High-throughput single-cell activity-based screening and sequencing of antibodies using droplet microfluidics

Nat Biotechnol. 2020 Jun;38(6):715-721. doi: 10.1038/s41587-020-0466-7. Epub 2020 Mar 30.

Abstract

Mining the antibody repertoire of plasma cells and plasmablasts could enable the discovery of useful antibodies for therapeutic or research purposes1. We present a method for high-throughput, single-cell screening of IgG-secreting primary cells to characterize antibody binding to soluble and membrane-bound antigens. CelliGO is a droplet microfluidics system that combines high-throughput screening for IgG activity, using fluorescence-based in-droplet single-cell bioassays2, with sequencing of paired antibody V genes, using in-droplet single-cell barcoded reverse transcription. We analyzed IgG repertoire diversity, clonal expansion and somatic hypermutation in cells from mice immunized with a vaccine target, a multifunctional enzyme or a membrane-bound cancer target. Immunization with these antigens yielded 100-1,000 IgG sequences per mouse. We generated 77 recombinant antibodies from the identified sequences and found that 93% recognized the soluble antigen and 14% the membrane antigen. The platform also allowed recovery of ~450-900 IgG sequences from ~2,200 IgG-secreting activated human memory B cells, activated ex vivo, demonstrating its versatility.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antibodies / genetics*
  • Antigens / immunology
  • B-Lymphocytes / immunology
  • Cancer Vaccines / immunology
  • DNA / analysis
  • DNA / genetics
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing* / instrumentation
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing* / methods
  • Humans
  • Immunoglobulin G / genetics
  • Mice
  • Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / instrumentation*
  • Single-Cell Analysis* / instrumentation
  • Single-Cell Analysis* / methods

Substances

  • Antibodies
  • Antigens
  • Cancer Vaccines
  • Immunoglobulin G
  • DNA