Figure 8.

Glycoengineering mAbs for enhanced sialylation and glycan-targeted ADC production. (A) Cells can be supplemented with ManNAc or analogs (e.g., Ac₄ManNAc or 1,3,4-O-Bu₃ManNAc), which intercept and increase flux through the sialic acid biosynthetic pathway with the indicated relative efficiencies (“R.E.” values) increasing sialylation of recombinant glycoproteins, such as mAbs. (B) Alternatively, cells can be supplemented with analogs containing non-natural chemical moieties (e.g., Ac₄ManNAz or 1,3,4-O-Bu₃ManNAz to install azide groups or Ac₄6-Thio-Fuc to install thiols). These functional groups, which do not naturally occur in glycans, constitute chemical handles for conjugation to small molecules including drugs, toxins, or imaging agents.