Llama DNA could play a crucial part in HIV therapy.
, lead author Jianliang Xu, assistant professor of biology at Georgia State University used llama-derived nanobodies to neutralise the strains of. Conventional antibodies are bulky, so it’s difficult for them to find and attack the virus’ surface. These new antibodies can do this in an easier way.”Researchers explained that this research presents a widely applicable method to enhance the performance of nanobodies.
They said: “Nanobodies are engineered antibody fragments that are about one-tenth the size of a conventional antibody. They are derived from flexible, Y-shaped heavy chain-only antibodies—made up of two heavy chains—which are more effective at fighting certain viruses than conventional antibodies with light chains.”
For this study, the researchers immunised llamas with specially designed proteins which results in the production of neutralising nanobodies. Xu and his team then identified nanobodies that can target vulnerable sites on the virus. When the team engineered the nanobodies into a triple tandem format—by repeating short lengths of DNA—the resulting nanobodies demonstrated remarkable effectiveness, neutralising 96% of a diverse panel of HIV-1 strains.Xu said: “These nanobodies are the best and most potently neutralising antibodies to date, which I think is very promising for the future of HIV therapeutics and antibody research.
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