Effects of hapten density on the induced antibody repertoire

Small peptides and oligosaccharides are important antigens for the development of vaccines and the production of monoclonal antibodies. Because of their small size, peptides and oligosaccharides are non-immunogenic on their own and typically must be conjugated to a larger carrier protein to elicit an immune response. Selection of a suitable carrier protein, conjugation method, and hapten density are critical for generating an optimal immune response. We used a glycan array to compare the repertoire of antibodies induced after immunizing with either low or high-density conjugates of the tumor-associated Tn antigen. At high hapten density, a broader range of antibodies was induced, and reactivity to the clustered Tn antigen was observed. In contrast, antibodies induced by the low-density conjugate had narrower reactivity and did not bind the clustered Tn antigen.