Genetic divergence and antibody expression influence the N-glycomes of CHO-K1 and CHO-S cells
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
While Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells continue to be the workhorse of recombinant therapeutic protein production, decades of genetic divergence in the industrially relevant CHO-K1 and CHO-S cell lines, are likely to have resulted in differing glycosylation capabilities. Glycosylation can influence the efficacy, serum half-life, and safety of biologics, and as a critical quality attribute of glycoprotein biopharmaceuticals, it is essential to better understand how major CHO cell manufacturing platforms diverge. We used matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry to perform N-glycomic analyses comparing CHO-K1 cells, CHO-S cells and antibody-producing daughter cell lines. The results reveal that genetic divergence in these industrially relevant cell lines, as well as the burden of antibody production, lead to significant differences in antennal branching and terminal elaboration in the cellular N-glycome. More specifically, CHO-K1 cells produce larger and more complex N-glycans with higher levels of sialylation than CHO-S cells, and antibody production was associated with increased antennal branching. Additionally, these findings were also reflected in the N-glycomic profiles of IgG1-Fc constructs produced in either CHO-K1 and CHO-S cells.
Date Issued
2025-11-01
Date Acceptance
2025-08-04
Citation
Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 2025, 122 (11), pp.3160-3175
ISSN
0006-3592
Publisher
Wiley
Start Page
3160
End Page
3175
Journal / Book Title
Biotechnology and Bioengineering
Volume
122
Issue
11
Copyright Statement
© 2025 The Author(s). Biotechnology and Bioengineering published by Wiley Periodicals LLC. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/40817708
Subjects
ACID
antibody glycoengineering
biopharmaceuticals
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
BUTYRATE
Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells
CULTURE
GLYCOSYLATION
HAMSTER OVARY CELLS
INTERFERON
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
MALDI-TOF
mass spectrometry
N-glycosylation
PRODUCTIVITY
Science & Technology
SHIFT
TEMPERATURE
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Date Publish Online
2025-10-07