Icosagen has implemented a toolbox of diverse antibody discovery technology platforms to yield specific high affinity antibodies for any target class. To extract highly selective binders against small molecules, membrane proteins (using pseudotyped VLPs), and recombinant proteins, we combine in vivo and in vitro methods, from B-cell cloning to fully synthetic phage libraries.
Based on state-of-the-art high-throughput analytical capabilities, these antibodies can then be further optimized, formatted into any desired frameworks and seamlessly produced from milligrams to kilograms.
Our phage display antibody discovery service, which utilizes synthetic libraries customized for various targets, is a powerful high-throughput and cost-effective in vitro platform for the rapid identification and characterization of high-quality antibodies.
Phage display in combination with in vivo-immunization and our in-house B-cell cloning platform HybriFree®, generates diverse sets of highly specific, functional and non-overlapping epitope antibodies.
Phage display allows for rapid screening of enormous numbers of ligands against the target, combined with individually adjusted, iterative selection conditions.
ADAPTABLE & FLEXIBLE
ADAPTABLE & FLEXIBLE
The phage display team has a deep expertise in individually chosen selection techniques, including normal (direct, indirect, in-solution), competitive (with peptides, VLPs, recombinant proteins) and masked (competitive, selective, free) selections.
DIVERSE LIBRARIES
DIVERSE LIBRARIES
We created a range of different libraries, including synthetic and hyperimmune options, as well as libraries tailored to specific objectives, such as thermostability, humanization and affinity maturation.
HIGH DIVERSITY
HIGH DIVERSITY
Phage display allows for the generation of libraries of billions of antibody fragments, providing a high degree of diversity that support the identification of rare or unique antibodies.
BACKED WITH ANALYTICAL CAPABILITIES
BACKED WITH ANALYTICAL CAPABILITIES
All this, combined with cutting-edge internal analytical, engineering, and antibody production capabilties robustly unvails sets of specific binders against just about any structure.
Phage display workflow
Antibody discovery with B-cell panning via HybriFree technology
Our proprietary HybriFree technology is based on B-cell cloning, and is used for efficient discovery of monoclonal antibodies and their immediate production in mammalian cells. HybriFree makes antibody discovery rapid and flexible, and allows cloning antibodies even from recovered patients’ PBMCs and existing hybridomas.
All antibodies discovered through HybriFree platform can readily be produced transiently at mg to gram range or developed into stable high producer CHO cell lines.
After immunization stage, biologically active antibodies with optimal physicochemical properties can be delivered as fast as 8 to 9 weeks.
IMMUNIZATION AGILITY
IMMUNIZATION AGILITY
Immunization of chickens with DNA, peptides, proteins or VLPs can be used to develop antibodies against hard-to-express proteins.
FLEXIBLE
FLEXIBLE
All identified sequences can be used for production of different immune molecules (bi-specifics, chimeras, antibody fragmens etc.)
COMPLEX TARGETS
WORKS WITH COMPLEX TARGETS
Integral membrane proteins as feasible targets.
HybriFree workflow
REMEMBER: ANTIGEN MATTERS! Even the smallest difference between an antigen and the natural target protein will affect the antibody specificity and biological function.
Icosagen-discovered antibodies can be used for IVD purposes or developed as biopharmaceutical drug candidates.
Hybridoma sequencing platform — HybriRescue
We clone antibodies from hybridomas, provided by our customers, and produce them at requested scales.
In addition, we deliver the cDNA sequence encoding the antibody variable heavy (VH) and light (VL) domains.
ANTIBODY ENGINEERING
ANTIBODY ENGINEERING
Essential for monoclonal antibody engineering, humanization, function optimization or patent applications.
DELIVERS SEQUENCE
DELIVERS ANTIBODY SEQUENCE
With determined antibody sequence there is always opportunity to reproduce it, which eliminates the risk of excellent antibodies being permanently lost due to loss of cell culture.
PATENT APPLICATION
PATENT APPLICATION
Patent the sequences of your unique variable domains that provides opportunities for investing in R&D.
HybriRescue workflow
Customized immunization
We have implemented different immunization technology platforms, which are specifically designed to tackle diverse antigen classes. While immunizations with soluble recombinant proteins are often highly effective, more complex targets, such as multi-pass transmembrane proteins, present a serious challenge, as they are difficult to purify in native 3D-structure. To overcome this, we engineered a proprietary display & discovery platform, that combines multi-pass transmembrane protein pseudotyped VLPs with nucleic acid immunization.
With this, and over 15 years of experience in DNA immunizations,we simply know how to create specific and functional affinity ligands with chickens and rabbits.
The evolutionary distance between chickens and humans is much greater than between humans and mammals, making chickens a more immunogenic host species for conserved targets. Hence, increasing the likelihood to raise specific antibodies in antibody discovery.
LARGER & MORE HYDROPHILIC CDRs
LARGER & MORE HYDROPHILIC CDRs
The structure and sequence of variable regions differ in length and amino acid composition from those of human antibodies. These increased properties enable them to bind to a broader range of antigens, including notoriously difficult-to-target molecules, such as GPCRs and transporters, or other integral membrane proteins.
PICOMOLAR AFFINITIES
PICOMOLAR AFFINITIES WITHOUT AFFINITY MATURATION
Chicken-generated antibodies typically have high affinities, without the need for further affinity maturation, simplifying and speeding up the discovery process.
Our highly experienced antibody discovery experts will choose the most suitable technology approaches and carefully devise individual selection and screening strategies to identify specific, high-affinity, stable and manufacturable antibody binders for the specific application. Be it biopharmaceutical drug discovery campaigns, diagnostic or R&D purposes, Icosagen’s scientists routinely navigate through the entire antibody development process.
Affinity maturation and engineering
We can rationally assess different antibody projects to find right strategies towards generation of high affinity antibodies.
Our proprietary platform has undergone thorough testing and analysis, and when coupled with expert manual execution, has demonstrated outstanding effectiveness in enhancing antibody affinity and specificity.
Affinity maturation can be combined with antibody humanization.
RAPID TIMELINES
RAPID TIMELINES
Affinity maturation takes 4-8 weeks, depending on using a rational strategy, or an unbiased strategy.
RATIONAL ENGINEERING
RATIONAL ENGINEERING
Is key for the affinity maturation to succeed. We will design and generate libraries, assisted by the structure-based computational analysis containing soft-randomization in key positions to increase the chances to improve affinities.
DEVELOPABILITY PARAMETERS
DEVELOPABILITY PARAMETERS
For therapeutic as well as any other purposes, the developability is crucial - we can humanize and engineer mAbs to improve their solubility, thermostability, in addition to affinity.