Discovery and Evaluation of TLR-Targeted Immune Agonists.

Toll-like receptor (TLR) activation converts immunologically inactive tumors into immunologically active tumors by activating tumor residing antigen-presenting cells and recruitment of cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Targeted immune agonists (TIAs) are antibody drug conjugates with small-molecule TLR agonist payloads. The mechanism of action of TIAs involves tumor antigen recognition, Fcγ-receptor-dependent phagocytosis, and TLR-mediated activation to drive tumor killing by myeloid cells.

Orbital Cholesterol Granuloma: Report of Two Cases.

Purpose: To report two rare cases of orbital cholesterol granuloma (CG) presenting with ptosis and proptosis.

Methods: The first case was a 31-year-old male presented with progressive ptosis of the left eye (LE) during the past year and the second case was a 35-year-old male presented with proptosis of the right eye (RE) for 5 months ago. Orbital computed tomography revealed a cystic well-demarcated lesion in the superotemporal orbit with adjacent bone erosion in the LE of the first case and the RE of the second case.

Discovery and multimerization of cross-reactive single-domain antibodies against SARS-like viruses to enhance potency and address emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Coronaviruses have been the causative agent of three epidemics and pandemics in the past two decades, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. A broadly-neutralizing coronavirus therapeutic is desirable not only to prevent and treat COVID-19, but also to provide protection for high-risk populations against future emergent coronaviruses. As all coronaviruses use spike proteins on the viral surface to enter the host cells, and these spike proteins share sequence and structural homology, we set out to discover cross-reactive biologic agents targeting the spike protein to block viral entry.

Association of hypoxia-inducible factor 1 expressions with prognosis role as a survival prognostic biomarker in the patients with osteosarcoma: a meta-analysis.

Background: Osteosarcoma, the most prevalent primary bone cancer, tends to relapse or metastasize quickly. Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) affects tumor metabolism, differentiation, angiogenesis, proliferation, and metastasis. Many studies have investigated the possible inconsistent prognostic value of HIF-1 α.

Hexamerization of Anti-SARS CoV IgG1 Antibodies Improves Neutralization Capacity.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and particularly the emerging variants have deepened the need for widely available therapeutic options. We have demonstrated that hexamer-enhancing mutations in the Fc region of anti-SARS-CoV IgG antibodies lead to a noticeable improvement in IC in both pseudo and live virus neutralization assay compared to parental molecules. We also show that hexamer-enhancing mutants improve C1q binding to target surface.

Central Retinal Artery Occlusion after Rhinoplasty Surgery: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Aim: This study was aimed at reporting a case of central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) after rhinoplasty. . Unilateral blindness occurred in a 22-year-old woman after rhinoplasty with a history of transient visual loss due to migraine aura and vasospasm.

Development of a novel capillary electrophoresis-based approach for detection of anti-drug antibody responses.

Peggy Sue is a capillary-based western/immunoassay platform that can separate and characterize proteins by size or charge. A quick and automated immunogenicity assay was developed on Peggy Sue based on charge separation and compared with a traditional bridging method using preclinical samples from non-human primate studies. The results generated with the Peggy Sue assay were comparable to those of the bridging assays.

Hyphenation of strong cation exchange chromatography to native mass spectrometry for high throughput online characterization of charge heterogeneity of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies.

Characterization of charge heterogeneity in monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) is needed during developability assessment and downstream development of drug candidates. Charge heterogeneity can come from post-translational modifications like deamidation, isomerization, and sialylation. Elucidation of charge variants with mass spectrometry (MS) has historically been challenging.

Predicting Antibody Developability Profiles Through Early Stage Discovery Screening.

Monoclonal antibodies play an increasingly important role for the development of new drugs across multiple therapy areas. The term 'developability' encompasses the feasibility of molecules to successfully progress from discovery to development via evaluation of their physicochemical properties. These properties include the tendency for self-interaction and aggregation, thermal stability, colloidal stability, and optimization of their properties through sequence engineering.

NMR Assessment of Therapeutic Peptides and Proteins: Correlations That Reveal Interactions and Motions.

NMR measurements of rotational and translational diffusion are used to characterize the solution behavior of a wide variety of therapeutic proteins and peptides. The timescales of motions sampled in these experiments reveal complicated intrinsic solution behavior such as flexibility, that is central to function, as well as self-interactions, stress-induced conformational changes and other critical attributes that can be discovery and development liabilities. Trends from proton transverse relaxation (R ) and hydrodynamic radius (R ) are correlated and used to identify and differentiate intermolecular from intramolecular interactions.

C17 prevents inflammatory arthritis and associated joint destruction in mice.

C17 was first described about ten years ago as a gene expressed in CD34+ cells. A more recent study has suggested a role for C17 in chondrogenesis and development of cartilage. However, based on sequence analysis, we believe that C17 has homology to IL-2 and hence we present the hypothesis that C17 is a cytokine possessing immune-regulatory properties.

Solid phase extraction and determination of lead in soil and water samples using octadecyl silica membrane disks modified by bis[1-hydroxy-9,10-anthraquinone-2-methyl]sulfide and flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

A simple, reliable and relatively fast method has been developed to selectively separate and concentrate trace amounts of lead from aqueous samples for the measurement by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. By the passage of aqueous samples through an octadecyl-bonded silica membrane disk modified by a recently synthesized bis(anthraquinone)sulfide, Pb(2+) ions adsorb quantitatively and almost all matrix elements will pass through the disk to drain. The retained lead ions are then stripped from the disk by minimal amount of acetic acid as eluent.

Solid phase extraction of ultra-trace amounts of Ag+ by using octadecyl silica membrane disks modified with a new fulvalen derivative.

A simple method for the rapid extraction and determination of ultra-trace amounts of Ag+ ions using octadecyl-bonded silica membrane disks modified with a recently synthesized fulvalen (tetramethyltetrathiafulvalen) (TMTTF) and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry is presented. The extraction efficiency and influence of the flow rate, pH, nature of the counter ion and type and the least amount of eluent for the stripping of Ag+ from disks and breakthrough volume were evaluated. The maximum capacity of the membrane disks modified by 5 mg of TMTTF used was found to be 482 +/- 6 micrograms Ag+.

Connective tissue growth factor is secreted through the Golgi and is degraded in the endosome.

Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is a cysteine-rich heparin-binding polypeptide that promotes proliferation, collagen synthesis, and chemotaxis in mesanchymal cells. When coinjected subcutaneously with transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta), CTGF promotes sustained fibrosis in rats. However, little is known about the cell biology and structure/functional relationship of CTGF.