Hidden hydrophobicity impacts polymer immunogenicity† † Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Experimental details and supplementary figures. See DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d2sc07047b

ABSTRACT: Antibodies against poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) have been found to be the culprit of side reactions and efficacy loss of a number of PEGylated drugs. Fundamental mechanisms of PEG immunogenicity and design principles for PEG alternatives still have not been fully explored. By using hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) under varied salt conditions, we reveal the “hidden” hydrophobicity of those polymers which are generally considered as hydrophilic. A correlation between the hidden hydrophobicity of a polymer and its polymer immunogenicity is observed when this polymer is conjugated with an immunogenic protein. Such a correlation of hidden hydrophobicity vs. immunogenicity for a polymer also applies to corresponding polymer–protein conjugates. Atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simula

SUBMITTER: Yuan Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9945064 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature