The glycosylation of anti-rhIFN-α2b recombinant antibodies influences the antigen-neutralizing activity

Objectives The influence of glycosylation on the antigen-neutralizing ability of two potential biotherapeutic anti-human IFN-α2b antibodies composed by murine and humanized single-chain Fv fused to human Fcγ1 (chimeric and humanized scFv-Fc, respectively) was studied. Results Chimeric antibodies produced in CHO-K1 and HEK293 mammalian cells showed no differences in the antigen–antibody affinity but demonstrated differences in the in vitro neutralization of IFN-α2b activity. On the other hand, the humanized antibodies produced in the same cell types showed differences in both the antigen–antibody affinity and the antigen-neutralizing ability. These differences are due to the scFv domain, as evidenced by its expression in CHO-K1 and HEK293 cells. In order to determine if the Fc glycosylation influences the antigen binding ability, both parameters were analyzed on chimeric and humanized deglycosylated scFv-Fc. Surprisingly, no differences in the antigen–antibody affinity were observed, but differences in the antigen-neutralizing ability of both chimeric and humanized antibodies, and their respectively deglycosylated glycoforms were found. Conclusions Fc glycosylation influences the antigen neutralization ability of two anti-rhIFN-α2b recombinant antibodies. Although affinity is the widely accepted parameter to analyze antibody antigen binding, it does not appear to be sufficient to describe the behavior of recombinant antibodies in vitro. This work contributes with a high impact knowledge to develop therapeutic recombinant antibodies where glycosylation and producer cell lines must be taken into account for their influence on the antigen binding capacity and not only for their impact on the effector properties as it has been historically considered for antibodies.