Background: GIPr mediates insulin secretion upon GIP stimulation.Results: Gipg013 is a highly specific and potent antagonist of GIPr with a fully characterized mode of action.Conclusion: Gipg013 antagonizes GIPr in vivo, as exemplified by inhibition of GIP-induced insulin secretion.Significance: This antagonizing antibody to the GIPr will be useful as a tool to further understand the biological roles of GIP.

The critical role played by IgE in allergic asthma is well-documented and clinically precedented, but some patients in whom IgE neutralization may still offer clinical benefit are excluded from treatment with the existing anti-IgE therapy, omalizumab, due to high total IgE levels or body mass. In this study, we sought to generate a novel high affinity anti-IgE antibody (MEDI4212) with potential to treat a broad severe asthma patient population. Analysis of body mass, total and allergen-specific IgE levels in a cohort of severe asthmatics was used to support the rationale for development of a high affinity IgE-targeted antibody therapeutic. Phage display technology was used to generate a human IgG1 lead antibody, MEDI4212, which was characterized in vitro using binding, signaling and functional assay systems. Protein crystallography was used to determine the details of the interaction between MEDI4212 and IgE. MEDI4212 bound human IgE with an affinity of 1.95 pM and was shown to target critical residues in the IgE Cε3 domain critical for interaction with FcεRI. MEDI4212 potently inhibited responses through FcεRI and also prevented the binding of IgE to CD23. When used ex vivo at identical concentration, MEDI4212 depleted free-IgE from human sera to levels ~1 log lower than omalizumab. Our results thus indicate that MEDI4212 is a novel, high affinity antibody that binds specifically to IgE and prevents IgE binding to its receptors. MEDI4212 effectively depleted free-IgE from human sera ex vivo to a level (1 IU/mL) anticipated to provide optimal IgE suppression in severe asthma patients.

As adults, anadromous lampreys migrate from seawater into freshwater rivers, where they require branchial ion (NaCl) absorption for osmoregulation. In teleosts and elasmobranchs, pharmological, immunohistochemical, and molecular data support roles for Na+/K+-ATPase (NPPase), carbonic anhydrase II (CAII), and vacuolar H+-ATPase (V-ATPase) in two different models of branchial ion absorption. To our knowledge, these transport-related proteins have not been studied in adult freshwater lampreys, and therefore it is not known if they are expressed, or have similar functions, in lampreys. The purpose of this study was to localize NPPase, CAII, and V-ATPase in the gills of adult freshwater lampreys and determine if any of these transport-related proteins are expressed in the same cells. Heterologous antibodies were used to localize the three proteins in gill tissue from pouched lamprey (Geotria australis). Immunoreactivity (IR) for all three proteins occurred between, and at the base of, lamellae in cells that match previous descriptions of mitochondrion-rich-cells (MRCs). NPPase-IR was always on the basolateral side of cells that did not stain for CAII or V-ATPase. In contrast, CAII-IR was always on the apical side of cells that also contained diffuse V-ATPase-IR. Therefore, we have identified two types of MRC in adult freshwater lamprey gills based on immunohistochemical staining for three transport proteins. A model of ion transport, based on our results, is proposed for adult freshwater lampreys.

An immunoaffinity purified, solvent/detergent virally inactivated factor VIII (FVIII) concentrate (Hemofil® M) has been in clinical use in persons with haemophilia A since March 1987 and under clinical trial prior to licencing in the USA, Europe and Japan. The specification set and consistently met for the monoclonal antibody (mAb) content of the final product is 0.1 ng/IU FVIII. This level was considered non-immunogenic, based upon animal studies, recommendations of the European PHarmacopoeia with ovalbumin contamination of influenza vaccine and also the experience during clinical research studies using aAb for diagnostic or other clinical purpose as reported in the medical literature. This research communication documents the surveillance for human anti-murine antibodies (HAMA) in 13 patients with serve haemophilia A. These patients have been treated with a large amount of product (mean 14,026 IU), numerous different lots of Hemofil M (total 45; mean 17) over a substantial period of time (mean 28 months). The data generated from this group of 13 patients before and during therapeutic Hemofil M administration failed to show the development of any HAMA response at any timepoint. Therefore Hemofil M prepared by mAb resin immunoaffinity column chromatography under the currently set specifications for mAb contaminant of 0.1 ng/IU FVIII or less is a safe therapeutic agent in the management and prevention of bleeding episodes in persons with haemophilia A.

No abstract