Merck Research Laboratories, 1011 Morris Ave, Union, NJ 07083, USA.
J Am Soc Mass Spectrom. 2012 Jul;23(7):1241-9. doi: 10.1007/s13361-012-0397-8. Epub 2012 May 9.
The presence of N-linked oligosaccharides in the CH2 domain has a significant impact on the structure, stability, and biological functions of recombinant monoclonal antibodies. The impact is also highly dependent on the specific oligosaccharide structures. The absence of core-fucose has been demonstrated to result in increased binding affinity to Fcγ receptors and, thus, enhanced antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). Therefore, a method that can specifically determine the level of oligosaccharides without the core-fucose (afucosylation) is highly desired. In the current study, recombinant monoclonal antibodies and tryptic peptides from the antibodies were digested using endoglycosidases F2 and H, which cleaves the glycosidic bond between the two primary GlcNAc residues. As a result, various oligosaccharides of either complex type or high mannose type that are commonly observed for recombinant monoclonal antibodies are converted to either GlcNAc residue only or GlcNAc with the core-fucose. The level of GlcNAc represents the sum of all afucosylated oligosaccharides, whereas the level of GlcNAc with the core-fucose represents the sum of all fucosylated oligosaccharides. LC-MS analysis of the enzymatically digested antibodies after reduction provided a quick estimate of the levels of afucosylation. An accurate determination of the level of afucosylation was obtained by LC-MS analysis of glycopeptides after trypsin digestion.
N-连接寡糖在 CH2 结构域中的存在对重组单克隆抗体的结构、稳定性和生物学功能有重大影响。这种影响还高度依赖于特定的寡糖结构。核心岩藻糖的缺失已被证明会导致与 Fcγ 受体的结合亲和力增加,从而增强抗体依赖性细胞毒性(ADCC)。因此,人们非常希望有一种方法能够特异性地确定没有核心岩藻糖(去岩藻糖基化)的寡糖水平。在本研究中,使用内切糖苷酶 F2 和 H 消化重组单克隆抗体和抗体的肽段,内切糖苷酶 F2 和 H 可以切断两个主要 GlcNAc 残基之间的糖苷键。结果,重组单克隆抗体中常见的各种复杂型或高甘露糖型的寡糖分别转化为只有 GlcNAc 残基或带有核心岩藻糖的 GlcNAc。GlcNAc 的水平代表所有去岩藻糖基化寡糖的总和,而带有核心岩藻糖的 GlcNAc 的水平代表所有岩藻糖基化寡糖的总和。还原后用 LC-MS 分析酶切抗体可快速估计去岩藻糖基化水平。通过胰蛋白酶消化后对糖肽进行 LC-MS 分析可获得更准确的去岩藻糖基化水平。