Affibody molecules as engineered protein drugs

• Published in: Experimental & molecular medicine 2017-03, Vol.49 (3), p.e306-e306
• Main Authors: Frejd, Fredrik Y, Kim, Kyu-Tae
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/154/152; 631/61/338; Animals; Antibodies, Monoclonal - chemistry; Antibodies, Monoclonal - metabolism; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Diagnostic Imaging - methods; Humans; Medical Biochemistry; Molecular Medicine; Protein Binding; Protein Engineering - methods; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - genetics; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - metabolism; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - therapeutic use; Review; Stem Cells
• ISSN: 2092-6413; 1226-3613; 2092-6413
• DOI: 10.1038/emm.2017.35

Affibody molecules can be used as tools for molecular recognition in diagnostic and therapeutic applications. There are several preclinical studies reported on diagnostic and therapeutic use of this molecular class of alternative scaffolds, and early clinical evidence is now beginning to accumulate that suggests the Affibody molecules to be efficacious and safe in man. The small size and ease of engineering make Affibody molecules suitable for use in multispecific constructs where AffiMabs is one such that offers the option to potentiate antibodies for use in complex disease. Biotechnology: Engineered proteins provide drugs and diagnostics Engineered proteins known as Affibody molecules could have far-reaching therapeutic and diagnostic applications. In a review article, Fredrik Frejd from the Swedish biotechnology company Affibody and Kyu-Tae Kim from the South Korean company AbClon summarize various uses of the Affibody technology, which involves designing small proteins to bind with high affinity to any target protein. These include various kinds of diagnostic imaging, quantifying expression levels of particular proteins, and disease therapeutics. The researchers describe how Affibody molecules can be fused with antibodies to form so-called “AffiMabs” for treating complex diseases in which multiple molecular pathways need to be targeted. After years of proof-of-concept studies from mice and other animal models, early clinical evidence is beginning to show that Affibody molecules can be safe and efficacious in humans.