Biology and Medicine

Abstract

Stable Expression of Anti-CD52 Monoclonal Antibody Using a Bicistronic Vector System

Azam Rahimpour, Omid Mohammadian, Fatemeh Naderi, Hadi Bayat, Meysam Omidi and Morvarid Peyrovan

The efficient development of stable monoclonal antibody-producing mammalian cells is a tedious and time-consuming process due to the structural complexity of these molecules. The ratio of the light-chain to heavy-chain expression is critical for the assembly and successful production of functional antibodies. Different vector-design strategies have been employed for the optimal expression of monoclonal antibodies in mammalian cells. In the current study, a bicistronic expression based on the encephalomyocarditis virus internal ribosomal entry site (ECMV IRES) element was used for the development of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO)–stable cell pools expressing an anti-CD52 antibody. The successful expression of the monoclonal antibody in CHO cells was achieved with the maximum titer of 20 μg/l. Our results here show that IRES-mediated bicistronic expression is an efficient method for the stable expression of monoclonal antibodies in CHO cells.