Improving monoclonal antibody selection and engineering using measurements of colloidal protein interactions

A limitation of using mAbs as therapeutic molecules is their propensity to associate with themselves and/or with other molecules via nonaffinity (colloidal) interactions. This can lead to a variety of problems ranging from low solubility and high viscosity to off-target binding and fast antibody clearance. Measuring such colloidal interactions is challenging given that they are weak and potentially involve diverse target molecules. Nevertheless, assessing these weak interactions - especially during early antibody discovery and lead candidate optimization - is critical to preventing problems that can arise later in the development process. Here we review advances in developing and implementing sensitive methods for measuring antibody colloidal interactions as well as using these measurements for guiding antibody selection and engineering. These systematic efforts to minimize nonaffinity interactions are expected to yield more effective and stable mAbs for diverse therapeutic applications.