Click chemistry offers new, efficient process to produce unique cancer-fighting antibodies
Chemical approach is fast and flexible and could be an alternative o using protein engineering
Click chemistry has been used to create antibody-based molecules that can treat cancer . These sorts of molecules are already in trials and have shown good anti-tumour activity in human cancer cell lines.
These checkpoint inhibitory T cell engager (CiTE) molecules can engage the body’s immune system and direct cytotoxic T cells to destroy tumours. They include a type of bispecific antibody known as a bispecific T cell engager (BiTE) that recruits the killer T cells and a protein that helps to suppress the immune dampening seen in cancer patients to make the treatment more effective.
Bispecific, or multi-specific, antibodies are a relatively recent concept in oncology and are designed to overcome some of the issues of older cancer drugs such as toxicity and drug resistance. To date, at least five bispecific antibodies have been approved and more than 200 are in development.