Production platforms for biotherapeutic glycoproteins. Occurrence, impact, and challenges of non-human sialylation

Abstract

One of the fastest growing fields in the pharmaceutical industry is the market for therapeutic glycoproteins. Today, these molecules play a major role in the treatment of various diseases, and include several protein classes, i.e., clotting factors, hormones, cytokines, antisera, enzymes, enzyme inhibitors, Ig-Fc-Fusion proteins, and monoclonal antibodies. Optimal glycosylation is critical for therapeutic glycoproteins, as glycans can influence their yield, immunogenicity and efficacy, which impact the costs and success of such treatments. While several mammalian cell expression systems currently used can produce therapeutic glycoproteins that are mostly decorated with human-like glycans, they can differ from human glycans by presenting two structures at the terminal and therefore most exposed position. First, natural human N-glycans are lacking the terminal Gal? 1–3Gal (alpha-Gal) modification;