Browsing by Author "Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang"

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A regularly spaced and self-revealing protein ladder for anti-tag Western blot analysis
(2012-12-01)
Kao, Chien-Han
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Cheng, Chiu-Min
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Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Chuang, Chih-Hung
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Tzou, Shey-Cherng
We designed a protein ladder (hereafter referred to as "Mega-tag") that contains 14 of the most commonly used epitope tags fused to molecular weight markers. The Mega-tag ladder can be simultaneously visualized when anti-tag antibodies are used to detect epitope-tagged recombinant proteins in Western blots. The logarithm of molecular weights and relative mobility of the Mega-tag protein ladder are highly correlated (R-2 = 0.997 +/- 0.00232), indicating that the dye-free Mega-tag protein ladder is accurate. It can also serve as a positive control for anti-epitope tag immunoblots. The Mega-tag protein ladder should provide a convenient and precise tool for Western blot analysis. (c) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Development of a highly sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) through use of polyprotein G-expressing cell-based microplates
(2018-12-14)
Chen, Yi-Jou
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Chen, Michael
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Hsieh, Yuan-Chin
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Su, Yu-Cheng
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Wang, Chang-Hung
The sensitivity of traditional enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) is limited by the low binding avidity and heterogeneous orientation of capture antibodies coated on polystyrene-based microplates. Here, we developed a highly sensitive ELISA strategy by fixing poly-protein G-expressing cells on microplates to improve the coating amount and displayed orientation of capture antibodies. One or eight repeated fragment crystallisable (Fc) binding domains of protein G are stably expressed on the surface of BALB/c 3T3 cells (termed 1pG cells or 8pG cells), which then act as highly antibody-trapping microparticles. The 8pG cells showed higher antibody-trapping ability than the 1pG cells did. The antibody-coating amount of the 8pG cell-based microplates was 1.5-23 times and 1.2-6.8 times higher than that of traditional polystyrene-based and commercial protein G-based microplates, respectively. The 8pG cell-based microplates were then applied to an anti-IFN-alpha sandwich ELISA and an anti-CTLA4 competitive ELISA, respectively, and dramatically enhanced their detection sensitivity. Importantly, direct coating unpurified capture antibody produced by mammalian cells did not impair the antigen-capturing function of 8pG cell-based microplates. The 8pG cell-based microplates exhibited a significant improvement in antibody-coating amount and preserved the homogeneous orientation of capture antibodies, making them a potential replacement for traditional microplates in various formats of ELISAs.
Development of an Anti-Methoxy Poly(ethylene glycol) (alpha-mPEG) Cell-Based Capture System to Measure mPEG and mPEGylated Molecules
(2014-10-14)
Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Kao, Chien-Han
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Roffler, Steve R.
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Lu, Ssu-Jung
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Cheng, Ta-Chun
Quantitative pharmacokinetic analysis of methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG) and mPEGylated molecules is important for clinical drug development. Here we developed sensitive sandwich and competitive ELISAs by expressing an anti-mPEG antibody on the surface of fibroblasts for effective capture of mPEG molecules in biological samples. alpha-mPEG sandwich ELISA could quantify the higher-molecular-weight of mPEG (2, 5, and 20 kDa) and mPEGylated molecules. alpha-mPEG cell-based competitive ELISA was developed to measure the lower-molecular-weight of mPEG molecules (559, 750, and 1000 Da) at nanomolar levels. In addition, alpha-mPEG cell-based ELISA was unaffected by the presence of 10% human serum or murine serum. We further demonstrate that the alpha-mPEG cell-based ELISA determined similar pharmacokinetics of mPEG(5K) as traditional gamma counting of I-131-mPEG(5K). The alpha-mPEG cell-based ELISA may provide an accurate, high sensitivity and easy-to-use tool for directly measuring mPEG and mPEGylated molecules in complex biological samples to accelerate the clinical development of mPEG drugs.
Development of an inflammatory tissue-selective chimeric TNF receptor
(2019-01-01)
Lee, Chia-Jung
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Wang, Chao-Ching
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Chen, Michael
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Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Cheng, Tian-Lu
Background: Inhibiting TNF-alpha is an effective therapy for inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. However, systemic, nondiscriminatory neutralization of TNF-alpha is associated with considerable adverse effects. Methods: Here, we developed a trimeric chimeric TNF receptor by linking an N-terminal mouse Acrp30 trimerization domain and an MMP-2/9 substrate sequence to the mouse extracellular domain of TNF receptor 2 followed by a C-terminal mouse tetranectin coiled-coil domain (mouse Acrp-MMP-TNFR-Tn). Results: Here, we show that the Acrp30 trimerization domain inhibited the binding activity of TNFR, possibly by closing the binding site of the trimeric receptor. Cleavage of the substrate sequence by MMP-9, an enzyme highly expressed in inflammatory sites, restored the binding activity of the mouse TNF receptor. We also constructed a recombinant human chimeric TNF receptor (human Acrp-MMP-TNFR-Tn) in which an MMP-13 substrate sequence was used to link the human Acrp and the human TNF receptor 2. Human Acrp-MMP-TNFR-Tn showed reduced binding activity, and MMP-13 digestion recovered its binding activity with TNF-alpha. Conclusion: Acrp-masked chimeric TNF receptors may be able to be used for inflammatory tissue-selective neutralization of TNF-alpha to reduce the adverse effects associated with systemic neutralization of TNF-alpha.
Discovery of Akt Kinase Inhibitors through Structure-Based Virtual Screening and Their Evaluation as Potential Anticancer Agents
(2015-02-01)
Chuang, Chih-Hung
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Cheng, Ta-Chun
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Leu, Yu-Ling
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Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Tzou, Shey-Cherng
Akt acts as a pivotal regulator in the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and represents a potential drug target for cancer therapy. To search for new inhibitors of Akt kinase, we performed a structure-based virtual screening using the DOCK 4.0 program and the X-ray crystal structure of human Akt kinase. From the virtual screening, 48 compounds were selected and subjected to the Akt kinase inhibition assay. Twenty-six of the test compounds showed more potent inhibitory effects on Akt kinase than the reference compound, H-89. These 26 compounds were further evaluated for their cytotoxicity against HCT-116 human colon cancer cells and HEK-293 normal human embryonic kidney cells. Twelve compounds were found to display more potent or comparable cytotoxic activity compared to compound H-89 against HCT-116 colon cancer cells. The best results were obtained with Compounds a46 and a48 having IC50 values (for HCT-116) of 11.1 and 9.5 mu M, respectively, and selectivity indices (IC50 for HEK-293/IC50 for HCT-116) of 12.5 and 16.1, respectively. Through structure-based virtual screening and biological evaluations, we have successfully identified several new Akt inhibitors that displayed cytotoxic activity against HCT-116 human colon cancer cells. Especially, Compounds a46 and a48 may serve as useful lead compounds for further development of new anticancer agents.
Humanized bispecific antibody (mPEG x HER2) rapidly confers PEGylated nanoparticles tumor specificity for multimodality imaging in breast cancer
(2020-08-27)
Cheng, Yi-An
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Wu, Tung-Ho
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Wang, Yun-Ming
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Cheng, Tian-Lu
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Chen, I-Ju
Background: Developing a universal strategy to improve the specificity and sensitivity of PEGylated nanoaparticles (PEG-NPs) for assisting in the diagnosis of tumors is important in multimodality imaging. Here, we developed the anti-methoxypolyethylene glycol (mPEG) bispecific antibody (BsAb; mPEG x HER2), which has dual specificity for mPEG and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), with a diverse array of PEG-NPs to confer nanoparticles with HER2 specificity and stronger intensity. Result: We used a one-step formulation to rapidly modify the nanoprobes with mPEG x HER2 and optimized the modified ratio of BsAbs on several PEG-NPs (Lipo-DiR, SPIO, Qdot and AuNP). The alpha HER2/PEG-NPs could specifically target MCF7/HER2 cells (HER2(++)) but not MCF7/neo1 cells (HER2(+/-)). The alpha HER2/Lipo-DiR and alpha HER2/SPIO could enhance the sensitivity of untargeted PEG-NPs on MCF7/HER2 (HER2(++)). In in vivo imaging, alpha HER2/Lipo-DiR and alpha HER2/SPIO increased the specific targeting and enhanced PEG-NPs accumulation at 175% and 187% on 24 h, respectively, in HER2-overexpressing tumors. Conclusion: mPEG x HER2, therefore, provided a simple one-step formulation to confer HER2-specific targeting and enhanced sensitivity and contrast intensity on HER2 positive tumors for multimodality imaging.
Measurement of Poly(ethylene glycol) by Cell-Based Anti-poly(ethylene glycol) ELISA
(2010-03-15)
Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Tzou, Shey-Cherng
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Cheng, Ta-Chun
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Kao, Chien-Han
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Tseng, Wei-Lung
Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) is increasingly used in clinical and experimental medicine. However, quantification of PEG and PEGylated small molecules remains laborious and unsatisfactory. In this report, we stably expressed a functional anti-PEG antibody on the surface of BALB 3T3 cells (3T3/alpha PEG cells) to develop a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for PEG quantification. The alpha-PEG cell-coated plate bound biotinylated PEG(5K) (CH(3)-PEG(5K)-biotin) and CH(3)-PEG(5K)-(131)I more effectively than did a traditional anti-PEG antibody-coated plate. Competitive binding between PEG (2, 5, 10, or 20 kDa) and a known amount of CH(3)-PEG(5K)-biotin allowed construction of a reproducible competition curve. The alpha PEG cell-based competition ELISA measured small molecules derivatized by PEG(2K), PEG(5K), PEG(10K), PEG(20K), and PEG(5K) at concentrations as low as 58.6, 14.6, 3.7, 3.7, and 14.6 ng/mL respectively. Notably, the presence of serum or bovine serum albumin enhanced PEG measurement by the alpha PEG cell-based competition ELISA. Finally, we show here that the alpha PEG cell-based competition ELISA accurately delineated the pharmacokinetics of PEG(5K), comparable to those determined by direct measurement of radioactivity in blood after intravenous injection of CH(3)-PEG(5K)-(131)I into mice. This quantitative strategy may provide a simple and sensitive method for quantifying PEG and PEGylated small molecules in vivo.
Sensitivity of PEGylated Interferon Detection by Anti-Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) Antibodies Depends on PEG Length
(2013-08-01)
Cheng, Ta-Chun
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Chuang, Kuo-Hsiang
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Chen, Michael
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Wang, Hsin-Ell
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Tzou, Shey-Cherng
Attachment of poly(ethylene glycol) to proteins can mask immune epitopes to increase serum half-life, reduce immunogenicity, and enhance in vivo biological efficacy. However, PEGylation mediated epitope-masking may also limit sensitivity and accuracy of traditional ELISA. We previously described an anti-PEG-based sandwich ELISA for universal assay of PEGylated molecules. Here, we compared the quantitative assessment of PEGylated interferons by anti-PEG and traditional anti-interferon sandwich ELISA. The detection limits for PEG-Intron (12k-PEG) and Pegasys (40k-PEG) were 1.9 and 0.03 ng/mL for anti-PEG ELISA compared to 0.18 and 0.42 ng/mL for traditional anti-interferon sandwich ELISA. These results indicate that the anti-PEG sandwich ELISA was insensitive to PEGylation mediated epitope-masking and the sensitivity increased in proportion to the length of PEG. By contrast, PEG-masking interfered with detection by traditional anti-interferon sandwich ELISA. Human and mouse serum did not affect the sensitivity of anti-PEG ELISA but impeded traditional anti-interferon sandwich ELISA. The anti-PEG sandwich ELISA was comparable to anti-interferon sandwich ELISA and radioassay of I-131-Pegasys in pharmacokinetic studies in mice. The anti-PEG sandwich ELISA provides a sensitive, accurate, and convenient quantitative measurement of PEGylated protein drugs.