Better understand HLA Binding Potential

The Class II HLA Binding Assay is a cell-free in vitro assessment that utilizes a set of recombinantly produced Class II HLA-DR “supertype” alleles to measure relative binding affinity of putative HLA ligands in a competition-based assay. The use of the “supertype” alleles in this assay enable coverage of prevalent HLA types expressed in a large majority of the human population. The cell-free assay format is far superior in sensitivity and specificity compared to cell-based binding assay formats.

The Class II HLA Binding Assay is useful for assessing the binding potential of peptides. This is relevant to comparing immunogenic potential of generic peptide APIs and associated impurities and to validate any putative T cell epitope “hotspots” that might be identified in biologic therapeutic or vaccine candidate sequences. This assay is also a useful first step of analysis for peptides composed of a high amount of unnatural amino acid content that may not be suitable for an in silico analysis.