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N-Glycosylation of an IgG antibody secreted by Nicotiana tabacum BY-2 cells can be modulated through co-expression of human β-1,4-galactosyltransferase

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Abstract

Nicotiana tabacum BY-2 suspension cells have several advantages that make them suitable for the production of full-size monoclonal antibodies which can be purified directly from the culture medium. Carbohydrate characterization of an antibody (Lo-BM2) expressed in N. tabacum BY-2 cells showed that the purified Lo-BM2 displays N-glycan homogeneity with a high proportion (>70%) of the complex GnGnXF glycoform. The stable co-expression of a human β-1,4-galactosyltransferase targeted to different Golgi sub-compartments altered Lo-BM2N-glycosylation and resulted in the production of an antibody that exhibited either hybrid structures containing a low abundance of the plant epitopes (α-1,3-fucose and β-1,2-xylose), or a large amount of galactose-extended N-glycan structures. These results demonstrate the suitability of stable N-glycoengineered N. tabacum BY-2 cell lines for the production of human-like antibodies.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by a grant from the Service Public de Wallonie (WBHealth 1318062) and the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research. Mass Spectrometry facilities were funded by the European Fund for Economic and Regional Development (GIGA-Proteomics facility instrumentation), the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research and the Walloon Region.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Institut des Sciences de la Vie, Université catholique de Louvain, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium

      Catherine Navarre, Laurent Duvivier, Joseph Nader & Marc Boutry

    2. Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, University of Liege, 4000, Liège, Belgium

      Nicolas Smargiasso, Johann Far & Edwin De Pauw

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    1. Catherine Navarre
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    2. Nicolas Smargiasso
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    Correspondence to Catherine Navarre.

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    Catherine Navarre and Nicolas Smargiasso have contributed equally to this work.

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    Navarre, C., Smargiasso, N., Duvivier, L. et al. N-Glycosylation of an IgG antibody secreted by Nicotiana tabacum BY-2 cells can be modulated through co-expression of human β-1,4-galactosyltransferase. Transgenic Res 26, 375–384 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11248-017-0013-6

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