleotide sequences selected from SEQ ID NOs: 195, 196, 203, 204, and 208 or a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 195, 196, 203, 204, and 208.
[0024] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid is a DNA or an RNA. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid is a mRNA.
[0025] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid further comprises a polynucleotide encoding a signal peptide, wherein the polynucleotide encoding the signal peptide is operably linked to the 5’ end of the polynucleotide encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof. In some embodiments, the signal peptide comprises an amino acid sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 36 and SEQ ID NO: 37. In some embodiments, the polynucleotide encoding the signal peptide comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 69-72, 178-186, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 69-72, and 178-186.
[0026] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid further comprises a 5’ UTR. In some embodiments, the 5’ UTR comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 77 78, 162, 163, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 77, 78, 162, and 163.
[0027] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid further comprises a 3’ UTR. In some embodiments, the 3’ UTR comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 79 80, 164, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 79, 80, and 164. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid further comprises a poly (A) sequence. In some embodiments, the poly (A) sequence having a length of about 80 nucleotides or longer.
[0028] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence having at least about 80%sequence identity to a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 81-84, 165, and or a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 81-84, and 165.
[0029] In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 81-84. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 82 or a corresponding RNA sequence of SEQ ID NO: 82. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid is an mRNA, especially an mRNA comprising a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 81-84. In some embodiments, each uridine of the mRNA is converted to a pseudouridine. In some embodiments, each uridine of the mRNA is converted to an N1-methylpseudouridine. In some embodiments, the mRNA further comprises a 5’ cap.
[0030] The present disclosure also provides compositions comprising a multispecific binding agent described herein. Such compositions, in some embodiments, include multispecific antibodies (e.g., bispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3 (e.g., CD19) . Such compositions, in some embodiments, include multispecific antibodies (e.g., trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3 (e.g., CD19) , and albumin (e.g., ALB) . For example, in some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent in the composition provided herein include bispecific antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and a second binding domain that binds to CD19. In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1 and 2) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in Table 4.
[0031] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent in the composition provided herein include trispecific antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to albumin (e.g., ALB) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1 and 2) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in Table 4. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a third binding domain that binds to ALB, wherein the third binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 6, or wherein the multispecific antibodies compete for the binding of albumin (e.g., ALB) with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region described in Table 6.
[0032] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 and a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the first binding domain comprises: a first heavy chain variable region (VH) comprising a VH complementarity-determining region (CDR) 1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a first light chain variable region (VL) comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0033] In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, (a) the first VH comprises a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3; and (b) the first VL comprises a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6.
[0034] In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 7. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 7 and the first VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the first VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and the first VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0035] In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second binding domain comprises a second VH comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20; and a second VL comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0036] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 and a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises a second heavy chain variable region (VH) comprising a VH complementarity-determining region (CDR1) , a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a second light chain variable region (VL) comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0037] In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, (a) the second VH comprises a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and (b) the second VL comprises a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19.
[0038] In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20 and the second VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments of the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the second VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and the second VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0039] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises: (a) a first polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the first VH, the first VL, a first CH2, and a first CH3; (b) a second polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the second VL, the second VH, a second CH2, and a second CH3; wherein the first VH and the first VL form the first binding domain that binds to CD3, and the second VH and second VL form the second binding domain that binds to CD19. In some embodiments, the first polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 49, and the second polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 50.
[0040] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof further comprises a third binding domain that binds to human serum albumin (ALB) . In some embodiments, the third binding domain comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) comprising: a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.
[0041] In some embodiments, the third binding domain comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) comprising a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 25.
[0042] In some embodiments, the VHH of the third binding domain comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the VHH of the third binding domain comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.
[0043] In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH; wherein the first VH and the first VL form the first binding domain that binds to CD3, the second VH and the second VL form the second binding domain that binds to CD19, and the VHH forms the third binding domain that binds to ALB. In some embodiments, the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 53.
[0044] In particular aspects, the present disclosure provides a pharmaceutical composition that comprises a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient and any one or more of: the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, the nucleic acid (especially the mRNA) , the vector system, or the cell of the present disclosure, optionally the pharmaceutical composition comprises a cationic lipid.
[0045] In particular aspects, the present disclosure provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising the nucleic acid (especially the mRNA) described herein. In some embodiments, the nucleic acid (especially the mRNA) is formulated in a lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , liposome, lipid complex or lipid polymeric complex (LPP) . In some embodiments, the lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , liposome, lipid complex or lipid polymeric complex (LPP) comprises a cationic lipid described herein.
[0046] In a particular aspect, the present disclosure provides a pharmaceutical composition comprising the nucleic acid (especially the mRNA) described herein and a lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , wherein the nucleic acid is formulated in the LNP. In particular embodiments, the nucleic acid is an mRNA described herein.
[0047] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a cationic lipid. In some embodiments, the cationic lipid is a compound according to Formula 01-I or Formula 01-II, a compound listed in Table 01-1, a compound according to Formula 02-I, a compound listed in Table 02-1, a compound according to Formula 03-I, a compound listed in Table 03-1, a compound according to Formula 04-I or Formula (III) , or a compound listed in Table 04-1.
[0048] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a phospholipid. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a sterol.
[0049] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a polymer conjugated lipid. In some embodiments, the polymer conjugated lipid is a PEGylated lipid. In some embodiments, the polymer conjugated lipid is a compound according to Formula 05-I.
[0050] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a cationic lipid, a phospholipid, a sterol, and a polymer conjugated lipid.
[0051] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises: i) between about 20 molar%to about 60 molar%of a cationic lipid; ii) between about 5 molar%to about 40 molar%of a phospholipid; iii) between about 20 molar%to about 55 molar%of a sterol; and iv) a polymer conjugated lipid.
[0052] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises: i) between about 30 molar%to about 55 molar%of a cationic lipid; ii) between about 5 molar%to about 40 molar%of a phospholipid; iii) between about 20 molar%to about 50 molar%of a sterol; and iv) a polymer conjugated lipid.
[0053] In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 01-1, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises 50 molar%of compound 01-1, 10 molar%of DSPC, 38.5 molar%of cholesterol and 1.5 molar%of DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 04-86, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises 50 molar%of compound 04-86, 10 molar%of DSPC, 38.5 molar%of cholesterol and 1.5 molar%of DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 04-92, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000 In some embodiments, the LNP comprises 50 molar%of compound 04-92, 10 molar%of DSPC, 38.5 molar%of cholesterol and 1.5 molar%of DMG-PEG2000. In some other embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 03-135, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises 50 molar%of compound 03-135, 10 molar%of DSPC, 38.5 molar%of cholesterol and 1.5 molar%of DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 02-6, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 02-10, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises compound 02-65, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a cationic lipid selected from compound 01-1, compound 02-6, compound 02-10, compound 02-65, compound 03-135, compound 04-86 and compound 04-92. In some embodiments, the LNP comprises a cationic lipid selected from compound 01-1, compound 02-6, compound 02-10, compound 02-65, compound 03-135, compound 04-86 and compound 04-92, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000
[0054] The present disclosure further provides various uses of the present binding agents and compositions, including, for example, methods for forming a cellular synapse between a first cell (e.g., a cell expressing CD3) and a second cell (e.g., a cell expressing CD19) , methods for activating an immune cell (e.g., T cells expressing CD3) , methods for inhibiting suppression of an immune cell (such as tumor / cancer associated immunosuppression, e.g. in the tumor microenvironment (TME) ) , methods for making a target cell (e.g., a cancer or tumor cell or a B cell expressing CD19) for destruction, and methods for reducing the number or percentage of a target cell (e.g., a cancer or tumor cell or a B cell expressing CD19) in a population of cells. Other aspects provided herein include methods for treating a disease or disorder in a subject with a multispecific binding agent or a composition provided herein. Such compositions, in some embodiments, include multispecific antibodies (e.g., bispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3 (e.g., CD19) . Such compositions, in some embodiments, include multispecific antibodies (e.g., trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and one or more additional targets that are not CD3 (e.g., CD19) , and albumin (e.g., ALB) . For example, in some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent in the composition provided herein include bispecific antibodies or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and a second binding domain that binds to CD19. In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1 and 2) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in Table 4. Such composition, in some embodiments, include multispecific antibodies (e.g., trispecific antibodies) or antigen binding fragments thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to albumin (e.g., ALB) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , wherein the first binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in any one of Tables 1 and 2, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for the binding of CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described herein (e.g., Tables 1 and 2) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4; and a light chain variable (VL) region comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 4, or wherein the multispecific binding agent competes for binding of CD19 with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region and a light chain variable region described in Table 4. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises a third binding domain that binds to ALB, wherein the third binding domain comprises: a heavy chain variable (VH) region comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 amino acid sequence set forth in Table 6, or wherein the multispecific antibodies compete for the binding of albumin (e.g., ALB) with an antibody having a heavy chain variable region described in Table 6.
[0055] Other aspects provided herein include methods for managing cytokine release syndrome accompanying the therapeutic use of the multispecific binding agents provided herein by administering the multispecific binding agent in the form of an mRNA composition encoding the multispecific binding agent. In some embodiments, such composition is an LNP-mRNA composition encoding the multispecific binding agent described herein.4. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0056] FIG. 1 illustrates exemplary bispecific antibody formats capable of binding CD19 and CD3.
[0057] FIG. 2 illustrates exemplary trispecific antibody formats capable of binding CD19, CD3 and human serum albumin (ALB) .
[0058] FIG. 3 shows target cell lysis induced by ABO-CD19 / CD3-3, ABO-CD19 / CD3-4, ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 and ABO-CD19 / CD3-2 analyzed by flow cytometry. Blinatumomab (Blincyto) serves as a control.
[0059] FIG. 4 shows IL-6 release of PBMCs obtained from donor one after stimulation with either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1, ABO-CD19 / CD3-2, or blinatumomab analyzed by flow cytometry.
[0060] FIG. 5 shows IL-6 release of PBMCs obtained from donor two after stimulation with either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1, ABO-CD19 / CD3-2, or blinatumomab analyzed by flow cytometry.
[0061] FIG. 6 shows IL-6 release of PBMCs obtained from donor three after stimulation with either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1, ABO-CD19 / CD3-2, or blinatumomab analyzed by flow cytometry.
[0062] FIG. 7 shows pharmacokinetic properties (serum concentrations by days post treatment) with either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 or ABO-CD19 / CD3-2.
[0063] FIG. 8 shows tumor progression as measured by total flux after administration of either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 (ABO-CD19 / CD3 bsAb-1) , ABO-CD19 / CD3-2 (ABO-CD19 / CD3 bsAb-2) , or control (PBS) .
[0064] FIG. 9 shows luminescence images of mice illustrating tumor progression at D21 following administration of either ABO-CD19 / CD3-1, ABO-CD19 / CD3-2, or control (PBS) . The stronger luminescence intensity as shown in the image correlates to a heavier tumor burden. The intensity reference scale on the right shows tumor burden from low (bottom of the scale) to high (top of the scale) .
[0065] FIG. 10 shows an illustration of the anti-CD19 / CD3 / ALB trispecific antibodies in (scFv) 2-VHH configuration.
[0066] FIG. 11 shows an illustration of the mRNAs encoding ABO-CD19 / CD3-1.
[0067] FIG. 12 shows levels of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 expressed from Expi293F cells transfected with mRNA-1, mRNA-2, mRNA-3 or mRNA-4 analyzed by ELISA. Lipo2000 mock transfection and cell only control serve as negative controls.
[0068] FIG. 13A shows serum concentrations of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 in mice intravenously injected with 0.3 μg of mRNA-1-LNP or mRNA-2-LNP analyzed at D0, D1, D2, D5, D7 and D10 by ELISA.
[0069] FIG. 13B shows serum concentrations of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 in mice intravenously injected with 0.3 μg of mRNA-2-LNPs prepard using different cationic lipids analyzed at 6 h, 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 96 h and 120 h post-dose by ELISA.
[0070] FIG. 14 shows ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 expressed from mRNA-2-LNP (mRNA-2-LNP encoded bsAb) analyzed by western blot using recombinant protein ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 (Recombinant bsAb) as a control.
[0071] FIG. 15A shows binding of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 expressed from mRNA-2-LNP (mRNA-2-LNP encoded bsAb) to hCD19 analyzed by ELISA using recombinant protein ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 (Recombinant bsAb) as a control.
[0072] FIG. 15B shows binding of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 expressed from mRNA-2-LNP (mRNA-2-LNP encoded bsAb) to hCD3E&D analyzed by ELISA. Recombinant protein ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 (Recombinant bsAb) is used as a control.
[0073] FIG. 15C shows binding of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 expressed from mRNA-2-LNP (mRNA-2-LNP encoded bsAb) to HSA analyzed by ELISA. Recombinant protein ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 (Recombinant bsAb) is used as a control.
[0074] FIG. 16 shows target cell lysis induced by ABO-CD19 / CD3-3, ABO-CD19 / CD3-4, ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 and ABO-CD19 / CD3-2 analyzed by flow cytometry. Blinatumomab (Blincyto) serves as a control.
[0075] FIG. 17A shows tumor progression as measured by total flux after administration of NST mRNA-LNP (Non-translated mRNA control, 3 μg / mouse) or mRNA-2-LNP (0.1 μg / mouse or 0.3 μg / mouse) .
[0076] FIG. 17B shows tumor progression as measured by total flux after administration of NST mRNA-LNP (Non-translated mRNA control, 3 μg / mouse) , mRNA-2-LNP (0.3 μg / mouse) or Blinatumomab (Blincyto, 3 μg / mouse) .
[0077] FIG. 18 shows tumor progression as measured by total flux after administration of NST mRNA-LNP (Non-translated mRNA control, 0.1 μg / mouse) , mRNA-2-LNP (0.1 μg / mouse) or Blinatumomab (Blincyto, 5 μg / mouse) or an equal volume of 1×PBS.
[0078] FIG. 19 shows serum concentrations of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 in cynomolgus monkeys intravenously injected with 10 μg / kg or 3 μg / kg of mRNA-2-LNP analyzed by ELISA.
[0079] FIG. 20 shows B-cell-killing activity of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 analyzed using PBMCs from 6 patients with moderately / severely active SLE by flow cytometry. X-axis, antibody concentration (μg / ml) . Y-axis, percentage of B cells.
[0080] FIG. 21 shows in vitro T-cell-activating activity of ABO-CD19 / CD3-1 analyzed using PBMCs from 6 patients with moderately / severely active SLE by flow cytometry. X-axis, antibody concentration (μg / ml) . Y-axis, percentage of activated T cells.
[0081] FIG. 22 shows in vivo efficacy of mRNA-2-LNP assessed in imiquimod-induced lupus mice. PBS, healthy mice administered with PBS as healthy control; SLE+PBS, SLE mice administered with PBS as negative control; SLE+mRNA-2-LNP, SLE mice treated with mRNA-2-LNP; SLE+HCQ, SLE mice treated with HCQ. FIG. 22A shows the results of assessment of kidney function. FIG. 22B shows the results of assessment of levels of anti-dsDNA antibody, IgG, IgM and C3 in peripheral blood. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, ***P<0.001.
[0082] FIG. 23 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 1 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 5.
[0083] FIG. 24 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 7 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 7.
[0084] FIG. 25 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 9 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 9.
[0085] FIG. 26 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 10 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 10.
[0086] FIG. 27 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 12 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 12.
[0087] FIG. 28 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 13 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 13.
[0088] FIG. 29 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 16 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 16.
[0089] FIG. 30 shows B cell depletion and cytokine release in hCD3 / hCD19 double-transgenic mice induced by protein 17 in comparison to its corresponding mRNA 17.5. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0090] The present disclosure is based, at least in part, on multispecific binding agents that bind to both CD3 and CD19 and their properties. Such agents include antibodies (e.g., bispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and CD19 (e.g., human CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agents further comprises an albumin binding domain. In certain aspects, such binding agents are useful in compositions and in methods for forming a cellular synapse between a first cell (e.g., a cell expressing CD3) and a second cell (e.g., a cell expressing CD19) , methods for activating an immune cell (e.g., T cells expressing CD3) , methods for inhibiting suppression of an immune cell (such as tumor / cancer associated immunosuppression, e.g. in the tumor microenvironment (TME) ) , methods for making a target cell (e.g., a cancer or tumor cell or a B cell expressing CD19) for destruction, and methods for reducing the number or percentage of a target cell (e.g., a cancer or tumor cell or a B cell expressing CD19) in a population of cells. Other aspects provided herein include methods for treating a disease or disorder in a subject with a multispecific binding agent or a composition provided herein.
[0091] As it would be understood, the section or subsection headings as used herein is for organizational purposes only and are not to be construed as limiting and / or separating the subject matter described. 5.1. Definitions
[0092] Techniques and procedures described or referenced herein include those that are generally well understood and / or commonly employed using conventional methodology by those skilled in the art, such as, for example, the widely utilized methodologies described in Sambrook et al., Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual (3d ed. 2001) ; Current Protocols in Molecular Biology (Ausubel et al. eds., 2003) ; Therapeutic Monoclonal Antibodies: From Bench to Clinic (An ed. 2009) ; Monoclonal Antibodies: Methods and Protocols (Albitar ed. 2010) ; and Antibody Engineering Vols 1 and 2 (Kontermann and Dübel eds., 2d ed. 2010) . Unless otherwise defined herein, technical and scientific terms used in the present description have the meanings that are commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art. For purposes of interpreting this specification, the following description of terms will apply and whenever appropriate, terms used in the singular will also include the plural and vice versa. In the event that any description of a term set forth conflicts with any document incorporated herein by reference, the description of the term set forth below shall control.
[0093] The term “Cluster of Differentiation 3” or “CD3” is a term of art and refers to a protein complex composed of four (4) distinct polypeptide chains. In mammals the complex contains a CD3γ chain, a CD3δ chain, and two CD3ε chains. These chains associate with the T-cell receptor (TCR) and the CD3-zeta (ζ-chain) to generate an activation signal in T lymphocytes. The TCR, CD3-zeta, and the CD3 γ chain, δ chain, and ε chains together constitute the TCR complex that is involved in activating both the cytotoxic T cell (CD8+ T cells) , and T helper cells (CD4+ T cells) . Throughout the specification, “CD3-specific” or “specifically binds CD3” or “anti-CD3 antibody” refers to antibodies that bind specifically to one or more polypeptides in the CD3 complex, including antibodies that bind specifically to the extracellular domain (ECD) of the one or more polypeptides in the CD3 complex. In some embodiments, the CD3 specific binding protein provided herein binds to a CD3 polypeptide, which refers to any one of the CD3ε, CD3δ and CD3γ polypeptides. In some embodiments, the CD3 specific binding protein provided herein binds to the CD3εγ complex. In some embodiments, the CD3 specific binding protein provided herein binds to the CD3εδ complex. In some embodiments, the CD3 specific binding protein provided herein binds to the CD3ζζcomplex.
[0094] The term “Cluster of Differentiation 3 ε” or “CD3ε” or “CD3 epsilon” refers to a known protein which is also called “T-cell surface glycoprotein CD3 epsilon chain, ” or “T3E. ” CD3ε, together with CD3-gamma, -delta and -zeta, and the T-cell receptor alpha / beta and gamma / delta heterodimers, forms the T-cell receptor-CD3 complex. This complex plays an important role in coupling antigen recognition to several intracellular signal-transduction pathways. The CD3 complex mediates signal transduction, resulting in T cell activation and proliferation. CD3 is required for the immune response. The amino acid sequence of a full length human CD3ε is shown in SEQ ID NO: 55. The amino acid sequence of the extracellular domain (ECD) of CD3ε is shown in SEQ ID NO: 56. Human CD3 epsilon: MQSGTHWRVLGLCLLSVGVWGQDGNEEMGGITQTPYKVSISGTTVILTCPQY PGSEILWQHNDKNIGGDEDDKNIGSDEDHLSLKEFSELEQSGYYVCYPRGSKPEDANFYLYLRARVCENCMEMDVMSVATIVIVDICITGGLLLLVYYWSKNRKAKAKPVTRGAGAGGRQRGQNKERPPPVPNPDYEPIRKGQRDLYSGLNQRRI (SEQ ID NO: 55; GenBank accession: NP_000724.1) ; Human CD3 epsilon extracellular domain:
[0095] The amino acid sequence of the full length “Cluster of Differentiation 3 δ” or “CD3δ” or “CD3 delta” is shown in SEQ ID NO: 57. The amino acid sequence of the extracellular domain (ECD) of CD3δ is shown in SEQ ID NO: 58. Human CD3 delta: FKIPIEELEDRVFVNCNTSITWVEGTVGTLLSDITRLDLGKRILDPRGIYRCNGTDIYK DKESTVQVHYRMCQSCVELDPATVAGIIVTDVIATLLLAGVFCFAGHETGRLSGAADTGALLRNDGVYQPLRDRDDAGYSHLGGNWARNK (SEQ ID NO: 57; UniProtKB / Swiss-Prot: P04234.1) ; Human CD3 delta extracellular domain:
[0096] The amino acid sequence of the full length “Cluster of Differentiation 3 γ” or “CD3γ” or “CD3 gamma” is shown in SEQ ID NO: 59. The amino acid sequence of the extracellular domain (ECD) of CD3γ is shown in SEQ ID NO: 60. Human CD3 gamma domain: QSIKGNHLVKVYDYQEDGSVLLTCDAEAKNITWFKDGKMIGFLTEDKKKWNLGSN AKDPRGMYQCKGSQNKSKPLQVYYRMCQNCIELNAATISGFLFAEIVSIFVLAVGVYFIAGQDGVRQSRASDKQTLLPNDQLYQPLKDREDDQYSHLQGNQLRRN (SEQ ID NO: 59; GenBank accession: NP_000064.1) ; Human CD3 gamma extracellular domain:
[0097] The amino acid sequence of the full length “Cluster of Differentiation 3 ζ” or “CD3 ζ” or “CD3 zeta” is shown in SEQ ID NO: 61. Human CD3 zeta domain: MKWKALFTAAILQAQLPITEAQSFGLLDPKLCYLLDGILFIYGVILTALFLRVKFSRSA DAPAYQQGQNQLYNELNLGRREEYDVLDKRRGRDPEMGGKPQRRKNPQEGLYNELQKDKMAEAYSEIGMKGERRRGKGHDGLYQGLSTATKDTYDALHMQALPPR (SEQ ID NO: 61; GenBank accession: NP_932170.1) ;
[0098] Other related CD3 polypeptides that are also encompassed by the term CD3 include fragments, derivatives (e.g., substitution, deletion, truncations, and insertion variants) , fusion polypeptides, and interspecies homologs that retain CD3 activity and / or are sufficient to generate an anti-CD3 immune response. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, a CD3 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) described herein can bind to a polypeptide, a polypeptide fragment, an antigen, and / or an epitope of a CD3 protein complex. An epitope may be part of a larger CD3 polypeptide, which may be part of a larger CD3 polypeptide fragment, which, in turn, may be part of a larger CD3 polypeptide. A CD3 polypeptide may exist in a native or denatured form. CD3 polypeptides described herein may be isolated from a variety of sources, such as from human tissue types or from another source, or prepared by recombinant or synthetic methods. A CD3 polypeptide may comprise a polypeptide having the same amino acid sequence as a corresponding CD3 polypeptide derived from nature. Orthologs to the CD3 polypeptide are also well known in the art.
[0099] The term “Cluster of Differentiation 19” or “CD19” refers to a known protein which is also called B-lymphocyte antigen CD19 or B-lymphocyte surface antigen B4. As used herein, the term “CD19” encompasses a polypeptide ( “polypeptide” and “protein” are used interchangeably herein) , including any native polypeptide, from any vertebrate source, including mammals such as primates (e.g., humans and cynomolgus monkeys (cynomolgus or cyno) ) , dogs, and rodents (e.g., mice and rats) , unless otherwise indicated. In certain embodiments, the terms include “related CD19 polypeptides, ” including SNP variants thereof. The term “CD19” also encompasses “full-length, ” unprocessed CD19 as well as any form that results from processing, e.g. splice variants or allelic variants. The amino acid sequence of an exemplary human CD19 is MPPPRLLFFLLFLTPMEVRPEEPLVVKVEEGDNAVLQCLKGTSDGPTQQLTWSRESPLKPFLKLSLGLPGLGIHMRPLAIWLFIFNVSQQMGGFYLCQPGPPSEKAWQPGWTVNVEGSGELFRWNVSDLGGLGCGLKNRSSEGPSSPSGKLMSPKLYVWAKDRPEIWEGEPPCLPPRDSLNQSLSQDLTMAPGSTLWLSCGVPPDSVSRGPLSWTHVHPKGPKSLLSLELKDDRPARDMWVMETGLLLPRATAQDAGKYYCHRGNLTMSFHLEITARPVLWHWLLRTGGWKVSAVTLAYLIFCLCSLVGILHLQRALVLRRKRKRMTDPTRRFFKVTPPPGSGPQNQYGNVLSLPTPTSGLGRAQRWAAGLGGTAPSYGNPSSDVQADGALGSRSPPGVGPEEEEGEGYEEPDSEEDSEFYENDSNLGQDQLSQDGSGYENPEDEPLGPEDEDSFSNAESYENEDEELTQPVARTMDFLSPHGSAWDPSREATSLGSQSYEDMRGILYAAPQLRSIRGQPGPNHEEDADSYENMDNPDGPDPAWGGGGRMGTWSTR (SEQ ID NO: 62; GenBank accession: NP_001761.3) .
[0100] Other related CD19 polypeptides that are also encompassed by the term CD19 include fragments, derivatives (e.g., substitution, deletion, truncations, and insertion variants) , fusion polypeptides, and interspecies homologs that retain CD19 activity and / or are sufficient to generate an anti-CD19 immune response. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, a CD19 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) described herein can bind to a CD19 polypeptide, a CD19 polypeptide fragment, a CD19 antigen, and / or a CD19 epitope. An epitope may be part of a larger CD19 antigen, which may be part of a larger CD19 polypeptide fragment, which, in turn, may be part of a larger CD19 polypeptide. CD19 may exist in a native or denatured form. CD19 polypeptides described herein may be isolated from a variety of sources, such as from human tissue types or from another source, or prepared by recombinant or synthetic methods. A CD19 polypeptide may comprise a polypeptide having the same amino acid sequence as a corresponding CD19 polypeptide derived from nature. Orthologs to the CD19 polypeptide are also well known in the art.
[0101] The term “human serum albumin” or “HSA” or “ALB” are used interchangeably to refer to a known protein found in human blood. As used herein, the term “ALB” encompasses a polypeptide ( “polypeptide” and “protein” are used interchangeably herein) , including any native polypeptide, from any vertebrate source, including mammals such as primates (e.g., humans and cynomolgus monkeys (cynomolgus) ) , dogs, and rodents (e.g., mice and rats) , unless otherwise indicated. In certain embodiments, the terms include “related ALB polypeptides, ” including SNP variants thereof. The term “ALB” also encompasses “full-length, ” unprocessed ALB as well as any form that results from processing, e.g. splice variants or allelic variants. The amino acid sequence of an exemplary human ALB is MKWVTFISLLFLFSSAYSRGVFRRDAHKSEVAHRFKDLGEENFKALVLIAFAQYLQQCPFEDHVKLVNEVTEFAKTCVADESAENCDKSLHTLFGDKLCTVATLRETYGEMADCCAKQEPERNECFLQHKDDNPNLPRLVRPEVDVMCTAFHDNEETFLKKYLYEIARRHPYFYAPELLFFAKRYKAAFTECCQAADKAACLLPKLDELRDEGKASSAKQRLKCASLQKFGERAFKAWAVARLSQRFPKAEFAEVSKLVTDLTKVHTECCHGDLLECADDRADLAKYICENQDSISSKLKECCEKPLLEKSHCIAEVENDEMPADLPSLAADFVESKDVCKNYAEAKDVFLGMFLYEYARRHPDYSVVLLLRLAKTYETTLEKCCAAADPHECYAKVFDEFKPLVEEPQNLIKQNCELFEQLGEYKFQNALLVRYTKKVPQVSTPTLVEVSRNLGKVGSKCCKHPEAKRMPCAEDYLSVVLNQLCVLHEKTPVSDRVTKCCTESLVNRRPCFSALEVDETYVPKEFNAETFTFHADICTLSEKERQIKKQTALVELVKHKPKATKEQLKAVMDDFAAFVEKCCKADDKETCFAEEGKKLVAASQAALGL (SEQ ID NO: 63; GenBank accession: NP_000468.1) .
[0102] An immune cell is a cell in immune system and can be a cell of lymphoid lineage. Non-limiting examples of cells of lymphoid lineage include neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, mast cells, monocytes, macrophages, dendritic cells, natural killer (NK) cells, and lymphocytes (B cells and T cells) . T cells are a type of lymphocytes and can be characterized by expressing T cell receptors (TCRs) . T cells play a central role in the adaptive immune response. T cell subtypes have a variety of important functions in controlling and shaping the immune response. For example, cytotoxic T cells (also called cytotoxic T lymphocyte and killer T cell) are T lymphocytes that kill certain cells, e.g., cancer cells, cells that are infected by intracellular pathogens (such as viruses or bacteria) , or cells that are damaged in other ways. Most cytotoxic T cells express T-cell receptors (TCRs) that can recognize a specific antigen. CD8+ T cells are a subpopulation of MHC class I-restricted T cell and are mediators of adaptive immunity, which are important for killing cancerous or virally infected cells. NK cells are a type of cytotoxic lymphocytes critical to the innate immune system that belong to the family of innate lymphoid cells (ILC) . In some embodiments, NK cells can be identified by the presence of CD56 and the absence of CD3 (CD56+, CD3-) . NK cells have the ability to recognize and kill stressed cells in the absence of antibodies and MHC, allowing for a much faster immune reaction.
[0103] As used herein, the term “binding agent” or a grammatical equivalent thereof refers to a molecule (e.g., antibody) with one or more antigen-binding sites that binds an antigen. In some embodiments, a binding agent as described herein is an antibody (including a multispecific antibody and an antibody fragment, such as an antigen-binding fragment or an epitope-binding fragment) or other peptide-based molecule as well as a conjugate of an antibody, antibody fragment, or peptide-based molecule (e.g., an antibody-drug conjugate) that binds to CD3 (such as the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) and / or CD19 (such as human CD19) .
[0104] The terms “antibody, ” “immunoglobulin, ” and “Ig” are used interchangeably herein, and are used in the broadest sense and specifically cover, for example polyclonal antibodies, monoclonal antibodies (including agonist, antagonist, neutralizing antibodies, full-length monoclonal antibodies) , antibody compositions with polyepitopic or monoepitopic specificity, recombinantly produced antibodies, single domain (e.g., VHH) antibodies, monospecific antibodies, multispecific antibodies (including bispecific antibodies) , synthetic antibodies, chimeric antibodies, humanized antibodies, or human versions of antibodies having full-length heavy and / or light chains. VHH as used herein refers to a domain antibody derived from a variable region of a heavy chain only antibody. Exemplary single domain antibodies include, but are not limited to, antibodies naturally devoid of light chains such as those from Camelidae species (e.g., llama) , single domain antibodies derived from conventional 4-chain antibodies, engineered antibodies and single domain scaffolds other than those derived from antibodies. Single domain antibodies may be derived from any species including, but not limited to mouse, human, camel, llama, goat, rabbit, and bovine. VHH can also be derived from other species besides Camelidae that may produce heavy chain antibodies naturally devoid of light chain. Antibodies also include antibody fragments (and / or polypeptides that comprise antibody fragments) that retain CD3 and / or CD19 binding characteristics. Non-limiting examples of antibody fragments include antigen-binding regions and / or effector regions of the antibody, e.g., Fab, Fab’, F (ab’) 2, Fv, scFv, (scFv) 2, single chain antibody molecule, dual variable domain antibody, single variable domain, linear antibody, V region, a multispecific antibody formed from antibody fragments, F (ab) 2, Fd, Fc, diabody, di-diabody, disulfide-linked Fvs (dsFv) , single-domain antibody (e.g., nanobody) or other fragments (e.g., fragments consisting of the variable regions of the heavy and light chains that are non-covalently coupled) . In general terms, a variable (V) region domain may be any suitable arrangement of immunoglobulin heavy (VH) and / or light (VL) variable domains. For example, antibodies also include tetrameric antibodies comprising two heavy chain and two light chain molecules, an antibody light chain monomer, and an antibody heavy chain monomer. Thus, for example, the V region domain may be dimeric and contain VHH-VHH, VH-VH, VH-VL, or VL-VL dimers that bind CD3 and / or CD19. If desired, the VH and VL may be covalently coupled either directly or through a linker to form a single chain Fv (scFv) . For ease of reference, scFv proteins are referred to herein as included in the category “antibody fragments. ” Another form of an antibody fragment is a peptide comprising one or more complementarity determining regions (CDRs) of an antibody. CDRs (also termed “minimal recognition units” or “hypervariable regions” ) can be obtained by constructing polynucleotides that encode one or more CDRs of interest. Such polynucleotides are prepared, for example, by using the polymerase chain reaction to synthesize the variable region using mRNA of antibody-producing cells as a template (see, for example, Larrick et al., Methods: A Companion to Methods in Enzymology, 2: 106 (1991) ; Courtenay-Luck, “Genetic Manipulation of Monoclonal Antibodies, ” in Monoclonal Antibodies Production, Engineering and Clinical Application, Ritter et al. (eds. ) , page 166, Cambridge University Press (1995) ; and Ward et al., “Genetic Manipulation and Expression of Antibodies, ” in Monoclonal Antibodies: Principles and Applications, Birch et al., (eds. ) , page 137, Wiley-Liss, Inc. (1995) ) . Antibody fragments may be incorporated, for example, into single domain antibodies, maxibodies, minibodies, intrabodies, diabodies, triabodies, tetrabodies, variable domains of new antigen receptors (v-NAR) , and bis-single chain Fv regions (see, e.g., Hollinger and Hudson, Nature Biotechnology, 23 (9) : 1126-1136, 2005) . In some embodiments, antibodies comprising a VH and / or VL further contain a light chain and / or a heavy chain constant region, such as one or more constant regions, including one or more IgG1, IgG2, IgG3 and / or IgG4 constant regions. In some embodiments, antibodies can include epitope-binding fragments of any of the above. The antibodies described herein can be of any class (e.g., IgG, IgE, IgM, IgD, and IgA) or any subclass (e.g., IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, IgA1, and IgA2) of immunoglobulin molecule.
[0105] The term “monospecific” when used in reference to a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) as used herein denotes a binding agent that has one or more binding sites each of which binds to the same epitope of the same antigen.
[0106] The term “multispecific” when used in reference to a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) means that the binding agent is able to specifically bind to at least two distinct epitopes, for example two binding sites each formed by a pair of an antibody heavy chain variable domain (VH) and an antibody light chain variable domain (VL) or each formed by a pair of VHH domains binding to different antigens or to different epitopes on the same antigen. Such a bispecific binding agent (e.g., an antibody) may have a 1+1 format (comprising one binding site for a first antigen or epitope and one binding site for a second antigen or epitope) . Other bispecific binding agent (e.g., an antibody) formats may be 2+1 or 1+2 formats (comprising two binding sites for a first antigen or epitope and one binding site for a second antigen or epitope) or 2+2 format (comprising two binding sites for a first antigen or epitope and two binding sites for a second antigen or epitope) . When a bispecific binding agent (e.g., an antibody) comprises two antigen-binding sites, each may bind to a different epitope. Such a bispecific binding agent (e.g., an antibody) may bind to two different epitopes on the same antigen (e.g., epitopes on CD3 or CD19) .
[0107] The term “bispecific” refers to a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) that specifically binds two distinct antigens or two distinct epitopes within the same antigen. The bispecific molecule may have cross-reactivity to other related antigens, for example to the same antigen from other species (homologs) , such as human or monkey, for example Macaca cynomolgus (cynomolgus, cyno) or Pan troglodytes, or may bind an epitope that is shared between two or more distinct antigens.
[0108] The terms “anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific, ” “CD3 / CD19, ” “CD3×CD19, ” “anti-CD3 / anti-CD19, ” and the like, when used in reference to a binding agent (e.g., an antibody, an antigen binding fragment of an antibody such as a scFv or (scFv) 2 structure as described herein) refer to a binding agent that binds CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and CD19, i.e., comprising at least one binding domain specifically binding CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) and at least one binding domain specifically binding CD19. The domains specifically binding CD19 and CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) can contain VH / VL pairs. The bispecific CD3×CD19 binding agent may be monovalent in terms of its binding to either CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) or CD19.
[0109] The terms “anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 / anti-albumin trispecific, ” “CD3 / CD19 / albumin, ” “CD3×CD19×albumin, ” “anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 / anti-albumin, ” and the like, when used in reference to a binding agent (e.g., an antibody, an antigen binding fragment of an antibody such as a scFv or (scFv) 2-VHH structure as described herein) refer to a binding agent that binds CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , CD19, and albumin (such as human serum albumin) i.e., comprising at least one binding domain specifically binding CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) , at least one binding domain specifically binding CD19, and at least one binding domain specifically binding to albumin. In some embodiments, the domains specifically binding CD19 and CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) can contain VH / VL pairs. In some embodiments, the domain specifically binds to albumin can contain a VH domain (e.g., a VHH binding domain) . The trispecific CD3×CD19×albumin binding agent may be monovalent in terms of its binding to either CD3 (or a CD3 polypeptide or extracellular domain thereof) or CD19 or albumin.
[0110] The terms “identical” or percent “identity” in the context of two or more nucleic acids or polypeptides, refer to two or more sequences or subsequences that are the same or have a specified percentage of nucleotides or amino acid residues that are the same, when compared and aligned (introducing gaps, if necessary) for maximum correspondence, not considering any conservative amino acid substitutions as part of the sequence identity. The percent identity can be measured using sequence comparison software or algorithms or by visual inspection. Various algorithms and software that can be used to obtain alignments of amino acid or nucleotide sequences are well-known in the art. These include, but are not limited to, BLAST, ALIGN, Megalign, BestFit, GCG Wisconsin Package, and variants thereof. In some embodiments, two nucleic acids or polypeptides are substantially identical, meaning they have at least 70%, at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, or at least 90%, and in some embodiments at least 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%nucleotide or amino acid residue identity, when compared and aligned for maximum correspondence, as measured using a sequence comparison algorithm or by visual inspection. In some embodiments, identity exists over a region of the amino acid sequences that is at least about 10 residues, at least about 20 residues, at least about 40-60 residues, at least about 60-80 residues in length or any integral value there between. In some embodiments, identity exists over a longer region than 60-80 residues, such as at least about 80-100 residues, and in some embodiments the sequences are substantially identical over the full length of the sequences being compared, such as the coding region of a target protein or an antibody. In some embodiments, identity exists over a region of the nucleotide sequences that is at least about 10 bases, at least about 20 bases, at least about 40-60 bases, at least about 60-80 bases in length or any integral value there between. In some embodiments, identity exists over a longer region than 60-80 bases, such as at least about 80-1000 bases or more, and in some embodiments the sequences are substantially identical over the full-length of the sequences being compared, such as a nucleotide sequence encoding a protein of interest.
[0111] A “conservative amino acid substitution” is one in which one amino acid residue is replaced with another amino acid residue having a side chain with similar chemical characteristics. Families of amino acid residues having similar side chains have been generally defined in the art, including basic side chains (e.g., lysine, arginine, histidine) , acidic side chains (e.g., aspartic acid, glutamic acid) , uncharged polar side chains (e.g., glycine, asparagine, glutamine, serine, threonine, tyrosine, cysteine) , nonpolar side chains (e.g., alanine, valine, leucine, isoleucine, proline, phenylalanine, methionine, tryptophan) , beta-branched side chains (e.g., threonine, valine, isoleucine) and aromatic side chains (e.g., tyrosine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, histidine) . For example, substitution of a phenylalanine for a tyrosine is a conservative substitution. Generally, conservative substitutions in the sequences of the polypeptides, soluble proteins, and / or antibodies of the disclosure do not abrogate the binding of the polypeptide, soluble protein, or antibody containing the amino acid sequence, to the target binding site. Methods of identifying amino acid conservative substitutions which do not eliminate binding are well-known in the art.
[0112] The term “polypeptide” refers to polymers of amino acids of any length. The polymer can be linear or branched, it can comprise modified amino acids, and it can include (e.g., be interrupted by) non-amino acids. The terms also encompass an amino acid polymer that has been modified naturally or by intervention; for example, disulfide bond formation, glycosylation, lipidation, acetylation, phosphorylation, or any other manipulation or modification, such as linkage to or conjugation with (directly or indirectly) a moiety such as a labeling component or a drug (e.g., toxin) . Also included within the definition are, for example, polypeptides containing one or more analogs of an amino acid (including, for example, unnatural amino acids) , as well as other modifications known in the art. It is understood that, because the polypeptides of this disclosure can be based upon antibodies or other members of the immunoglobulin superfamily, in some embodiments, the polypeptides can occur as single chains or dimers of single chains.
[0113] In the context of a peptide or polypeptide, the term “fragment” as used herein refers to a peptide or polypeptide that comprises less than the full length amino acid sequence. Such a fragment may arise, for example, from a truncation at the amino terminus, a truncation at the carboxy terminus, and / or an internal deletion of a residue (s) from the amino acid sequence. Fragments may, for example, result from alternative RNA splicing or from in vivo protease activity. In certain embodiments, a fragment of a polypeptide (e.g., CD3ε or CD19 or ALB) include polypeptides comprising an amino acid sequence of at least 5 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 10 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 15 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 20 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 25 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 30 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 40 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 50 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 60 contiguous amino residues, at least 70 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 80 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 90 contiguous amino acid residues, at least contiguous 100 amino acid residues, at least 125 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 150 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 175 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 200 contiguous amino acid residues, at least 250, at least 300, at least 350, at least 400, at least 450, at least 500, at least 550, at least 600, at least 650, at least 700, at least 750, at least 800, at least 850, at least 900, or at least 950 contiguous amino acid residues of the amino acid sequence of such polypeptide. In a specific embodiment, a fragment of a polypeptide (e.g., CD3ε or CD19 or ALB) retains at least 1, at least 2, at least 3, or more functions of the polypeptide or antibody.
[0114] As used herein, an “antigen” is a moiety or molecule that contains an epitope to which a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) can bind. As such, an antigen can be bound by an antibody. In some embodiments, the antigen, to which a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) described herein binds, is CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) , or a fragment thereof, including a fragment that comprises one or more domains of a CD3 polypeptide. In some embodiments, the antigen, to which a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) described herein binds, is CD19 (e.g., human CD19) , or a fragment thereof, including a fragment that comprises one or more domains of CD19. In some embodiments, the antigen, to which a binding agent (e.g., an antibody) described herein binds, is albumin (e.g., ALB) , or a fragment thereof, including a fragment that comprises one or more domains of ALB.
[0115] As used herein, an “epitope” is a term in the art and refers to a localized region of an antigen to which an antibody can bind. An epitope can be a linear epitope or a conformational, non-linear, or discontinuous, epitope. In the case of a polypeptide antigen, for example, an epitope can be contiguous amino acids of the polypeptide (a “linear” epitope) or an epitope can comprise amino acids from two or more non-contiguous regions of the polypeptide (a “conformational, ” “non-linear” or “discontinuous” epitope) , e.g., human CD3, human CD19, or human serum albumin (ALB) . It will be appreciated by one of skill in the art that, in general, a linear epitope may or may not be dependent on secondary, tertiary, or quaternary structure. For example, in some embodiments, an antibody binds to a group of amino acids regardless of whether they are folded in a natural three-dimensional protein structure. In other embodiments, an antibody requires amino acid residues making up the epitope to exhibit a particular conformation (e.g., bend, twist, turn or fold) in order to recognize and bind the epitope.
[0116] An antibody binds “an epitope” or “essentially the same epitope” or “the same epitope” as a reference antibody, when the two antibodies recognize identical, overlapping or adjacent epitopes in a three-dimensional space. The most widely used and rapid methods for determining whether two antibodies bind to identical, overlapping or adjacent epitopes in a three-dimensional space are competition assays, which can be configured in a number of different formats, for example, using either labeled antigen or labeled antibody. In some assays, the antigen is immobilized on a 96-well plate, or expressed on a cell surface, and the ability of unlabeled antibodies to block the binding of labeled antibodies is measured using radioactive, fluorescent or enzyme labels.
[0117] “Epitope binning” is the process of grouping antibodies based on the epitopes they recognize. More particularly, epitope binning comprises methods and systems for discriminating the epitope recognition properties of different antibodies, using competition assays combined with computational processes for clustering antibodies based on their epitope recognition properties and identifying antibodies having distinct binding specificities.
[0118] As used herein, the terms “specifically binds, ” “specifically recognizes, ” “immunospecifically binds, ” “selectively binds, ” “immunospecifically recognizes” and “immunospecific” are analogous terms in the context of antibodies and refer to molecules that bind to an antigen (e.g., epitope) as such binding is understood by one skilled in the art. In some embodiments, “specifically binds” means, for instance that a polypeptide or molecule interacts more frequently, more rapidly, with greater duration, with greater affinity, or with some combination of the above to the epitope, protein, or target molecule than with alternative substances, including related and unrelated proteins. For example, a molecule that specifically binds to an antigen may bind to other peptides or polypeptides, generally with lower affinity as determined by, e.g., immunoassays, BIACORETM, KinExA 3000 instrument (Sapidyne Instruments, Boise, ID) , the OctetQK384 system (ForteBio, Menlo Park, CA) , or other assays known in the art. In some embodiments, an antibody or antigen-binding domain binds to or specifically binds to an antigen when it binds to the antigen with higher affinity than to any cross-reactive antigen as determined using experimental techniques, such as radioimmunoassays (RIAs) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) . Typically, a specific or selective reaction will be at least twice background signal or noise and may be more than 10 times background. See, e.g., Fundamental Immunology 332-36 (Paul ed., 2d ed. 1989) for a discussion regarding binding specificity. In some embodiments, the extent of binding of an antibody or antigen-binding domain to a “non-target” protein is less than about 10%of the binding of the antibody or antigen-binding domain to its particular target antigen, for example, as determined by fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) analysis or RIAs. In some embodiments, molecules that specifically bind to an antigen bind to the antigen with a Ka that is at least 2 logs, 2.5 logs, 3 logs, 4 logs or greater than the Ka when the molecules bind to another antigen. In some embodiments, molecules that specifically bind to an antigen do not cross react with other proteins. In another specific embodiment, molecules that specifically bind to an antigen do not cross react with other non-CD3 proteins. In another specific embodiment, molecules that specifically bind to an antigen do not cross react with other non-CD19 proteins. In another specific embodiment, molecules that specifically bind to an antigen do not cross react with other non-ALB proteins. In some embodiments “specifically binds” means, for instance, that a polypeptide or molecule binds a protein or target with a KD of about 0.1mM or less, but more usually less than about 1μM. In some embodiments, “specifically binds” means that a polypeptide or molecule binds a target with a KD of at least about 0.1μM or less, at least about 0.01μM or less, or at least about 1nM or less. Because of the sequence identity between homologous proteins in different species, specific binding can include a polypeptide or molecule that recognizes a protein or target in more than one species. Likewise, because of homology within certain regions of polypeptide sequences of different proteins, specific binding can include a polypeptide or molecule that recognizes more than one protein or target. It is understood that, in some embodiments, a polypeptide or molecule that specifically binds a first target may or may not specifically bind a second target. As such, “specific binding” does not necessarily require (although it can include) exclusive binding, e.g., binding to a single target. Thus, a polypeptide or molecule can, in some embodiments, specifically bind more than one target. In some embodiments, multiple targets can be bound by the same antigen-binding site on the polypeptide or molecule. For example, an antibody can, in certain instances, comprise two identical antigen-binding sites, each of which specifically binds the same epitope on two or more proteins. In certain alternative embodiments, an antibody can be bispecific and comprise at least two antigen-binding sites with differing specificities. Generally, but not necessarily, reference to “binding” means “specific binding” .
[0119] “Binding affinity” generally refers to the strength of the sum total of noncovalent interactions between a single binding site of a molecule (e.g., a binding agent such as an antibody) and its binding partner (e.g., an antigen such as CD3) . Unless indicated otherwise, as used herein, “binding affinity” refers to intrinsic binding affinity which reflects a 1: 1 interaction between members of a binding pair (e.g., antibody and antigen) . The affinity of a binding molecule X for its binding partner Y can generally be represented by the dissociation constant (KD) . Affinity can be measured by common methods known in the art, including those described herein. Low-affinity antibodies generally bind antigen slowly and tend to dissociate readily, whereas high-affinity antibodies generally bind antigen faster and tend to remain bound longer. A variety of methods of measuring binding affinity are known in the art, any of which can be used for purposes of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, the “KD” or “KD value” may be measured by biolayer interferometry (BLI) using, for example, the OctetQK384 system (ForteBio, Menlo Park, CA) . Alternatively, the KD may also be measured in a radiolabeled antigen-binding assay (RIA) , for example, performed with the Fab version of an antibody of interest and its antigen (Chen, et al., (1999) J. Mol Biol 293: 865-881) or using surface plasmon resonance (SPR) assays by BIACORETM, using, for example, a BIACORETM-2000 or a BIACORETM-3000 (BIACORETM, Inc., Piscataway, NJ) . An “on-rate” or “rate of association” or “association rate” or “kon, ” as well as an “off-rate” or “rate of dissociation” or “dissociation rate” or “koff, ” can also be determined with the same SPR or BLI techniques described above using, for example, the OctetQK384 system (ForteBio, Menlo Park, CA) or a BIACORETM-2000 or a BIACORETM-3000 (BIACORETM, Inc., Piscataway, NJ) , respectively.
[0120] The term “compete” or any grammatical variation thereof when used in the context of binding agents (e.g., antibodies) means binding agents that compete for the same epitope or binding site on a target, which includes competition between such binding agents as determined by an assay in which the binding agent under study prevents or inhibits the specific binding of a reference molecule (e.g., a reference ligand, or reference antigen-binding protein, such as a reference antibody) to a common antigen (e.g., CD3 or CD19) . Numerous types of competitive binding assays can be used to determine if a test binding agent competes with a reference molecule for binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) or CD19 (e.g., human CD19) . Examples of assays that can be employed include solid phase direct or indirect radioimmunoassay (RIA) ; solid phase direct or indirect enzyme immunoassay (EIA) , sandwich competition assay (see, e.g., Stahli et al., (1983) Methods in Enzymology 9: 242-253) ; solid phase direct biotin-avidin EIA (see, e.g., Kirkland et al., (1986) J. Immunol. 137: 3614-3619 or Cheung, et al., (1990) Virology 176: 546-552) ; solid phase direct labeled assay; solid phase direct labeled sandwich assay (see, e.g., Harlow and Lane, (1988) Antibodies, A Laboratory Manual, Cold Spring Harbor Press) ; solid phase direct label RIA using I-125 label (see, e.g., Morel et al., (1988) Molec. Immunol. 25: 7-15) ; and direct labeled RIA (Moldenhauer et al., (1990) Scand. J. Immunol. 32: 77-82) . Typically, such an assay involves the use of a purified antigen (e.g., CD3, such as the human CD3εδcomplex or a CD3 polypeptide, or CD19, such as human CD19) bound to a solid surface or cells bearing either of an unlabelled test antigen-binding protein (e.g., test CD3 antibody or test CD19 antibody) or a labeled reference antigen-binding protein (e.g., reference CD3 antibody or reference CD19 antibody) . Competitive inhibition may be measured by determining the amount of label bound to the solid surface or cells in the presence of the test antigen-binding protein. Usually, the test antigen-binding protein is present in excess. Antibodies identified by competition assay (competing antibodies) include antibodies binding to the same epitope as the reference antibody and / or antibodies binding to an adjacent epitope sufficiently proximal to the epitope bound by the reference for antibodies steric hindrance to occur (e.g., similar epitope or overlapping epitope) . Usually, when a competing antibody is present in excess, it will inhibit specific binding of a reference antibody to a common antigen by at least 20%, for example, at least 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, 70%or 75%. In some instance, binding is inhibited by at least 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, 99%or more.
[0121] As used herein, the term “constant region” or “constant domain” is a well-known antibody term of art and refers to an antibody portion, for example, a carboxyl terminal portion of a light and / or heavy chain which is not directly involved in binding of an antibody to an antigen but which can exhibit various effector functions, such as interaction with an Fc receptor. The term includes the portion of an immunoglobulin molecule having a generally more conserved amino acid sequence relative to an immunoglobulin variable domain.
[0122] Antibody “effector functions” refer to those biological activities attributable to the Fc region (e.g., a native sequence Fc region or amino acid sequence variant Fc region) of an antibody, and vary with the antibody isotype. Examples of antibody effector functions include: C1q binding and complement dependent cytotoxicity; Fc receptor binding; antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) ; phagocytosis; down regulation of cell surface receptors (e.g., B cell receptor) ; and B cell activation.
[0123] The term “Fc region” herein is used to define a C-terminal region of an immunoglobulin heavy chain, including, for example, native sequence Fc regions, recombinant Fc regions, and variant Fc regions. Although the boundaries of the Fc region of an immunoglobulin heavy chain might vary, the human IgG heavy chain Fc region is often defined to stretch from an amino acid residue at position Cys226 (according to the EU numbering system) , or from Pro230 (according to the EU numbering system) , to the carboxyl-terminus thereof. The C-terminal lysine (residue 447 according to the EU numbering system) of the Fc region may be removed, for example, during production or purification of the antibody, or by recombinantly engineering the nucleic acid encoding a heavy chain of the antibody. An exemplary Fc region sequence is provided below (CH2 domain = bold text; CH3 domain =underline text) :
[0124] A “functional Fc region” possesses an “effector function” of a native sequence Fc region. Exemplary “effector functions” include C1q binding; complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) ; Fc receptor binding; antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) ; phagocytosis (such as antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis, i.e., ADCP) ; down regulation of cell surface receptors (e.g., B cell receptor; BCR) , etc. Such effector functions generally require the Fc region to be combined with a binding region or binding domain (e.g., an antibody variable region or domain) and can be assessed using various assays as disclosed.
[0125] For the full length IgGs, the heavy chain “constant regions” (e.g., CH1 = regular text; Hinge = italicized text; CH2 = bold text; and CH3 = underline text) included the following amino acid sequence:
[0126] A “variant Fc region” comprises an amino acid sequence which differs from that of a native sequence Fc region by virtue of at least one amino acid modification (e.g., substituting, addition, or deletion) . In certain embodiments, the variant Fc region has at least one amino acid substitution compared to a native sequence Fc region or to the Fc region of a parent polypeptide, for example, from about one to about ten amino acid substitutions, or from about one to about five amino acid substitutions in a native sequence Fc region or in the Fc region of a parent polypeptide. The variant Fc region herein can possess at least about 80%homology with a native sequence Fc region and / or with an Fc region of a parent polypeptide, or at least about 90%homology therewith, for example, at least about 95%homology therewith.
[0127] For example, a variant with one amino acid change to W at 366 position in the human IgG1 constant region amino acid sequence, IgG1-knob Fc region, is provided below: CPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGVEVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSRDELTKNQVSLWCLVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLYSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK (SEQ ID NO: 64, T366W substitution emphasized) . In some embodiments, a IgG1-knob Fc region can further comprise one or more additional mutations as long as such additional mutation (s) do not impair the function of the Fc-knob chain (e.g., in forming a heterodimer with an Fc-hole chain) .
[0128] For example, a variant with three amino acid changes, including to S at 366 position, to A at 368 position, and to V at 407 position in the human IgG1 constant region amino acid sequence, IgG1-hole Fc region, is provided below: CPPCPAPELLGGPSVFLFPPKPKDTLMISRTPEVTCVVVDVSHEDPEVKFNWYVDGV EVHNAKTKPREEQYNSTYRVVSVLTVLHQDWLNGKEYKCKVSNKALPAPIEKTISKAKGQPREPQVYTLPPSRDELTKNQVSLSCAVKGFYPSDIAVEWESNGQPENNYKTTPPVLDSDGSFFLVSKLTVDKSRWQQGNVFSCSVMHEALHNHYTQKSLSLSPGK (SEQ ID NO: 65, T366S / L368A / Y407V substitutions emphasized) . In some embodiments, a IgG1-hole Fc region can further comprise one or more additional mutations as long as such additional mutation (s) do not impair the function of the Fc-knob hole (e.g., in forming a heterodimer with an Fc-knob chain) .
[0129] As used herein, the term “heavy chain” when used in reference to an antibody refers to a polypeptide chain of about 50-70 kDa, wherein the amino-terminal portion includes a variable region of about 120 to 130 or more amino acids, and a carboxy-terminal portion includes one or more constant regions. The “heavy chain” can refer to any distinct types, e.g., for example, alpha (α) , delta (δ) , epsilon (ε) , gamma (γ) and mu (μ) , based on the amino acid sequence of the constant domain, which give rise to IgA, IgD, IgE, IgG and IgM classes of antibodies, respectively, including subclasses of IgG, e.g., IgG1, IgG2, IgG3 and IgG4.
[0130] As used herein, the term “light chain” when used in reference to an antibody can refer to a polypeptide chain of about 25 kDa, wherein the amino-terminal portion includes a variable region of about 100 to about 110 or more amino acids, and a carboxy-terminal portion includes a constant region. The approximate length of a light chain is 211 to 217 amino acids. There are two distinct types, e.g., kappa (κ) or lambda (λ) based on the amino acid sequence of the constant domains. Light chain amino acid sequences are well known in the art.
[0131] The terms “antigen binding fragment, ” “antigen binding domain, ” “antigen binding region, ” and similar terms refer to that portion of an antibody, which comprises the amino acid residues that interact with an antigen and confer on the binding fragment, domain, or region its specificity and affinity for the antigen (e.g., the CDRs) . “Antigen binding fragment” as used herein includes “antibody fragment, ” which comprises a portion of an antibody including one or more CDRs, such as the antigen-binding or variable region of the antibody.
[0132] The term “Fab” or “Fab region” refers to an antibody region that binds to antigens. A conventional IgG usually comprises two Fab regions, each residing on one of the two arms of the Y-shaped IgG structure. Each Fab region is typically composed of one variable region and one constant region of each of the heavy and the light chain. More specifically, the variable region and the constant region of the heavy chain in a Fab region are VH and CH1 regions, and the variable region and the constant region of the light chain in a Fab region are VL and CL regions. The VH, CH1, VL, and CL in a Fab region can be arranged in various ways to confer an antigen binding capability according to the present disclosure. For example, VH and CH1 regions can be on one polypeptide, and VL and CL regions can be on a separate polypeptide, similarly to a Fab region of a conventional IgG. Alternatively, VH, CH1, VL and CL regions can all be on the same polypeptide and oriented in different orders as described in more detail the sections below.
[0133] The term “single chain Fv” or “scFv” refers to a fusion protein comprising at least one antibody fragment comprising a light chain variable region (VL) and at least one antibody fragment comprising a heavy chain variable region (VH) , wherein the VL and the VH are contiguously linked via a polypeptide linker, and capable of being expressed as a single chain polypeptide. Unless specified, as used herein, a scFv may have the VL and VH variable regions in either order, e.g., with respect to the N-terminal and C-terminal ends of the polypeptide, the scFv may comprise VL-linker-VH or may comprise VH-linker-VL.
[0134] The term “ (scFv) 2” or “tandem scFv” or “bis-scFv” refers to a fusion protein comprising two light chain variable region (VL) and two heavy chain variable region (VH) , wherein the two VL and the two VH are contiguously linked optionally via polypeptide linkers, and capable of being expressed as a single chain polypeptide. The two VL and two VH are fused optionally by peptide linkers to form a bivalent molecule, such as in the order of VLA-linker-VHA-linker-VLB-linker-VHB or VLA-linker-VHA-linker-VHB-linker-VLB or VLA-linker-VLB-linker-VHB-linker-VHA or VLA-linker-VHB-linker-VLB-linker-VHA, to form two binding domains, capable of binding two different antigens or epitopes concurrently.
[0135] The term “ (scFv) 2-VHH” refers to a fusion protein comprising two scFv domains and a VHH domain. In some embodiments, the two scFv domains are fused in the tandem, thereby forming a (scFv) 2 domain as described herein, and VHH domain is fused to the (scFv) 2 domain either at its N terminus or at its C terminus to form the (scFv) 2-VHH configuration. In alternative embodiments, the VHH domain is fused in between the two scFv domains, and therefore no (scFv) 2 domain as described herein is formed in the (scFv) 2-VHH configuration. In some embodiments, the two scFv domains and the VHH domain are contiguously linked optionally via polypeptide linkers, and capable of being expressed as a single chain polypeptide. The two scFv domains and one VHH are fused optionally by peptide linkers to form a trivalent molecule, such as in the order of scFvA-linker-scFvB-linker-VHH or VHH-linker-scFvA-linker-scFvB or scFvA-linker-VHH-linker-scFvB, to form three binding domains, capable of binding three different antigens or epitopes concurrently.
[0136] Antibodies described herein include, but are not limited to, synthetic antibodies, monoclonal antibodies, recombinantly produced antibodies, multispecific antibodies (e.g., bispecific antibodies) , human antibodies, humanized antibodies, chimeric antibodies, intrabodies, single-chain Fvs (scFv) (e.g., including monospecific, bispecific, etc. ) , camelized antibodies, Fab fragments, F (ab’) fragments, disulfide-linked Fvs (sdFv) , anti-idiotypic (anti-Id) antibodies, and epitope-binding fragments of any of the above.
[0137] In some embodiments, antibodies described herein include immunoglobulin molecules and immunologically active portions of immunoglobulin molecules, including molecules that contain one or more antigen-binding sites that bind to an CD3 antigen and / or a CD19 antigen. In some embodiments, antibodies described herein include immunoglobulin molecules and immunologically active portions of immunoglobulin molecules, including molecules that contain one or more antigen-binding sites that bind to an CD3 antigen, a CD19 antigen, and / or an albumin antigen.
[0138] Antibodies can be of any type (e.g., IgG, IgE, IgM, IgD, IgA or IgY) , any class (e.g., IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, IgG4, IgA1 or IgA2) , or any subclass (e.g., IgG2a or IgG2b) of immunoglobulin molecule. In some embodiments, antibodies described herein are IgG antibodies (e.g., human IgG) , or a class (e.g., human IgG1, IgG2, IgG3 or IgG4) or a subclass thereof.
[0139] In some embodiments, an antibody is a 4-chain antibody unit comprising two heavy (H) chain / light (L) chain pairs. In further embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the H chains are identical and the amino acid sequences of the L chains are identical. In other embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the H chains are different from each other. Additionally or alternatively, the amino acid sequences of the L chains are different from each other. For example, an antibody comprises a first H / L chain pair and a second H / L chain pair, wherein the first H / L chain pair binds to an CD3 antigen and the second H / L chain pair binds to a non-CD3 (such as CD19) antigen. In some embodiments, an antibody is a 2-chain antibody unit comprising a VHH-VHH pair. In further embodiments, the amino acid sequences of the VHH are identical. In other embodiments, the amino acid sequence of the VHH is different from each other. For example, an antibody comprises a first VHH and a second VHH, wherein the first VHH binds to an CD3 antigen and the second VHH binds to a non-CD3 (such as CD19) antigen. In some embodiments, the H and / or L chains comprise constant regions, for example, human constant regions. In some embodiments, the L chain constant region of such antibodies is a kappa or lambda light chain constant region, for example, a human kappa or lambda light chain constant region. In some embodiments, the H chain constant region of such antibodies comprises a gamma heavy chain constant region, for example, a human gamma heavy chain constant region. In some embodiments, such antibodies comprise IgG constant regions, for example, human IgG constant regions (e.g., IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and / or IgG4 constant regions) .
[0140] An antibody or fragment thereof may preferentially bind to CD3 (such as the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) , CD19 (such as human CD19) , and / or albumin (such as human serum albumin (ALB) ) meaning that the antibody or fragment thereof binds CD3, CD19, and / or albumin with greater affinity than it binds to a control protein and / or binds human CD3, CD19, and / or albumin with greater affinity than it binds to an unrelated control protein. For example, the antibody or fragment thereof may specifically recognize and bind CD3, CD19, and / or albumin, or a portion of each thereof. “Specific binding” means that the antibody or fragment thereof binds to CD3, CD19, and / or albumin with an affinity that is at least 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, 100, 250, 500, 1000, or 10,000 times greater than the affinity for an unrelated control protein (e.g., hen egg white lysozyme) . In some embodiments, the antibody or fragment thereof may bind CD3, CD19, and / or albumin substantially exclusively (e.g., is able to distinguish CD3, CD19, and / or albumin from other known polypeptides, for example, by virtue of measurable differences in binding affinity) . In some embodiments, an CD3 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) may react with CD3 sequences other than human CD3 sequences (e.g., cynomolgous monkey CD3 sequences) . In other embodiments, an CD3 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) does not react with non-human (such as cynomolgous monkey) CD3 sequences. In some embodiments, a CD19 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) may react with CD19 sequences other than human CD19 sequences (e.g., cynomolgous monkey CD19 sequences) . In other embodiments, a CD19 binding agent (e.g., an antibody) does not react with non-human (such as cynomolgous monkey) CD19 sequences. In some embodiments, an albumin binding agent (e.g., an antibody) may react with albumin sequences other than human albumin sequences (e.g., cynomolgous monkey albumin sequences) . In other embodiments, an albumin binding agent (e.g., an antibody) does not react with non-human (such as cynomolgous monkey) albumin sequences.
[0141] The term “variable region” or “variable domain” refers to a portion of the light or heavy chains of an antibody that is generally located at the amino-terminal of the light or heavy chain, has a length of about 120 to 130 amino acids in the heavy chain and about 100 to 110 amino acids in the light chain, and is used in the binding and specificity of each particular antibody for its particular antigen. The variable region of the heavy chain may be referred to as “VH. ” The variable region of the light chain may be referred to as “VL. ” The term “variable” refers to the fact that certain segments of the variable regions differ extensively in sequence among antibodies. The V region mediates antigen binding and defines specificity of a particular antibody for its particular antigen. However, the variability is not evenly distributed across the 110-amino acid span of the variable regions. Instead, the V regions consist of less variable (e.g., relatively invariant) stretches called framework regions (FRs) of about 15-30 amino acids separated by shorter regions of greater variability (e.g., extreme variability) called “hypervariable regions” or alternatively called “complementarity determining regions (CDRs) . ” The variable regions of heavy and light chains each comprise four frameworks (FR1, FR2, FR3 and FR4) , largely adopting a β sheet configuration, connected by three hypervariable regions, which form loops connecting, and in some cases forming part of, the β sheet structure. The hypervariable regions in each chain are held together in close proximity by the frameworks and, with the hypervariable regions from the other chain, contribute to the formation of the antigen-binding site of antibodies (see, e.g., Kabat et al., Sequences of Proteins of Immunological Interest, 5th Ed. Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, (1991) ) . The constant regions are not involved directly in binding an antibody to an antigen, but exhibit various effector functions, such as participation of the antibody in antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) and complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) . The variable regions differ extensively in sequence between different antibodies. The variability in sequence is concentrated in the CDRs while the less variable portions in the variable region are referred to as framework regions (FR) . The CDRs of the light and heavy chains are primarily responsible for the interaction of the antibody with its antigen. In specific embodiments, the variable region is a human variable region.
[0142] The term “hypervariable region, ” “HVR, ” “HV, ” “complementarity determining region, ” or “CDR” when used herein refers to the regions of an antibody variable region that are hypervariable in sequence and / or form structurally defined loops. Generally, antibodies comprise six hypervariable regions: three in the VH (H1 or VH CDR1, H2 or VH CDR2, and H3 or VH CDR3) , and three in the VL (L1 or VL CDR1, L2 or VL CDR2, and L3 or VL CDR3) . A number of hypervariable region delineations are in use and are encompassed herein. The Kabat CDRs are based on sequence variability and are the most commonly used (see, e.g., Kabat et al., Sequences of Proteins of Immunological Interest, 5th Ed. Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD. (1991) ) . Chothia refers instead to the location of the structural loops (see, e.g., Chothia and Lesk, J. Mol. Biol. 196: 901-917 (1987) ) . The end of the Chothia CDR-H1 loop when numbered using the Kabat numbering convention varies between H32 and H34 depending on the length of the loop (this is because the Kabat numbering scheme places the insertions at H35A and H35B; if neither 35A nor 35B is present, the loop ends at 32; if only 35A is present, the loop ends at 33; if both 35A and 35B are present, the loop ends at 34) . The AbM hypervariable regions represent a compromise between the Kabat CDRs and Chothia structural loops, and are used by Oxford Molecular’s AbM antibody modeling software (see, e.g., Martin, in Antibody Engineering, Vol. 2, Chapter 3, Springer Verlag) . The “contact” hypervariable regions are based on an analysis of the available complex crystal structures. The residues from each of these hypervariable regions or CDRs are noted below.
[0143] A universal numbering system has been developed and widely adopted, ImMunoGeneTics Information System (Lefranc et al., Dev. Comp. Immunol. 27 (1) : 55-77 (2003) ) . IMGT is an integrated information system specializing in immunoglobulins (IG) , T cell receptors (TR) and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) of human and other vertebrates. Herein, the CDRs are referred to in terms of both the amino acid sequence and the location within the light or heavy chain. As the “location” of the CDRs within the structure of the immunoglobulin variable domain is conserved between species and present in structures called loops, by using numbering systems that align variable domain sequences according to structural features, CDR and framework residues and are readily identified. This information can be used in grafting and replacement of CDR residues from immunoglobulins of one species into an acceptor framework from, typically, a human antibody. An additional numbering system (AHon) has been developed by Honegger and Plückthun, J. Mol. Biol. 309: 657-670 (2001) . Correspondence between the numbering system, including, for example, the Kabat numbering and the IMGT unique numbering system, is well known to one skilled in the art (see, e.g., Kabat, supra; Chothia and Lesk, supra; Martin, supra; Lefranc et al., supra) and is also illustrated below. Various systems known in the art or described herein represent different ways of delineating CDRs, and when they are used to define the same antibody, they are often considered equivalent. The boundaries of a given CDR may vary depending on the scheme used for identification. Thus, unless otherwise specified, the terms “CDR” and “complementary determining region” of a given antibody or region thereof, such as a variable region, as well as individual CDRs (e.g., VH CDR1, VH CDR2) of the antibody or region thereof, should be understood to encompass the complementary determining region as defined by any of the known schemes described herein above. In some instances, the scheme for identification of a particular CDR or CDRs is specified, such as the CDR as defined by the IMGT, Kabat, Chothia, or Contact method. In other cases, the particular amino acid sequence of a CDR is given. It should be noted CDR regions may also be defined by a combination of various numbering systems, e.g., a combination of Kabat and Chothia numbering systems, or a combination of Kabat and IMGT numbering systems. Therefore, the term such as “a CDR1 as set forth in a specific VH” includes any CDR1 as defined by the exemplary CDR numbering systems described above, but is not limited thereby. Once a variable region (e.g., a VH or VL) is given, those skilled in the art would understand that CDRs within the region can be defined by different numbering systems or combinations thereof. An Exemplary system, shown herein, combines Kabat and Chothia. The residues from each of these hypervariable regions or CDRs are exemplified in the table below. Exemplary CDRs According to Various Numbering Systems
[0144] Hypervariable regions may comprise “extended hypervariable regions” as follows: 24-36 or 24-34 (L1) , 46-56 or 50-56 (L2) and 89-97 or 89-96 (L3) in the VL and 26-35 or 26-35A (H1) , 50-65 or 49-65 (H2) and 93-102, 94-102, or 95-102 (H3) in the VH. As used herein, the terms “hypervariable region, ” “HVR, ” “HV, ” “complementarity determining region, ” or “CDR” are used interchangeably.
[0145] “Polynucleotide” or “nucleic acid, ” as used interchangeably herein, refers to polymers of nucleotides of any length and includes DNA and RNA. The nucleotides can be deoxyribonucleotides, ribonucleotides, modified nucleotides or bases, and / or their analogs, or any substrate that can be incorporated into a polymer by DNA or RNA polymerase or by a synthetic reaction. A polynucleotide may comprise modified nucleotides, such as methylated nucleotides and their analogs. A cell that produces a binding molecule of the present disclosure may include a parent hybridoma cell, as well as bacterial and eukaryotic host cells into which nucleic acids encoding the antibodies have been introduced. Unless specified otherwise, the left-hand end of any single-stranded polynucleotide sequence disclosed herein is the 5’ end; the left-hand direction of double-stranded polynucleotide sequences is referred to as the 5’ direction. The direction of 5’ to 3’ addition of nascent RNA transcripts is referred to as the transcription direction; sequence regions on the DNA strand having the same sequence as the RNA transcript that are 5’ to the 5’ end of the RNA transcript are referred to as “upstream sequences” ; sequence regions on the DNA strand having the same sequence as the RNA transcript that are 3’ to the 3’ end of the RNA transcript are referred to as “downstream sequences. ” As used herein, a “corresponding RNA sequence” of a DNA sequence refers to an RNA sequence that is the same as the DNA sequence, except that all “T” in the DNA sequence are replaced with “U” at the corresponding locations in the RNA sequence. Conversely, a “corresponding DNA sequence” of an RNA sequence refers to a DNA sequence that is the same as the RNA sequence, except that all “U” in the RNA sequence are replaced with “T” at the corresponding locations in the DNA sequence.
[0146] The term “vector” refers to a substance that is used to carry or include a nucleic acid sequence, including for example, in order to introduce a nucleic acid sequence into a host cell. Vectors applicable for use include, for example, expression vectors, plasmids, phage vectors, viral vectors, episomes and artificial chromosomes, which can include selection sequences or markers operable for stable integration into a host cell’s chromosome. Additionally, the vectors can include one or more selectable marker genes and appropriate expression control sequences. Selectable marker genes that can be included, for example, provide resistance to antibiotics or toxins, complement auxotrophic deficiencies, or supply critical nutrients not in the culture media. Expression control sequences can include constitutive and / or inducible promoters, transcription enhancers, transcription terminators, and the like which are well known in the art. When two or more nucleic acid molecules are to be co-expressed (e.g., both an antibody heavy and light chain or an antibody VH and VL) both nucleic acid molecules can be inserted, for example, into a single expression vector or in separate expression vectors. For single vector expression, the encoding nucleic acids can be operationally linked to one common expression control sequence or linked to different expression control sequences, such as one inducible promoter and one constitutive promoter. The introduction of nucleic acid molecules into a host cell can be confirmed using methods well known in the art. Such methods include, for example, nucleic acid analysis such as Northern blots or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of mRNA, or immunoblotting for expression of gene products, or other suitable analytical methods to test the expression of an introduced nucleic acid sequence or its corresponding gene product. It is understood by those skilled in the art that the nucleic acid molecules are expressed in a sufficient amount to produce a desired product (e.g., a binding agent as described herein) , and it is further understood that expression levels can be optimized to obtain sufficient expression using methods well known in the art.
[0147] The term “subject” refers to any animal (e.g., a mammal) , including, but not limited to, humans, non-human primates, canines, felines, rabbits, rodents, and the like.
[0148] The term “pharmaceutically acceptable” as used herein means being approved by a regulatory agency of the federal or a state government, or listed in the U.S. Pharmacopeia, European Pharmacopeia or other generally recognized Pharmacopeia for use in animals, and more particularly in humans.
[0149] “Excipient” means a pharmaceutically-acceptable material, composition, carrier or vehicle, such as a liquid or solid filler, diluent, solvent, or encapsulating material. Excipients include, for example, encapsulating materials or additives such as absorption accelerators, antioxidants, binders, buffers, carriers, coating agents, coloring agents, diluents, disintegrating agents, emulsifiers, extenders, fillers, flavoring agents, humectants, lubricants, perfumes, preservatives, propellants, releasing agents, sterilizing agents, sweeteners, solubilizers, wetting agents and mixtures thereof. The term “excipient” can also refer to a diluent, adjuvant (e.g., Freunds’ adjuvant (complete or incomplete) ) or vehicle. In some embodiments, excipients are pharmaceutically acceptable excipients. Examples of pharmaceutically acceptable excipients include buffers, such as phosphate, citrate, and other organic acids; antioxidants, including ascorbic acid; low molecular weight (e.g., fewer than about 10 amino acid residues) polypeptide; proteins, such as serum albumin, gelatin, or immunoglobulins; hydrophilic polymers, such as polyvinylpyrrolidone; amino acids, such as glycine, glutamine, asparagine, arginine, or lysine; monosaccharides, disaccharides, and other carbohydrates, including glucose, mannose, or dextrins; chelating agents, such as EDTA; sugar alcohols, such as mannitol or sorbitol; salt-forming counterions, such as sodium; and / or nonionic surfactants, such as TWEENTM, polyethylene glycol (PEG) , and PLURONICSTM. Other examples of pharmaceutically acceptable excipients are described in Remington and Gennaro, Remington’s Pharmaceutical Sciences (18th ed. 1990) . In one embodiment, each component is “pharmaceutically acceptable” in the sense of being compatible with the other ingredients of a pharmaceutical formulation, and suitable for use in contact with the tissue or organ of humans and animals without excessive toxicity, irritation, allergic response, immunogenicity, or other problems or complications, commensurate with a reasonable benefit / risk ratio. See, e.g., Lippincott Williams &Wilkins: Philadelphia, PA, 2005; Handbook of Pharmaceutical Excipients, 6th ed.; Rowe et al., Eds.; The Pharmaceutical Press and the American Pharmaceutical Association: 2009; Handbook of Pharmaceutical Additives, 3rd ed.; Ash and Ash Eds.; Gower Publishing Company: 2007; Pharmaceutical Preformulation and Formulation, 2nd ed.; Gibson Ed.; CRC Press LLC: Boca Raton, FL, 2009. In some embodiments, pharmaceutically acceptable excipients are nontoxic to the cell or mammal being exposed thereto at the dosages and concentrations employed. In some embodiments, a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient is an aqueous pH buffered solution. In some embodiments, excipients are sterile liquids, such as water and oils, including those of petroleum, animal, vegetable, or synthetic origin, such as peanut oil, soybean oil, mineral oil, sesame oil, and the like. Water is an exemplary excipient when a composition (e.g., a pharmaceutical composition) is administered intravenously. Saline solutions and aqueous dextrose and glycerol solutions can also be employed as liquid excipients, particularly for injectable solutions. An excipient can also include starch, glucose, lactose, sucrose, gelatin, malt, rice, flour, chalk, silica gel, sodium stearate, glycerol monostearate, talc, sodium chloride, dried skim milk, glycerol, propylene, glycol, water, ethanol, and the like. The composition, if desired, can also contain minor amounts of wetting or emulsifying agents, or pH buffering agents. Compositions can take the form of solutions, suspensions, emulsion, tablets, pills, capsules, powders, sustained-release formulations, and the like. Oral compositions, including formulations, can include standard excipients such as pharmaceutical grades of mannitol, lactose, starch, magnesium stearate, sodium saccharine, cellulose, magnesium carbonate, etc. Compositions, including pharmaceutical compounds, may contain a prophylactically or therapeutically effective amount of an CD3, CD19 and / or albumin binding agent (e.g., an antibody) , for example, in isolated or purified form, together with a suitable amount of excipient so as to provide the form for proper administration to the subject (e.g., patient) . The formulation should suit the mode of administration. The term “carrier” or “vehicle” can refer to a molecule able to introduce a polynucleotide into a host cell. In specific embodiments, the carrier may comprise a lipid, a lipid-derived delivery vehicle, such as a liposome, a solid lipid nanoparticle, an oily suspension, a submicron lipid emulsion, a lipid microbubble, an inverse lipid micelle, a cochlear liposome, a lipid microtubule, a lipid microcylinder, a lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , a liopolyplex (LPP) , a cationic polypeptide, a polymeric nanoparticle, or a nanoscale platform, such as a nanoemulsion. (see, e.g., Li et al. Wilery Interdiscip Rev. Nanomed Nanobiotechnol. 77 (2) : el530 (2019) , incorporated by reference herein with respect to its description of carriers and vehicles and methods of making and using such carriers and vehicles to form therapeutics) . In some embodiments, a delivery system is selected from the group consisting of a liposome, lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , lipid complex, lipid polymeric complex (LPP) , mannose delivery system, N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) conjugated delivery system, Apelin receptor targeting delivery system, integrin receptor targeting delivery system, peptide, antibody and any combination thereof.
[0150] An “effective amount” is generally an amount sufficient to reduce the severity and / or frequency of symptoms, eliminate the symptoms and / or underlying cause, prevent or delay the occurrence of symptoms and / or their underlying cause, and / or improve or remediate the damage that results from or is associated with a disease, disorder, or condition. In some embodiments, the effective amount is a therapeutically effective amount or a prophylactically effective amount.
[0151] The term “therapeutically effective amount” as used herein refers to the amount of an agent (e.g., an antibody described herein or any other agent described herein) that is sufficient to reduce and / or ameliorate the severity and / or duration of a given disease, disorder or condition, and / or a symptom related thereto. A therapeutically effective amount of an agent, including a therapeutic agent, can be an amount necessary for (i) reduction, delay or amelioration of the advancement or progression of a given disease, disorder, or condition, (ii) reduction, delay or amelioration of the recurrence, development or onset of a given disease, disorder or conditions, and / or (iii) to improve or enhance the prophylactic or therapeutic effect of another therapy (e.g., a therapy other than the administration of an agent described herein) . A “therapeutically effective amount” of a substance / molecule / agent of the present disclosure (e.g., a bispecific antibody) may vary according to factors such as the disease state, age, sex, and weight of the individual, and the ability of the substance / molecule / agent, to elicit a desired response in the individual. A therapeutically effective amount encompasses an amount in which any toxic or detrimental effects of the substance / molecule / agent are outweighed by the therapeutically beneficial effects. In certain embodiments, the term “therapeutically effective amount” refers to an amount of a multispecific binding agent effective to “treat” a disease, disorder, or condition, in a subject or mammal.
[0152] The term “treating” or any grammatical variation thereof refers to reducing and / or ameliorating the severity and / or duration of a given disease, disorder or condition, and / or a symptom related thereto, such as (i) reduction, delay or amelioration of the advancement or progression of a given disease, disorder, or condition, (ii) reduction, delay or amelioration of the recurrence, development or onset of a given disease, disorder or conditions, and / or (iii) to improve or enhance the prophylactic or therapeutic effect of another therapy (e.g., a therapy other than the administration of a multispecific binding agent described herein) .
[0153] A “prophylactically effective amount” is an amount of a pharmaceutical composition that, when administered to a subject, will have the intended prophylactic effect, e.g., preventing or delaying the onset (or reoccurrence) of a disease, disorder or condition, or reducing the likelihood of the onset (or reoccurrence) of a disease, disorder, or condition or associated symptom (s) .
[0154] The full therapeutic or prophylactic effect does not necessarily occur by administration of one dose, and may occur only after administration of a series of doses. Thus, a therapeutically or prophylactically effective amount may be administered in one or more administrations.
[0155] As used herein, and unless otherwise indicated, the term “about” or “approximately” means an acceptable error for a particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, which depends in part on how the value is measured or determined. In certain embodiments, the term “about” or “approximately” means within 1, 2, 3, or 4 standard deviations. In certain embodiments, the term “about” or “approximately” means within 20%, 15%, 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.05%, or less of a given value or range. As used herein, when “about” is used in connection with a numerical range, the term “about” is meant to apply to both ends of such modified range (e.g., “about 5 to 10” means “about 5 to about 10” ) .
[0156] As used herein, comparative terms as used herein, such as reduce, decrease, increase, or any grammatical variation thereof, can refer to certain variation from the reference. In some embodiments, such variation can refer to about 10%, or about 20%, or about 30%, or about 40%, or about 50%, or about 60%, or about 70%, or about 80%, or about 90%, or about 1 fold, or about 2 fold, or about 3 fold, or about 4 fold, or about 5 fold, or about 10 fold, or about 20 fold, or about 30 fold, or about 40 fold, or about 100 fold or higher than the reference. In some embodiments, such variation can refer to about 1%, or about 2%, or about 3%, or about 4%, or about 5%, or about 6%, or about 7%, or about 8%, or about 9%, or about 10%, or about 20%, or about 30%, or about 40%, or about 50%, or about 60%, or about 70%, or about 80%, or about 90%, or about 95%, or about 96%, or about 97%, or about 98%, or about 99%of the reference.
[0157] As used in the present disclosure and claims, the singular forms “a” , “an” and “the” include plural forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[0158] In some embodiments, the terms “first, ” “second, ” “third, ” “fourth” and similar in a component name are used to distinguish and identify more than one component sharing certain identity in their names. For example, “first antibody” and “second antibody” are used to distinguish two antibodies.
[0159] It is understood that wherever embodiments are described herein with the term “comprising” otherwise analogous embodiments described in terms of “consisting of” and / or “consisting essentially of” are also provided. It is also understood that wherever embodiments are described herein with the phrase “consisting essentially of” otherwise analogous embodiments described in terms of “consisting of” are also provided.
[0160] The term “between” as used in a phrase as such “between A and B” or “between A-B” refers to a range including both A and B.
[0161] The term “and / or” as used in a phrase such as “A and / or B” herein is intended to include both A and B; A or B; A (alone) ; and B (alone) . Likewise, the term “and / or” as used in a phrase such as “A, B, and / or C” is intended to encompass each of the following embodiments: A, B, and C; A, B, or C; A or C; A or B; B or C; A and C; A and B; B and C; A (alone) ; B (alone) ; and C (alone) .
[0162] The term “optional” or “optionally” means that the subsequently described circumstance may or may not occur, so that the description includes instances wherein the circumstance occurs, and the instances wherein the circumstance does not occur. 5.2. Multispecific Binding Agents 5.2.1. CD3 Binding Domains
[0163] The multispecific binding agents provided herein comprise one or more CD3 binding domains. In some embodiments, described herein are multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific or trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3. As used herein, CD3 refers to an CD3 complex, an CD3 polypeptide, an CD3 polypeptide fragment, an CD3 peptide or an CD3 epitope. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domains are derived from human or humanized antibodies (e.g., comprising human framework regions) that bind CD3, including an CD3 complex, an CD3 polypeptide, an CD3 polypeptide fragment, an CD3 peptide or an CD3 epitope. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) can bind to CD3 expressed on the surface of a mammalian (e.g., human) cell, including an CD3 expressing immune cell (e.g., a T cell or a macrophage) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds an CD3 extracellular epitope exposed on a cell such as an immune cell. In some embodiments, described herein is a multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) that binds to CD3, such as human CD3 or a portion thereof. In some embodiments, CD3 is a human CD3. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein is a human CD3 binding agent (e.g., an antibody that binds to human CD3) . In some embodiments, multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific or trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 as disclosed herein bind to both human and cyno CD3. In other embodiments, multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific or trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD3 as disclosed herein bind to human CD3 but not to cyno CD3. In some embodiments, described herein is a multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) that binds to a complex comprising CD3, or a complex comprising extracellular domains of CD3.
[0164] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) with a dissociation constant (KD) of ≤ 1 μM, ≤ 100 nM, ≤ 10 nM, ≤ 1 nM, ≤ 0.1 nM, ≤ 0.01 nM, or ≤ 0.001 nM (e.g. 10-8 M or less, e.g. from 10-8 M to 10-13 M, e.g., from 10-9 M to 10-13 M) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) with a KD of about 0.001 μM, about 0.002 μM, about 0.003 μM, about 0.004 μM, about 0.005 μM, about 0.006 μM, about 0.007 μM, about 0.008 μM, about 0.009 μM, about 0.01 μM, about 0.02 μM, about 0.03 μM, about 0.04 μM, about 0.05 μM, about 0.06 μM, about 0.07 μM, about 0.08 μM, about 0.09 μM, 0.1 μM, about 0.2 μM, about 0.3 μM, about 0.4 μM, about 0.5 μM, about 0.6 μM, about 0.7 μM, about 0.8 μM, about 0.9 μM, about 1.0 μM, about 1.1 μM, about 1.2 μM, about 1.3 μM, about 1.4 μM, about 1.5 μM, about 1.6 μM, about 1.7 μM, about 1.8 μM, about 1.9 μM, about 2.0 μM. In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδcomplex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) with a KD in the range of about 10 to 100 nm. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD3 with a Kd of about 0.03 μM. A variety of methods of measuring binding affinity are known in the art, any of which can be used for purposes of the present disclosure, including by RIA, for example, performed with the Fab version of an antibody of interest and its antigen (Chen et al., 1999, J. Mol Biol 293: 865-81) ; by biolayer interferometry (BLI) or surface plasmon resonance (SPR) assays by using, for example, an Red96 system, or by using, for example, a TM-2000 or a TM-3000. An “on-rate” or “rate of association” or “association rate” or “kon” may also be determined with the same biolayer interferometry (BLI) or surface plasmon resonance (SPR) techniques described above using, for example, the Red96, the TM-2000, the TM-3000 system, the TM-8K, or the TM-8K+ system.
[0165] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprise a VH region, VL region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, VL CDR1, VL CDR2, and / or VL CDR3 of any one of the CD3 binding regions described herein, such as an amino acid sequence of a VH region, VL region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, VL CDR1, VL CDR2, and / or VL CDR3 depicted in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from: (a) the CD3 binding region designated C1; and (b) the CD3 binding region designated C2; and (c) the CD3 binding region designated C4; and (d) the CD3 binding region designated C5, as shown in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from: (a) the CD3 binding region designated C1; and (b) the CD3 binding region designated C2; and (c) the CD3 binding region designated C4; and (d) the CD3 binding region designated C5, as shown in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14.
[0166] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region, which comprises a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and / or a VH CDR3, and / or a VL region, which comprises a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and / or a VL CDR3, of any one of the CD3 binding regions described herein (see, e.g., any one of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14) . Accordingly, in some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 1. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 2. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 13. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 14.
[0167] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7, or SEQ ID NO: 11, or SEQ ID NO: 101, or SEQ ID NO: 103, and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, or SEQ ID NO: 102.
[0168] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and / or a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. CDR sequences can be determined according to well-known numbering systems or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to IMGT numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to Kabat numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to AbM numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Chothia numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Contact numbering. In some embodiments, the CDR sequences are determined according to a combination of any two or more of the above-mentioned numbering systems, for example, a combination of Kabat and Chothia. Various exemplary CDR numbering systems are described and illustrated above in Section 5.1.
[0169] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 2; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 3; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6.
[0170] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 9; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 10; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6.
[0171] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 95; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 96; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 97; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 98; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 99; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 100.
[0172] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 2; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 10; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6.
[0173] In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain in the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein further comprises one or more framework regions of SEQ ID NOs: 7, 8, 11, 101, 102 and 103. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain further comprises a framework 1 (FR1) , a framework 2 (FR2) , a framework 3 (FR3) and / or a framework 4 (FR4) sequence as set forth in any one of SEQ ID NOs: 7, 8, 11, 101, 102, and 103. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein is derived from a humanized antibody. Framework regions described herein are determined based upon the boundaries of the CDR numbering system as described in Section 5.1 above.
[0174] In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domains described herein comprise a VH region or VH domain. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the CD3 binding domains described herein comprise a VL region or VL domain. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domains described herein have a combination of (i) a VH domain or VH region; and (ii) a VL domain or VL region.
[0175] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0176] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0177] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102.
[0178] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0179] In certain embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a CDR, VH or VL in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14, or a full-length antibody chain as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises CDRs of any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14. In further embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a VH or VL in Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14, or a full-length antibody chain as disclosed herein.
[0180] The determination of percent identity between two sequences (e.g., amino acid sequences or nucleic acid sequences) can be accomplished using a mathematical algorithm. A non-limiting example of a mathematical algorithm utilized for the comparison of two sequences is the algorithm of Karlin and Altschul, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 87: 2264 2268 (1990) , modified as in Karlin and Altschul, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 90: 5873 5877 (1993) . Such an algorithm is incorporated into the NBLAST and XBLAST programs of Altschul et al., J. Mol. Biol. 215: 403 (1990) . BLAST nucleotide searches can be performed with the NBLAST nucleotide program parameters set, e.g., for score=100, word length=12 to obtain nucleotide sequences homologous to a nucleic acid molecule described herein. BLAST protein searches can be performed with the XBLAST program parameters set, e.g., to score 50, word length=3 to obtain amino acid sequences homologous to a protein molecule described herein. To obtain gapped alignments for comparison purposes, Gapped BLAST can be utilized as described in Altschul et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 25: 3389 3402 (1997) . In some embodiments, the percent identity between two sequences is calculated by dividing the number of residue (s) varied (excluding or including conservative amino acid substitution (s) or degenerate nucleotide substitution (s) ) between the two sequences in the alignment with the residue number of any one of the following: (i) full length of the shorter sequence, (ii) full length of the longer sequence, (iii) mean length of the two sequences, (iv) total length of the non-gap portion of the alignment, (v) length of the alignment excluding overhangs, or (vi) length of the alignment including overhangs. Overhangs as used herein with respect to a sequence alignment refer to either or both ends of the alignment where residues of one sequence are considered as aligning to no residues (e.g., gap) in the other sequence. Alternatively, PSI BLAST can be used to perform an iterated search which detects distant relationships between molecules (Id. ) . When utilizing BLAST, Gapped BLAST, and PSI Blast programs, the default parameters of the respective programs (e.g., of XBLAST and NBLAST) can be used (see, e.g., National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) on the worldwide web, ncbi. nlm. nih. gov) . Another non-limiting example of a mathematical algorithm utilized for the comparison of sequences is the algorithm of Myers and Miller, CABIOS 4: 11-17 (1998) . Such an algorithm is incorporated in the ALIGN program (version 2.0) which is part of the GCG sequence alignment software package. When utilizing the ALIGN program for comparing amino acid sequences, a PAM120 weight residue table, a gap length penalty of 12, and a gap penalty of 4 can be used. The percent identity between two sequences can be determined using techniques similar to those described above, with or without allowing gaps. In calculating percent identity, typically only exact matches are counted.
[0181] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) contains substitutions (e.g., conservative substitutions) , insertions, or deletions relative to the reference sequence, but the multispecific binding agent comprising that sequence retains the ability to bind to CD3. In some embodiments, a total of 1 to 10 amino acids have been substituted, inserted and / or deleted in a reference amino acid sequence. In some embodiments, substitutions, insertions, or deletions occur in regions outside the CDRs (e.g., in the FRs and / or constant regions) .
[0182] In some embodiments, the position of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) and / or VL (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) region of an CD3 binding domain described herein may vary by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acid positions so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, the position defining a CDR of any of Table 1, 2, 13, or 14 may vary by shifting the N-terminal and / or C-terminal boundary of the CDR by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acids, relative to the current CDR position, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the length of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) and / or VL (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) region of an CD3 binding domain described herein may vary (e.g., be shorter or longer) by one, two, three, four, five, or more amino acids, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids shorter than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 1-6, 9 and 10, and 95-100, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In other embodiments, a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids longer than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 1-6, 9 and 10, and 95-100, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the amino terminus of a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 1-6, 9 and 10, and 95-100, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the carboxy terminus of a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 1-6, 9 and 10, and 95-100, so long as binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Any method known in the art can be used to ascertain whether binding to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained, for example, the binding assays and conditions described in the “Examples” section described herein.
[0183] In other embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) further comprise conservative sequence modifications (e.g., in an CD3 binding domain) . Conservative sequence modifications include conservative amino acid substitutions that include ones in which the amino acid residue is replaced with an amino acid residue having a similar side chain. Families of amino acid residues having similar side chains have been defined in the art. Thus, in some embodiments, a predicted nonessential amino acid residue in an CD3 is replaced with another amino acid residue from the same side chain family. Methods of identifying amino acid conservative substitutions which do not eliminate antigen binding and nucleotides encoding thereof are well-known in the art (see, e.g., Brummell et al., Biochem. 32: 1180-1187 (1993) ; Kobayashi et al. Protein Eng. 12 (10) : 879-884 (1999) ; and Burks et al. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94: 412-417 (1997) ) . In some embodiments, the conservative sequence modifications described herein modify the amino acid sequences of the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) , including human CD3 binding agents, by 50%, or 55%, or 60%, or 65%, or 70%, or 75%, or 80%, or 85%, or 90%, or 95%, or 98%, or 99%. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications refer to at most 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 amino acid substitutions to the CDRs, such as those described in any one of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14. Thus, for example, each such CDR may contain up to 5 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 4 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 3 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 2 conservative amino acid substitutions, or no more than 1 conservative amino acid substitution. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain contains one or more, including six, CDRs having at least 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%identity to the CDRs of the CD3 binding region designated as C1, C2, C3, C4, or C5, (see, e.g., Tables 1, 2, 13, or 14) .
[0184] In some embodiments, an CD3 binding domain contains a VH and a VL comprising CDRs identical to those of C1, C2, C3, C4, or C5 (see, e.g., Tables 1, 2, 13, or 14) . In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within an CDR. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within a CDR (such as CDR1, CDR2, CDR3, or any combination thereof) . Additionally or alternatively, the amino acid sequence modifications are in the framework, constant region, and / or fragment crystallizable region (Fc) .
[0185] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, and the binding of the binding agent to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, and the binding of the binding agent to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102, and the binding of the binding agent to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, and the binding of the binding agent to CD3 (e.g., the human CD3εδ complex or a CD3 polypeptide or an extracellular domain thereof) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%)
[0186] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0187] In some embodiments, functional epitopes can be mapped, e.g., by combinatorial alanine scanning, to identify amino acids in a CD3 polypeptide that are necessary for interaction with a multispecific binding agent, a CD3 binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-CD3 antibody provided herein (e.g., in the following paragraphs) . In some embodiments, conformational and crystal structure of a multispecific binding agent, a CD3 binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-CD3 antibody (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) bound to CD3 may be employed to identify the epitopes. In some embodiments, the present disclosure provides a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprising a CD3 binding domain that specifically binds to the same epitope as any of the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) , CD3 binding domains thereof, and / or the anti-CD3 antibodies or fragments thereof provided herein (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) .
[0188] For example, in some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0189] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with any one of the anti-CD3 antibodies or fragments thereof described herein.
[0190] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD3 competitively with an anti-CD3 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0191] In some embodiments, the CD3 binding region is a scFv. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises one or more amino acid substitutions, such as those stabilizing scFv.
[0192] In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises the VH and VL sequences disclosed in any of Tables 1, 2, 13, and 14. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 7, 11, 101, and 103. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, and 102. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102. In some embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0193] In specific embodiments, any of the VH and the VL domains described herein that bind CD3 may be engineered into scFv format in either VH-linker-VL or VL-linker-VH orientation. Alternatively, the VH and VL domains may be engineered into scFv format without the use of a linker in either the VH-VL or VL-VH orientation.
[0194] In specific embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8. In particular embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are fused directly with one another without a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 is fused to the N terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VH-VL orientation. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 is fused to the C terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VL-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are linked with a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VH-linker-VL orientation in the scFv. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 7 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VL-linker-VH orientation in the scFv. In some embodiments described in the present paragraph, the linker connecting the VH and VL in the scFv comprises a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33 as shown in Table 7.
[0195] In specific embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8. In particular embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are fused directly with one another without a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 is fused to the N terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VH-VL orientation. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 is fused to the C terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VL-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are linked with a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VH-linker-VL orientation in the scFv. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 11 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VL-linker-VH orientation in the scFv. In some embodiments described in the present paragraph, the linker connecting the VH and VL in the scFv comprises a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33 as shown in Table 7.
[0196] In specific embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102. In particular embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 are fused directly with one another without a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 is fused to the N terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 in the VH-VL orientation. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 is fused to the C terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 in the VL-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 are linked with a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 and the linker are fused in the VH-linker-VL orientation in the scFv. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 101 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 102 and the linker are fused in the VL-linker-VH orientation in the scFv. In some embodiments described in the present paragraph, the linker connecting the VH and VL in the scFv comprises a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33 as shown in Table 7.
[0197] In specific embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv comprises the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8. In particular embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are fused directly with one another without a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 is fused to the N terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VH-VL orientation. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 is fused to the C terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 in the VL-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 are linked with a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VH-linker-VL orientation in the scFv. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 103 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 8 and the linker are fused in the VL-linker-VH orientation in the scFv. In some embodiments described in the present paragraph, the linker connecting the VH and VL in the scFv comprises a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33 as shown in Table 7.
[0198] In particular embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv is in the VH-linker-VL orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 12. In particular embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv is in the VH-linker-VL orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 13. In particular embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv is in the VH-linker-VL orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 105. In particular embodiments, the CD3 binding scFv is in the VL-linker-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 106.
[0199] In some embodiments, the antibodies based on which the present CD3 binding arm is derived are superior developability based on a known assay in the art, for example, various chromatographic methods, including size exclusion chromatography (SEC) , hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) , and standup monolayer adsorption chromatography (SMAC) . In some embodiments, the antibodies based on which the present CD3 binding arm is derived are superior developability based on measurement of monomer percentage, solubility, and / or antibody aggregation or precipitation. 5.2.2. CD19 Binding Domains
[0200] Also provided herein is a binding agent that binds to CD19. In some embodiments, the binding agent comprises one or more CD19 binding domains. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agents provided herein further comprise one or more CD19 binding domains. In some embodiments, described herein are multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific or trispecific antibodies) that bind to CD19. As used herein, CD19 refers to a CD19 polypeptide, a CD19 polypeptide fragment, a CD19 peptide or a CD19 epitope. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domains in the present binding agents, such as multispecific binding agents, are derived from human or humanized antibodies (e.g., comprising human framework regions) that bind CD19, including a CD19 polypeptide, a CD19 polypeptide fragment, a CD19 peptide or a CD19 epitope. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., an antibody, a multispecific binding agent, a bispecific antibody or a trispecific specific antibody) can bind to CD19 expressed on the surface of a mammalian (e.g., human) cell, including a CD19 expressing immune cell (e.g., a B cell) and / or a CD19 expressing cancer or tumor cell. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., an antibody, a multispecific binding agent, a bispecific antibody) provided herein binds a CD19 extracellular epitope exposed on a cell such as an immune cell, and / or a cancer or tumor cell. In some embodiments, described herein is a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) that binds to CD19, such as human CD19 or portions thereof. In some embodiments, CD19 is a human CD19. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein is a human CD19 binding agent (e.g., an antibody that binds to human CD19) . In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein binds to both human CD19 and cyno CD19. In other embodiments, the binding agent provided herein binds to human CD19 but not cyno CD19.
[0201] In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) with a dissociation constant (KD) of ≤ 1 μM, ≤ 100 nM, ≤ 10 nM, ≤ 1 nM, ≤ 0.1 nM, ≤ 0.01 nM, or ≤ 0.001 nM (e.g. 10-8 M or less, e.g. from 10-8 M to 10-13 M, e.g., from 10-9 M to 10-13 M) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) with a KD of about 0.001 μM, about 0.002 μM, about 0.003 μM, about 0.004 μM, about 0.005 μM, about 0.006 μM, about 0.007 μM, about 0.008 μM, about 0.009 μM, about 0.01 μM, about 0.02 μM, about 0.03 μM, about 0.04 μM, about 0.05 μM, about 0.06 μM, about 0.07 μM, about 0.08 μM, about 0.09 μM, 0.1 μM, about 0.2 μM, about 0.3 μM, about 0.4 μM, about 0.5 μM, about 0.6 μM, about 0.7 μM, about 0.8 μM, about 0.9 μM, about 1.0 μM, about 1.1 μM, about 1.2 μM, about 1.3 μM, about 1.4 μM, about 1.5 μM, about 1.6 μM, about 1.7 μM, about 1.8 μM, about 1.9 μM, about 2.0 μM. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific antibody) provided herein binds to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) with a KD in the range of about 1-10 nM. A variety of methods of measuring binding affinity are known in the art, any of which can be used for purposes of the present disclosure, including those described herein, e.g., in Section 5.2.1 above.
[0202] In some embodiments, the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprise a VH region, VL region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, VL CDR1, VL CDR2, and / or VL CDR3 of the CD19 binding region, such as an amino acid sequence of a VH region, VL region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, VL CDR1, VL CDR2, and / or VL CDR3 depicted in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. Accordingly, in some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from: (a) the CD19 binding region designated D1; and (b) the CD19 binding region designated D2; and (c) the CD19 binding region designated D3; and (d) the CD19 binding region designated D4, as shown in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from CD19 binding agent as shown in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from: (a) the CD19 binding region designated D1; and (b) the CD19 binding region designated D2; and (c) the CD19 binding region designated D3, and (d) the CD19 binding region designated D4, as shown in Tables 4, 15, 16, and 18.
[0203] In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region, which comprises a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and / or a VH CDR3, and / or a VL region, which comprises a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and / or a VL CDR3, of any one of the binding agents described herein (see, e.g., Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18) . Accordingly, in some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 4. In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 15. In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 16. In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs and / or any one, any two, and / or all three light chain CDRs from Table 18.
[0204] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20, or SEQ ID NO: 112, or SEQ ID NO: 120, or or SEQ ID NO: 187, and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21, or SEQ ID NO: 113, or SEQ ID NO: 121.
[0205] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and / or (ii) a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. CDR sequences can be determined according to well-known numbering systems or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to IMGT numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to Kabat numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to AbM numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Chothia numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Contact numbering. In some embodiments, the CDR sequences are determined according to a combination of any two or more of the above-mentioned numbering systems, for example, a combination of Kabat and Chothia. Various exemplary CDR numbering systems are described and illustrated above in Section 5.1.
[0206] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19.
[0207] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 107; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 108; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 109; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 110; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 91; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 111.
[0208] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (a) a VH region comprising: (1) a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 114; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 115; and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 116; and / or (b) a VL region comprising: (1) a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 117; (2) VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 118; and (3) a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 119.
[0209] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, and a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19.
[0210] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 107, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 108, and a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 109. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 110, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 91, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 111. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 107, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 108, a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 109; and a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 110, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 91, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 111.
[0211] some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 114, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 115, and a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 116. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 117, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 118, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 119. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region comprising a VH CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 114, a VH CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 115, a VH CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 116; and a VL region comprising a VL CDR1 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 117, a VL CDR2 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 118, and a VL CDR3 comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 119.
[0212] In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain in the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein further comprises one or more framework regions of SEQ ID NOs: 20, 21, 112, 113, 120, 121, and 187. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain further comprises a framework 1 (FR1) , a framework 2 (FR2) , a framework 3 (FR3) and / or a framework 4 (FR4) sequence as set forth in any one of SEQ ID NOs: 20, 21, 112, 113, 120, 121, and 187. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein is derived from a humanized antibody. Framework regions described herein are determined based upon the boundaries of the CDR numbering system as described in Section 5.1 above.
[0213] In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domains described herein comprise a VH region or VH domain. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the CD19 binding domains described herein comprise a VL region or VL domain. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domains described herein have a combination of (i) a VH domain or VH region; and (ii) a VL domain or VL region.
[0214] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0215] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0216] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121.
[0217] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL consisting of the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0218] In certain embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a CDR, VH or VL in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18, or a full-length antibody chain as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises CDRs of any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. In further embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a VH or VL in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18, or a full-length antibody chain as disclosed herein. The determination of percent identity between two sequences (e.g., amino acid sequences or nucleic acid sequences) can be accomplished using a method as described in Section 5.2.1 above.
[0219] In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein contains substitutions (e.g., conservative substitutions) , insertions, or deletions relative to the reference sequence, but the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprising that sequence retains the ability to bind to CD19. In some embodiments, a total of 1 to 10 amino acids have been substituted, inserted and / or deleted in a reference amino acid sequence. In some embodiments, substitutions, insertions, or deletions occur in regions outside the CDRs (e.g., in the FRs, constant regions, and / or Fc regions) .
[0220] In some embodiments, the position of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) and / or VL (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) region of a CD19 binding domain described herein may vary by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acid positions so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, the position defining a CDR of Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18, may vary by shifting the N-terminal and / or C-terminal boundary of the CDR by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acids, relative to the current CDR position, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the length of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) and / or VL (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) region of a CD19 binding domain described herein may vary (e.g., be shorter or longer) by one, two, three, four, five, or more amino acids, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids shorter than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 14 to 19, and 107-110, 91, 111, and 114-119, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In other embodiments, a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids longer than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 14 to 19, and 107-110, 91, 111, and 114-119, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the amino terminus of a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 14 to 19, and 107-110, 91, 111, and 114-119, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the carboxy terminus of a VH and / or VL CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 14 to 19, and 107-110, 91, 111, and 114-119, so long as binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Any method known in the art can be used to ascertain whether binding to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained, for example, the binding assays and conditions described in the “Examples” section described herein.
[0221] In other embodiments, the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) further comprise conservative sequence modifications (e.g., in a CD19 binding region) . Conservative sequence modifications are described in more detail in Section 5.2.1 above. In some embodiments, the conservative sequence modifications described herein modify the amino acid sequences of the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) , including human CD19 binding agents, by 50%, or 55%, or 60%, or 65%, or 70%, or 75%, or 80%, or 85%, or 90%, or 95%, or 98%, or 99%. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications refer to at most 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 amino acid substitutions to the CDRs, such as those described in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. Thus, for example, each such CDR may contain up to 5 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 4 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 3 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 2 conservative amino acid substitutions, or no more than 1 conservative amino acid substitution. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain contains one or more, including six, CDRs having at least 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%identity to the CDRs of the CD19 binding region designated as D1, D2, or D3 (see, e.g., Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18) .
[0222] In some embodiments, a CD19 binding domain contains a VH and a VL comprising CDRs identical to those of the CD19 binding region designated as D1, D2 or D3 (see, e.g., Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18) . In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within an CDR. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within a CDR (such as CDR1, CDR2, CDR3, or any combination thereof) . In further embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications are in the framework, constant region, and / or Fc region. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21, and the binding of the binding agent to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113, and the binding of the binding agent to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121, and the binding of the binding agent to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187, and / or a VL domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113, and the binding of the binding agent to CD19 (e.g., human CD19) is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) .
[0223] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0224] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0225] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121.
[0226] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises (i) a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187; and (ii) VL having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0227] In some embodiments, functional epitopes can be mapped, e.g., by combinatorial alanine scanning, to identify amino acids in the CD19 protein that are necessary for interaction with a multispecific binding agent, a CD19 binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-CD19 antibody provided herein (e.g., in the following paragraphs) . In some embodiments, conformational and crystal structure of a multispecific binding agent, a CD19 binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-CD19 antibody (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) bound to CD19 may be employed to identify the epitopes. In some embodiments, the present disclosure provides a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprising a CD19 binding domain that specifically binds to the same epitope as any of the multispecific binding agents as disclosed herein, CD19 binding domains thereof, and / or the anti-CD19 antibodies or fragments thereof provided herein (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) .
[0228] For example, in some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:21. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:120, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0229] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with any one of the anti-CD19 antibodies or fragments thereof described herein.
[0230] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to CD19 competitively with an anti-CD19 antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187, and a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0231] In some specific embodiments, the CD19 binding region is a scFv. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises one or more amino acid substitutions, such as those stabilizing scFv.
[0232] In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises the VH and VL sequences disclosed in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises a VH comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL comprising the sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0233] In specific embodiments, any of the VH and the VL domains described herein that bind CD19 may be engineered into scFv format in either the VH-linker-VL or VL-linker-VH orientation. Alternatively, the VH and VL domains may be engineered into scFv format without the use of a linker in either the VH-VL or VL-VH orientation.
[0234] In specific embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv comprises the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21. In particular embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 are fused directly with one another without a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 is fused to the N terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 in the VH-VL orientation. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 is fused to the C terminus of the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 in the VL-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 are linked with a linker in the scFv. In some embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 and the linker are fused in the VH-linker-VL orientation in the scFv. In other embodiments, the VH comprising SEQ ID NO: 20 and the VL comprising SEQ ID NO: 21 and the linker are fused in the VL-linker-VH orientation in the scFv. In some embodiments described in the present paragraph, the linker connecting the VH and VL in the scFv comprises a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33 as shown in Table 7.
[0235] In particular embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv is in the VL-linker-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 22. In particular embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv is in the VL-linker-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 122. In particular embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv is in the VL-linker-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 123. In particular embodiments, the CD19 binding scFv is in the VL-linker-VH orientation. In some embodiments, the scFv comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 188.
[0236] In some embodiments, the CD19 binding agent described herein binds CD19 at the extracellular domain. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding agent described herein binds CD19 that is full length CD19. In some embodiments, the CD19 binding agent described herein binds CD19 that is less than the full-length CD19. In particular embodiments, CD19 that is bound by the present CD19 binding agent is a membrane-associated fragment of CD19.
[0237] In some embodiments, upon binding to the CD19 molecule, the present CD19-binding molecule binds to the cell expressing the CD19 protein. In some embodiments, the CD19-expressing cell is a cancer cell or a tumor cell. 5.2.3. Albumin Binding Domains
[0238] Also provided herein is a binding agent that binds to albumin. In some embodiments, the binding agent comprises one or more albumin binding domains. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agents provided herein further comprise one or more albumin binding domains. In some embodiments, described herein are multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific or trispecific antibodies) that bind to albumin. As used herein, albumin refers to a albumin polypeptide, a albumin polypeptide fragment, a albumin peptide or a albumin epitope. In some embodiments, the albumin binding domains in the present binding agents, such as multispecific binding agents, are derived from human or humanized antibodies (e.g., comprising human framework regions) that bind albumin, including a albumin polypeptide, a albumin polypeptide fragment, a albumin peptide or a albumin epitope. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., an antibody, a multispecific binding agent, a bispecific antibody or a trispecific specific antibody) can bind to soluble albumin present in plasma. In some embodiments, described herein is a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) that binds to albumin, such as serum albumin or portions thereof. In some embodiments, albumin is a human serum albumin (ALB) . In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein is a human albumin binding agent (e.g., an antibody that binds to ALB) . In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein binds to both human albumin and cyno albumin (such as cyno serum albumin) . In other embodiments, the binding agent provided herein binds to human albumin but not cyno albumin.
[0239] In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein binds to albumin (e.g., human ALB) with a dissociation constant (KD) of ≤ 1 μM, ≤ 100 nM, ≤ 10 nM, ≤ 1 nM, ≤ 0.1 nM, ≤ 0.01 nM, or ≤ 0.001 nM (e.g. 10-8 M or less, e.g. from 10-8 M to 10-13 M, e.g., from 10-9 M to 10-13 M) . In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific antibody) provided herein binds to albumin (e.g., human ALB) with a KD of about 0.001 μM, about 0.002 μM, about 0.003 μM, about 0.004 μM, about 0.005 μM, about 0.006 μM, about 0.007 μM, about 0.008 μM, about 0.009 μM, about 0.01 μM, about 0.02 μM, about 0.03 μM, about 0.04 μM, about 0.05 μM, about 0.06 μM, about 0.07 μM, about 0.08 μM, about 0.09 μM, 0.1 μM, about 0.2 μM, about 0.3 μM, about 0.4 μM, about 0.5 μM, about 0.6 μM, about 0.7 μM, about 0.8 μM, about 0.9 μM, about 1.0 μM, about 1.1 μM, about 1.2 μM, about 1.3 μM, about 1.4 μM, about 1.5 μM, about 1.6 μM, about 1.7 μM, about 1.8 μM, about 1.9 μM, about 2.0 μM. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent (e.g., a bispecific antibody) provided herein binds to albumin (e.g., human ALB) with a KD in the range of about 10-100 nM. A variety of methods of measuring binding affinity are known in the art, any of which can be used for purposes of the present disclosure, including those described herein, e.g., in Section 5.2.1 above.
[0240] In some embodiments, the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprise a VH region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, such as an amino acid sequence of a VH region, VH CDR1, VH CDR2, VH CDR3, depicted in Tables 6 and 17. Accordingly, in some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs from: (a) the ALB binding region designated A1; and (b) the ALB binding region designated A2, as shown in Tables 6 and 17.
[0241] In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH region, which comprises a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and / or a VH CDR3 of any one of the binding agents described herein (see, e.g., Tables 6 and 17) . Accordingly, in some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs from Table 6. In some embodiments, a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) described herein comprises any one, any two, and / or all three heavy chain CDRs from Table 17.
[0242] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26 or SEQ ID NO: 125. CDR sequences can be determined according to well-known numbering systems or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to IMGT numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to Kabat numbering. In some embodiments, the CDRs are according to AbM numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Chothia numbering. In other embodiments, the CDRs are according to Contact numbering. In some embodiments, the CDR sequences are determined according to a combination of any two or more of the above-mentioned numbering systems, for example, a combination of Kabat and Chothia. Various exemplary CDR numbering systems are described and illustrated above in Section 5.1.
[0243] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (1) a VH region comprising: a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24 and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 25. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises (1) a VH region comprising: a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23; (2) a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24 and (3) a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 124.
[0244] In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain in the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein further comprises one or more framework region of SEQ ID NOs: 26 and 125. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain further comprises a framework 1 (FR1) , a framework 2 (FR2) , a framework 3 (FR3) and / or a framework 4 (FR4) sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NOs: 26 and 125. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain provided herein is derived from a humanized antibody. Framework regions described herein are determined based upon the boundaries of the CDR numbering system as described in Section 5.1 above.
[0245] In some embodiments, the ALB binding domains described herein comprise a VH region or VH domain. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain described herein is a VHH domain.
[0246] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprises a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125.
[0247] In certain embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a CDR or VH in Tables 6 and 17, or a full-length antibody chain as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises CDRs of any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example in Tables 6 and 17. In further embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises amino acid sequences with certain percent identity (such as at least about 80%, or at least about 81%, or at least about 82%, or at least about 83%, or at least about 84%, or at least about 85%, or at least about 86%, or at least about 87%, or at least about 88%, or at least about 89%, or as at least about 90%, or at least about 91%, or at least about 92%, or at least about 93%, or at least about 94%, or at least about 95%, or at least about 96%, or at least about 97%, or at least about 98%, or at least about 99%, or higher) relative to any antibody or fragment thereof provided herein, for example, a VH in Tables 6 and 17. The determination of percent identity between two sequences (e.g., amino acid sequences or nucleic acid sequences) can be accomplished using a method as described in Section 5.2.1 above.
[0248] In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein contains substitutions (e.g., conservative substitutions) , insertions, or deletions relative to the reference sequence, but the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprising that sequence retains the ability to bind to ALB. In some embodiments, a total of 1 to 10 amino acids have been substituted, inserted and / or deleted in a reference amino acid sequence. In some embodiments, substitutions, insertions, or deletions occur in regions outside the CDRs (e.g., in the FRs, constant regions, and / or Fc regions) .
[0249] In some embodiments, the position of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) of a ALB binding domain described herein may vary by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acid positions so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, the position defining a CDR of Table 6 or 17 may vary by shifting the N-terminal and / or C-terminal boundary of the CDR by one, two, three, four, five, or six amino acids, relative to the current CDR position, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the length of one or more CDRs along the VH (e.g., CDR1, CDR2, or CDR3) region of a ALB binding domain described herein may vary (e.g., be shorter or longer) by one, two, three, four, five, or more amino acids, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . For example, in some embodiments, a VH CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids shorter than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOs: 23 to 25, and 124, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In other embodiments, a VH CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids longer than one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOs: 23 to 25, and 124, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the amino terminus of a VH CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOs: 23 to 25, and 124, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the carboxy terminus of a VH CDR1, CDR2, and / or CDR3 described herein may be extended or shortened by one, two, three, four, five or more amino acids compared to one or more of the CDRs described by SEQ ID NOS: 23 to 25, and 124, so long as binding to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . Any method known in the art can be used to ascertain whether binding to ALB is maintained, for example, the binding assays and conditions described in the “Examples” section described herein.
[0250] In other embodiments, the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) further comprise conservative sequence modifications (e.g., in a ALB binding region) . Conservative sequence modifications are described in more detail in Section 5.2.1 above. In some embodiments, the conservative sequence modifications described herein modify the amino acid sequences of the binding agents (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) , including human ALB binding agents, by 50%, or 55%, or 60%, or 65%, or 70%, or 75%, or 80%, or 85%, or 90%, or 95%, or 98%, or 99%. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications refer to at most 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 amino acid substitutions to the CDRs, such as those described in Tables 6 and 17. Thus, for example, each such CDR may contain up to 5 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 4 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 3 conservative amino acid substitutions, for example up to (not more than) 2 conservative amino acid substitutions, or no more than 1 conservative amino acid substitution. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain contains one or more, including three, CDRs having at least 75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 96%, 97%, 98%, or 99%identity to the CDRs of the ALB binding region designated as A1 or A2 (see, e.g., Tables 6 and 17) .
[0251] In some embodiments, a ALB binding domain contains a VH comprising CDRs identical to those of the ALB binding region designated as A1 or A2 (see, e.g., Tables 6 and 7) . In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within an CDR. In some embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications do not include any modification within a CDR (such as CDR1, CDR2, CDR3, or any combination thereof) . In further embodiments, the amino acid sequence modifications are in the framework, constant region, and / or Fc region.
[0252] In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26, and the binding of the binding agent to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) . In some embodiments, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH domain having at least 75%, at least 80%, at least 85%, at least 90%, at least 91%, at least 92%, at least 93%, at least 94%, at least 95%, at least 96%, at least 97%, at least 98%, or at least 99%sequence identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125, and the binding of the binding agent to ALB is maintained (e.g., substantially maintained, for example, at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, at least 90%, or at least 95%) .
[0253] In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In one embodiment, the binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) provided herein comprises a VH having an amino acid sequence having at least 95%identity to an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125.
[0254] In some embodiments, functional epitopes can be mapped, e.g., by combinatorial alanine scanning, to identify amino acids in the ALB protein that are necessary for interaction with a multispecific binding agent, a ALB binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-ALB antibody provided herein (e.g., in the following paragraphs) . In some embodiments, conformational and crystal structure of a multispecific binding agent, a ALB binding domain thereof, and / or an anti-ALB antibody (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) bound to ALB may be employed to identify the epitopes. In some embodiments, the present disclosure provides a binding agent (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) comprising a ALB binding domain that specifically binds to the same epitope as any of the multispecific binding agents as disclosed herein, ALB binding domains thereof, and / or the anti-ALB antibodies or fragments thereof provided herein (e.g., provided in the following paragraphs) .
[0255] For example, in some embodiments, the ALB binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125. In some embodiments, the ALB binding domain provided herein binds to the same epitope as an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125.
[0256] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to ALB competitively with any one of the anti-ALB antibodies or fragments thereof described herein.
[0257] In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to ALB competitively with an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to ALB competitively with an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to ALB competitively with an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125. In some embodiments, the binding agent provided herein (e.g., a monospecific antibody, a multispecific antibody such as a bispecific or trispecific antibody) specifically binds to ALB competitively with an anti-ALB antibody comprising a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 125.
[0258] In some specific embodiments, the ALB binding region is a VHH. In some embodiments, the ALB binding VHH comprises the VH sequences disclosed in Tables 6 and 17. In some embodiments, the ALB binding VHH comprises a VH comprising the sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 26 and 125.
[0259] In some embodiments, the ALB binding agent described herein binds ALB at a certain domain or epitope. In some embodiments, the ALB binding agent described herein binds ALB that is full length ALB. In some embodiments, the ALB binding agent described herein binds ALB that is less than the full-length ALB.
[0260] In some embodiments, upon binding to the ALB molecule, the present ALB-binding molecule binds and attach to soluble albumin, such as soluble ALB protein in plasma. 5.2.4. Multispecific Antibodies.
[0261] Provided herein is a multispecific binding agent that binds to CD3 and a non-CD3 antigen (such as CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent comprises one or more CD3 binding domains and one or more non-CD3 antigen binding domains (such as one or more CD19 binding domains) . In certain embodiments, the present multispecific binding agent is a multispecific antibody comprising one or more CD3 binding domains each independently selected from the CD3 binding domains described in Section 5.2.1 above and one or more CD19 binding domains each independently selected from the CD19 binding domains described in Section 5.2.2 above. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent further comprises one or more albumin binding domains. In some embodiments, the one or more albumin binding domains are independently selected from the albumin binding fragment descried in Section 5.2.3 above.
[0262] According to the present disclosure, for a bispecific / multispecific molecule to engage T cells expressing a T cell antigen (e.g., CD3) with a target cell expressing a target antigen (e.g., a diseased cell expressing CD19) , the binding arms targeting the T cell antigen and the target antigen are carefully selected, so that the molecule has a balanced binding affinity for the two or more antigens and an enlarged clinical therapeutic window. In specific embodiments, provided herein are anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific molecules, wherein the molecule has a relative binding affinity KD (CD3) / KD (CD19) in the range of about 1: 10 to about 1: 1000. In specific embodiments, the relative binding affinity KD (CD3) / KD (CD19) is about 1: 10, about 1: 50, about 1: 100, about 1: 200, about 1: 300, about 1: 400, about 1: 500, about 1: 600, about 1: 700, about 1: 800, about 1: 900, about 1: 1000.
[0263] In some specific embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains each independently selected from CD3 binding domains comprising: (i) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; or (ii) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8, or (iii) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102, or (iv) a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.
[0264] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0265] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 11 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0266] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0267] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0268] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 112 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0269] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0270] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 101 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 102; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 120 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 121. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0271] In some embodiments, provided herein is a multispecific binding agent comprising one or more CD3 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 103 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and one or more CD19 binding domains, each comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 as set forth in a VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 187 and a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 as set forth in a VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 113. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) .
[0272] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical or different pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and one CD19 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain (e.g., with a pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical or different pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises two CD3 binding domains (e.g., with two identical or different pair of VH and VL regions that bind to CD3) and two CD19 binding domains (e.g., with two identical or different pairs of VH and VL regions that bind to CD19) . In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent further comprises one or more heavy chain constant regions (such as CH1, CH2, and / or CH3) and / or one or more light chain constant regions (such as CL) .
[0273] In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain in the form of a first anti-CD3 scFv, and one CD19 binding domain in the form of a second anti-CD19 scFv. In some embodiments, the anti-CD19 scFv adopts the VLCD19-linker-VHCD19 configuration or the VHCD19-linker-VLCD19 configuration, as described herein. In some embodiments, the anti-CD3 scFv adopts the VLCD3-linker-VHCD3 configuration or the VHCD3-linker-VLCD3 configuration.
[0274] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein comprises one CD3 binding domain and one CD19 binding domain in the form of an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2. In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agents disclosed herein comprise one or more bivalent (scFv) 2 structures (e.g., an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure) . In particular embodiments, any of the VH and the VL domains identified herein may also be used to generate bivalent (scFv) 2 structures, such as in the bivalent format of VH-linker-VL-linker-VL-linker-VH, VH-linker-VL-linker-VH-linker-VL, VH-linker-VH-linker-VL-linker-VL, VL-linker-VH-linker-VH-linker-VL, VL-linker-VH-linker-VL-linker-VH, or VL-linker-VL-linker-VH-linker-VH.
[0275] In specific embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-linker-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-linker-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VH-linker-VL-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-linker-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-linker-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VL-linker-VH-linker-VH.
[0276] Alternatively, the use of one or more linkers in the (scFv) 2 structures described herein may be avoided, and any two of the VH and VL domains may be joint directly. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-linker-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-linker-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-linker-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-VL-VH.
[0277] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-linker-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-linker-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-linker-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VL-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VL-VH-VL.
[0278] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VH-linker-VL-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VH-VL-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VH-linker-VL-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VH-VL-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VH-linker-VL-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-linker-VH-VL-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VH-VH-VL-VL.
[0279] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-linker-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-linker-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-VH-linker-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-linker-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-VH-VL. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-VH-VL.
[0280] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-linker-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-linker-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-VL-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-linker-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VH-VL-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VH-VL-VH.
[0281] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VL-linker-VH-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VL-VH-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VL-linker-VH-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VL-VH-linker-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VL-linker-VH-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-linker-VL-VH-VH. In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent described herein comprises an anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 that binds CD3 and CD19 in the format of VL-VL-VH-VH.
[0282] In some embodiments, a first VH domain of the two VH domains and a first VL domain of the two VL domains in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein form the CD3 binding domain and the second VH domain of the two VH domains and the second VL domain of the two VL domains in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein form the CD19 binding domain. In specific embodiments, the first VH and first VL domains forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 are independently selected from the VH and VL domains disclosed in any of Tables 1 and 2 and 13-14. In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 7 11, 101 and 103, and the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NOs: 8, and 102. In specific embodiments, the pair of second VH and second VL domains forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 are independently selected from the VH and VL domain disclosed in Tables 4, 15, 16 and 18. In specific embodiments, the second VH domain forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NOs: 20, 112, 120 and 187 and the second VL domain forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NOs: 21, 113 and 121 .
[0283] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 7, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 8, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 20, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0284] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 11, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 8, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 20, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0285] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 101, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 102, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 20, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 21.
[0286] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 7, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 8, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 112, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0287] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 101, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 102, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 112, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0288] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 7, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 8, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 120, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 121.
[0289] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 101, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 102, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 120, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 121.
[0290] In specific embodiments, the first VH forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 103, the first VL forming the CD3 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 8, the second VH forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 187, and the second VL forming the CD19 binding domain of the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 comprises the amino acid sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO: 113.
[0291] In some embodiments, the linker is a peptide linker. In some embodiments, the peptide linker contains at least one naturally occurring amino acid. Exemplary amino acids that can be included into the linker are Gly, Ser, Pro, Thr, Glu, Lys, Arg, Ile, Leu, and His. In alternative embodiments, the linker contains at least one amino acid analogs that is not naturally occurring. According to the present disclosure, the peptide linker can have a length that is adequate to link the VH and the VL in such a way that they form the correct conformation relative to one another so that they retain the desired activity, such as binding to CD19 or CD3.
[0292] In some embodiments, the linker is about 5-50 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 10-40 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 10-35 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 10-30 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 10-25 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 10-20 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 15-20 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is about 16-19 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 6 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 7 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 8 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 9 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 10 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 11 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 12 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 13 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 14 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 15 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 16 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 17 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 18 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 19 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 20 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 21 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 22 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 23 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 24 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 25 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 26 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 27 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 28 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 29 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 30 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 31 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 32 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 33 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 34 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 35 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 36 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 37 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 38 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 39 amino acids long. In other embodiments, the linker is 40 amino acids long. Exemplary linkers that can be used are Gly rich linkers, Gly and Ser containing linkers, Gly and Ala containing linkers, Ala and Ser containing linkers, and other flexible linkers.
[0293] Other linker sequences can include portions of immunoglobulin hinge area, CL or CH1 derived from any immunoglobulin heavy or light chain isotype. Alternatively, a variety of non-proteinaceous polymers, including polyethylene glycol (PEG) , polypropylene glycol, polyoxyalkylenes, or copolymers of polyethylene glycol and polypropylene glycol, may find use as linkers. Exemplary linkers that may be used are shown in the following Table. Additional linkers are described for example in Int. Pat. Publ. No. WO2019 / 060695.
[0294] In specific embodiments, the one or more linkers used in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structures described herein are independently selected from any one of SEQ ID NOS: 27 to 33. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 27. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 28. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 29. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 30. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 31. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 32. In particular embodiments, at least one of the linkers in the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 structure described herein comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 33.
[0295] In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 34. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 35. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 127. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 129. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 130. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 132. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 133. In specific embodiments, the anti-CD3 / anti-CD19 bispecific (scFv) 2 described herein comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 135.
[0296] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein has an antibody format shown in any of the panels in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “scFv-KIH” format as depicted in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “Diabody-monomeric Fc” format as shown in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “BiTE-monomeric Fc” format as shown in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “ (bi-scFv) 2-Fc” format as shown in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “ (scFv) 2-Fab” format as shown in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the bispecific antibody provided herein is in the “trivalent-scFv” format as shown in FIG. 1.
[0297] In some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein has an antibody format shown in any of the panels in FIG. 1, but its CD19 arm is switched with its CD3 arm. For example, in the scFv-KIH format, Chain 1 forms a binding site for CD3 (accordingly referred to as an CD3 arm, instead of a CD19 arm as marked in the “scFv-KIH” panel of FIG. 1) , while Chain 2 forms a binding site for CD19 (accordingly referred to as a CD19 arm, instead of an CD3 arm as marked in the “scFv-KIH” panel of FIG. 1) . Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the multispecific binding agent provided herein has an antibody format shown in any of the panels in FIG. 1, but its knob mutation (s) in one CH3 at the C terminus of CH2 is switched with its hole mutation (s) in the other CH3 at the C terminus of CH2. For example, in the scFv-KIH format, the knob mutation (s) can be in the CH3 which is at the C terminus of CH2 of Chain 1, while the hole mutation (s) can be in the CH3 which is at the C terminus of CH2 of Chain 2.
[0298] In some embodiments, mutations are introduced to one or more of the heavy chain constant regions (such as CH1, CH2, and / or CH3) and / or one or more light chain constant regions (such as CL) , in order to achieve one or more of the following: (i) destabilizing a homodimer formed by a polypeptide of the multispecific antibody; (ii) stabilizing a multispecific antibody (also referred to herein as a heterodimer) as described herein; (iii) facilitating a proper assembly of a multispecific antibody as described herein; (iv) favoring heterodimerization over homodimerization of the constituent polypeptide chains; (v) improving the yield of a multispecific antibody as described herein; and (vi) improving the purity of a multispecific antibody as described herein. A variety of mutations have been developed that drive preferential heterodimerization, such as knob-in-hole (KIH or KiH) mutations (see, e.g., US Pat. Nos. 5, 731, 168; 5, 807, 706; 5, 821, 333; and 8, 216, 805) , disulfide-stabilized KIH mutations (see, e.g., US Pat. Nos. 7, 951, 917; 8, 642, 745; and 9, 409, 989) , and others (see, e.g., WO 2022 / 125986) . Each of the patents and / or patent publications cited herein is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0299] Although specific exemplary multispecific antibody formats are described in the Example section below and in any of the panels in FIG. 1, it is contemplated that any multispecific antibody formats known in the art can be used and are included in the present disclosure.
[0300] Multispecific binding agents (e.g., bispecific antibodies) described herein may be bispecific, trispecific or of greater multispecificity. Such agents may include multispecific antibodies. In some embodiments, multispecific antibodies, such as bispecific antibodies, are monoclonal antibodies that have binding specificities for at least two different targets (e.g., antigens) or two different epitopes on the same target (e.g., a bispecific antibody directed to CD3 with a first binding domain for a first epitope of an CD3 polypeptide, and a second binding domain for a second epitope of the CD3 polypeptide) . In some embodiments, the multispecific (e.g., bispecific or trispecific) antibodies can be constructed based on the sequences of the antibodies described herein, e.g., the CDR sequences listed in Tables 1, 2, 4, 6, and 13-18. In some embodiments, the multispecific antibodies described herein are bispecific antibodies. In some embodiments, the multispecific antibody described herein (e.g., a bispecific or trispecific antibody) has binding specificities for two targets, for example, CD3 and CD19. In some embodiments, bispecific antibodies are mouse, chimeric, human or humanized antibodies.
[0301] In some embodiments, one of the binding specificities of the multispecific antibody provided herein is for CD3, a second binding specificity of the multispecific antibody provided herein is CD19, and yet one or more additional binding specificities are for any other target (s) (e.g., antigen) . In some embodiments, a multispecific antibody can comprise more than one target (e.g., antigen) binding domain, in which different binding domains are specific for different targets. In some embodiments, the additional target is an immune checkpoint regulator (e.g., a negative checkpoint regulator) . In some embodiments, the additional target is expressed on an immune cell. In some embodiments, the additional target is expressed on a tumor or cancer cell.
[0302] In some embodiments, multispecific (e.g., bispecific) antibody molecules can bind more than one (e.g., two or more) epitopes on the same target (e.g., antigen) . In some embodiments, a multispecific (e.g., bispecific) binder as disclosed herein can bind to one or more epitopes on a first target (such as CD3) and one or more epitopes on a second target (such as CD19) .
[0303] Methods for making multispecific antibodies are known in the art, such as, by co-...
Claims
1.A nucleic acid comprising a polynucleotide encoding a multispecific antibody or fragment thereof, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a first binding domain that binds to CD3, a second binding domain that binds to CD19, and a third binding domain that binds to human serum albumin (ALB) .2.The nucleic acid of claim 1, wherein the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises a single chain variable fragment (scFv) comprising a first heavy chain variable region (VH) and a first light chain variable region (VL) , the second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises a scFv comprising a second VH and a second VL; optionally wherein the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) ;preferably, wherein the multispecific antibody comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus:(a) the second binding domain that binds to CD19, the first binding domain that binds to CD3, and the third binding domain that binds to ALB; or(b) the third binding domain that binds to ALB, the second binding domain that binds to CD19, the first binding domain that binds to CD3; or(c) the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH; or(d) the VHH, the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, and the first VL.3.The nucleic acid of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first binding domain that binds to CD3 comprises: a first heavy chain variable region (VH) comprising a VH complementarity-determining region (CDR) 1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a first light chain variable region (VL) comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and / orthe second binding domain that binds to CD19 comprises: a second VH comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a second VL comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21;optionally wherein:the third binding domain that binds to ALB comprises: a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.4.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 3, whereinthe first binding domain comprises: (a) the VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, the VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and the VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3; and (b) the VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4, the VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5, and the VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6; and / orthe second binding domain comprises: (a) the VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, the VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, and the VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and (b) the VL region comprising a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, the VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and the VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19; and / orthe third binding domain comprises the VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23, the VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24, and the VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 25.5.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1-4, whereinthe first binding domain comprises the first VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and the first VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8; and / orthe second binding domain comprises the second VH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and the second VL comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21; and / orthe third binding domain comprises the VHH comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.6.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the polypeptide comprises, from N-terminus to C-terminus, the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH;wherein optionally the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 53.7.The nucleic acid of claim 4, wherein the polynucleotide comprises(a) a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 189 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(b) a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 190 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(c) a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the first VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 191 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(d) a fragment encoding the VL CDR1 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 192 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(e) a fragment encoding the VL CDR2 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 193 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(f) a fragment encoding the VL CDR3 of the first VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 194 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(g) a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 197 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(h) a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 198 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(i) a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the second VH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 199 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(j) a fragment encoding the VL CDR1 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 200 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(k) a fragment encoding the VL CDR2 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 201 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(l) a fragment encoding the VL CDR3 of the second VL having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 202 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(m) a fragment encoding the VH CDR1 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 205 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(n) a fragment encoding the VH CDR2 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 206 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof; and / or(o) a fragment encoding the VH CDR3 of the VHH having the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 207 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof.8.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the polynucleotide comprises:(a) a fragment encoding the first VH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 195 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(b) a fragment encoding the first VL having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 196 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(c) a fragment encoding the second VH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 203 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof;(d) a fragment encoding the second VL having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 204 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof; and / or(e) a fragment encoding the VHH having at least about 80%sequence identity to the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 208 or the corresponding RNA sequence thereof.9.A nucleic acid comprising one or more nucleotide sequences selected from SEQ ID NOs: 189-194, 197-202, and 205-207, or a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 189-194, 197-202, and 205-207.10.A nucleic acid comprising one or more nucleotide sequences selected from SEQ ID NOs: 195, 196, 203, 204, and 208 or a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 195, 196, 203, 204, and 208.11.The nucleic acid of claim 9 or 10, wherein the nucleic acid encodes an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 53.12.A nucleic acid encoding an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 53.13.The nucleic acid of claim 12 comprising a nucleotide sequence having at least about 80%sequence identity to a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 73-76, 149, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 73-76, and 149.14.The nucleic acid of claim 13, comprising a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 74, 73 and a corresponding RNA sequence of any of SEQ ID NOs: 74 and 73; or a nucleotide sequence having at least about 90%, at least about 95%, at least about 96%, at least about 97%, at least about 98%or at least about 99%identity to a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 74, 73 and a corresponding RNA sequence of any of SEQ ID NOs: 74 and 73.15.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 14, further comprising a polynucleotide encoding a signal peptide.16.The nucleic acid of claim 15, wherein the signal peptide comprises an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 36 or SEQ ID NO: 37; optionally wherein the polynucleotide encoding the signal peptide comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 69-72, 178-186, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 69-72, and 178-186.17.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 16, further comprising a 5’ UTR; optionally wherein the 5’ UTR comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 77 78, 162, 163, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 77, 78, 162, and 163.18.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 17, further comprising a 3’ UTR; optionally wherein the 3’ UTR comprises a nucleotide sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 79 80, 164, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 79, 80, and 164.19.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 18, further comprising a poly (A) sequence; optionally wherein the poly (A) sequence having a length of about 80 nucleotides or longer.20.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1-19, comprising a nucleotide sequence having at least about 80%sequence identity to a sequence selected from SEQ ID NOs: 81-84, 165, and a corresponding RNA sequence of any one of SEQ ID NOs: 81-84, and 165.21.A multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 and a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the first binding domain comprises: a first heavy chain variable region (VH) comprising a VH complementarity-determining region (CDR) 1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and a first light chain variable region (VL) comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.22.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 21, wherein(a) the first VH comprises a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 1, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 3; and(b) the first VL comprises a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 4, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 5, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 6.23.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 21 or 22, wherein(a) the first VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 7;(b) the first VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8;(c) the first VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 7 and the first VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8;(d) the first VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7; or(e) the first VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.24.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 23, wherein the first VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 7 and the first VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 8.25.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 24, wherein the second binding domain comprises a second VH comprising a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20; and a second VL comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.26.A multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprising a first binding domain that binds to CD3 and a second binding domain that binds to CD19, wherein the second binding domain comprises a second heavy chain variable region (VH) comprising a VH complementarity-determining region (CDR1) , a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and a second light chain variable region (VL) comprising a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VL CDR1, a VL CDR2, and a VL CDR3, respectively, of a VL having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.27.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 25 or 26, wherein s(a) the second VH comprises a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16; and(b) the second VL comprises a VL CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 17, a VL CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 18, and a VL CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 19.28.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 25 or 26, wherein(a) the second VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20;(b) the second VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 21;(c) the second VH comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20 and the second VL comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 21;(d) the second VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20; or(e) the second VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.29.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 25 or 26, wherein the second VH comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 20 and the second VL comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 21.30.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 29, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises:(a) a first polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the first VH, the first VL, a first CH2, and a first CH3;(b) a second polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the second VL, the second VH, a second CH2, and a second CH3;wherein the first VH and the first VL form the first binding domain that binds to CD3, and the second VH and second VL form the second binding domain that binds to CD19,wherein optionally:the first polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 49, and the second polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 50.31.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 29, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof further comprises a third binding domain that binds to human serum albumin (ALB) .32.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 31, wherein the third binding domain comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) comprising: a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of a VH CDR1, a VH CDR2, and a VH CDR3, respectively, of a VH having the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.33.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 31, wherein the third binding domain comprises a variable heavy domain of heavy chain (VHH) comprising a VH CDR1 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 23, a VH CDR2 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 24, and a VH CDR3 having an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 25.34.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of claim 32 or 33, wherein the VHH of the third binding domain comprises an amino acid sequence having at least 95%sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 26.35.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 32 to 34, wherein the VHH of the third binding domain comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 26.36.The multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 31 to 35, wherein the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof comprises a polypeptide comprising from N-terminus to C-terminus: the second VL, the second VH, the first VH, the first VL, and the VHH;wherein the first VH and the first VL form the first binding domain that binds to CD3, the second VH and the second VL form the second binding domain that binds to CD19, and the VHH forms the third binding domain that binds to ALB;wherein optionally:the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO: 53.37.A nucleic acid encoding the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 36.38.The nucleic acid of claim 37, wherein the nucleic acid is a DNA or an RNA.39.The nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 20, 37 and 38, wherein the nucleic acid is an mRNA, optionally, wherein the mRNA comprises a chemical modification; optionally wherein each uridine of the mRNA is modified to a pseudouridine; optionally wherein the pseudouridine is an N1-methylpseudouridine; optionally wherein the mRNA further comprises a 5’ cap.40.A vector system comprising one or more vectors comprising one or more nucleic acids of any one of claims 1 to 20, and 37 to 39 or a complementary nucleic acid thereto.41.A cell comprising any one or more of: the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 36, the nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 20, and 37 to 39, or the vector system of claim 40.42.A pharmaceutical composition that comprises a pharmaceutically acceptable excipient and any one or more of: the multispecific antibody or fragment thereof of any one of claims 21 to 36, the nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 20, and 37 to 39, the vector system of claim 40, or the cell of claim 41.43.A pharmaceutical composition comprising the nucleic acid of any one of claims 1 to 20 and 37 to 39, wherein the nucleic acid is formulated in a lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , liposome, lipid complex or lipid polymeric complex (LPP) .44.The pharmaceutical composition of claim 43, wherein the pharmaceutical composition comprises a cationic lipid, optionally wherein the cationic lipid is a compound according to Formula 01-I or Formula 01-II, a compound listed in Table 01-1, a compound according to Formula 02-I, a compound listed in Table 02-1, a compound according to Formula 03-I, a compound listed in Table 03-1, a compound according to Formula 04-I or Formula (III) , or a compound listed in Table 04-1.45.The pharmaceutical composition of claim 43 or 44, wherein the nucleic acid is formulated in a lipid nanoparticle (LNP) , wherein the LNP comprises a sterol, a polymer conjugated lipid, and / or a phospholipid; optionally wherein the polymer conjugated lipid is a PEGylated lipid.46.The pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 43 to 45, wherein the LNP comprises:(a) between about 20 molar%to about 60 molar%of a cationic lipid;(b) between about 5 molar%to about 40 molar%of a phospholipid;(c) between about 20 molar%to about 55 molar%of a sterol; and(d) a polymer conjugated lipid.47.The pharmaceutical composition of claim 45 or 46, wherein the LNP comprises a cationic lipid selected from compound 01-1, compound 02-6, compound 02-10, compound 02-65, compound 03-135, compound 04-86 and compound 04-92; optionally wherein the LNP comprises a cationic lipid selected from compound 01-1, compound 02-6, compound 02-10, compound 02-65, compound 03-135, compound 04-86 and compound 04-92, DSPC, cholesterol and DMG-PEG2000.48.A method of forming a cellular synapse between a first cell expressing CD3 and a second cell expressing CD19, comprising contacting the first cell and the second cell with the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47, wherein a cellular synapse is formed through binding interaction of the first binding domain to CD3 on the first cell and binding interaction of the second binding domain to CD19 on the second cell.49.The method of claim 48, wherein the first cell is an immune cell; optionally wherein the immune cell is a T cell or a macrophage; optionally wherein the immune cell is a CD8+ T cell or CD4+ T cell.50.The method of claim 48 or 49, wherein the second cell is a cancer cell or a tumor cell.51.A method of activating an immune cell expressing CD3, comprising contacting the immune cell with the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47.52.The method of claim 51, wherein upon activation, the immune cell mediates cytotoxicity towards a target cell expressing CD19; optionally wherein the cytotoxicity is CD19 specific or CD19 non-specific.53.The method of claim 51, wherein upon activation, the immune cell medicates phagocytosis or Trogocytosis of a target cell expressing CD19.54.A method of preventing suppression of an immune cell expressing CD3, comprising contacting the immune cell with the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47.55.A method of marking a target cell expressing CD19 for destruction, comprising contacting the diseased cell with the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47.56.The method of claim 55, wherein upon contacting, the target cell is marked for destruction by:(a) cytotoxicity mediated by an immune cell expressing CD3; optionally wherein the immune cell is a T cell; optionally wherein the immune cell is CD8+ T cell or CD4+ T cell;(b) phagocytosis or trogocytosis mediated by an immune cell expressing CD3; optionally wherein the immune cell is a macrophage; and / or(c) complement dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) ; antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) ; or antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) .57.The method of claim 55 or 56, wherein the target cell is a cancer cell or a tumor cell or a B cell.58.A method for reducing the number or percentage of a target cell expressing CD19 in a population of cells, comprising contacting the population of cells with a population of immune cells expressing CD3 and the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47.59.A method for treating a disease or disorder in a subject comprising administering to the subject the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 42 to 47.60.The method of claim 59, wherein the disease or disorder is a cancer, optionally the cancer expresses CD19.61.The method of claim 59, wherein the disease or disorder is an autoimmune or inflammatory disease; optionally the autoimmune or inflammatory disease is mediated at least in part by B cells; optionally wherein the autoimmune disease is systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis.62.The method of any one of claims 59 to 61, wherein the method comprises administering to the subject the pharmaceutical composition of any one of claims 43 to 51, and wherein cytokine release triggered by the administration is reduced for at least 50%, at least 60%, at least 70%, at least 80%, or at least 90%.63.The method of claim 62, wherein cytokine release triggered by the administration diminishes within less than 30 hours, less than 24 hours, or less than 12 hours following the administration.64.The method of claim 62 or 63, wherein the cytokine comprises one or more selected from IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, TNFα, CXCL1, IL-1b, IL-12, IL-8, IL-10 and CCL5.65.The method of any one of claims 59 to 64, wherein the subject is a human subject.
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