Site-Specific Antibody Conjugation Using Modified Bisected N-Glycans: Method Development and Potential toward Tunable Effector Function

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) have garnered worldwide attention for disease treatment, as they possess high target specificity, a long half-life, and outstanding potency to kill or modulate the functions of targets. FDA approval of multiple ADCs for cancer therapy has generated a strong desire for novel conjugation strategies with high biocompatibility and controllable bioproperties. Herein, we present a bisecting glycan-bridged conjugation strategy that enables site-specific conjugation without the need for the oligosaccharide synthesis and genetic engineering of antibodies. Application of this method is demonstrated by conjugation of anti-HER2 human and mouse IgGs with a cytotoxic drug, monomethyl auristatin E. The glycan bridge showed outstanding stability, and the resulting ADCs eliminated HER2-expressing cancer cells effectively. Moreover, our strategy preserves the feasibility of glycan structure remodeling to fine-tune the immunogenicity and pharmacokinetic properties of ADCs through glycoengineering.