Recombinant antibodies: engineering and production in yeast and bacterial hosts

After the appearance of the first FDA-approved antibody 25 years ago, antibodies have become major therapeutic agents in the treatment of many human diseases, including cancer and infectious diseases, and the use of antibodies as therapeutic/diagnostic agents is expected to increase in the future. So far, a variety of strategies have been devised for engineering of these fascinating molecules to develop superior properties and functions. Recent progress in systems biology has provided more information about the structures and cellular networks of antibodies, and, in addition, recent development of biotechnology tools, particularly in regard to high-throughput screening, has made it possible to perform more intensive engineering on these substances. Based on a sound understanding and new technologies, antibodies are now being developed as more powerful drugs. In this review, we highlight the recent, significant progress that has been made in antibody engineering, with a particular focus on Fc engineering and glycoengineering for improved functions, and cellular engineering for enhanced production of antibodies in yeast and bacterial hosts.