Novel myostatin-specific antibody enhances muscle strength in muscle disease models

• Main Authors: Hiroyasu Muramatsu, Taichi Kuramochi, Hitoshi Katada, Atsunori Ueyama, Yoshinao Ruike, Ken Ohmine, Meiri Shida-Kawazoe, Rie Miyano-Nishizawa, Yuichiro Shimizu, Momoko Okuda, Yuji Hori, Madoka Hayashi, Kenta Haraya, Nobuhiro Ban, Tatsuya Nonaka, Masaki Honda, Hidetomo Kitamura, Kunihiro Hattori, Takehisa Kitazawa, Tomoyuki Igawa, Yoshiki Kawabe, Junichi Nezu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Publishing Group 2021-01-01
• Series: Scientific Reports
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81669-8

Abstract Myostatin, a member of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily, is an attractive target for muscle disease therapy because of its role as a negative regulator of muscle growth and strength. Here, we describe a novel antibody therapeutic approach that maximizes the potential of myostatin-targeted therapy. We generated an antibody, GYM329, that specifically binds the latent form of myostatin and inhibits its activation. Additionally, via “sweeping antibody technology”, GYM329 reduces or “sweeps” myostatin in the muscle and plasma. Compared with conventional anti-myostatin agents, GYM329 and its surrogate antibody exhibit superior muscle strength-improvement effects in three different mouse disease models. We also demonstrate that the superior efficacy of GYM329 is due to its myostatin specificity and sweeping capability. Furthermore, we show that a GYM329 surrogate increases muscle mass in normal cynomolgus monkeys without any obvious toxicity. Our findings indicate the potential of GYM329 to improve muscle strength in patients with muscular disorders.