Novel Anti-Tn Single-Chain Fv-Fc Fusion Proteins Derived from Immunized Phage Library and Antibody Fc Domain

Tn[GalNAc(alpha 1-3)-Ser/Thr] antigen, a tumor-associated carbohydrate antigen, is highly expressed in various tumors and an attractive candidate for cancer immunotherapy. The generation of an anti-Tn antibody is a first step toward the construction of new anticancer molecules. However, because of the simple and small conformation of the Tn molecule, it is difficult to generate an anti-Tn antibody for therapeutic use by conventional hybridoma technology. The purpose of this study was to isolate anti-Tn single-chain antibody fragments (scFv) by phage display technology from a novel immunised library, to attach an antibody constant region (Fc) and to convert them to scFv-Fc fusion proteins. The scFv-Fcs obtained here showed strict specificity against the Tn antigen and also showed antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. These results suggest a potential use of this antibody generating method by phage display and indicate the potential of Fc-fusion proteins as therapeutic candidates.