Science and TechnologyProfessor Self and Dr Thompson first described the light-reversible inactivation of antibodies in their paper in Nature Medicine.
This is a surprisingly simple procedure based upon the direct conjugation to the antibody of 1-(2-nitrophenyl) ethanol (NPE).
The highly reactive carbonyl chloride of NPE is made and simply mixed with the antibody under controlled conditions. NPE is covalently bound to the protein, rendering it inactive. The protein can then be brought back to its native active state by illumination which causes the NPE to be photolytically cleaved from the antibody.
Cloaking of proteins such as antibodies in a way that enables them to be released when and where required, and allows control over many processes within the body, including cancer. Therapies, such as anti-tumour antibody therapy, may thus be made more specific, providing an increased therapeutic contrast between normal cells and tumour to reduce unwanted side effects. The uncloaking of the antibodies is illustrated below which shows a cloaked Mab being activated by light thereby stimulating T-cells to attack the tumour:
