- Moldt, Brian;
- Shibata-Koyama, Mami;
- Rakasz, Eva G.;
- Schultz, Niccole;
- Kanda, Yutaka;
- Dunlop, D. Cameron;
- Finstad, Samantha L.;
- Jin, Chenggang;
- Landucci, Gary;
- Alpert, Michael D.;
- Dugast, Anne-Sophie;
- Parren, Paul I.;
- Nimmerjahn, Falk;
- Evans, David T.;
- Alter, Galit;
- Forthal, Donald N.;
- Schmitz, Jorn E.;
- Iida, Shigeru;
- Poignard, Pascal;
- Watkins, David I.;
- Hessell, Ann J.;
- Burton, Dennis R.
Eliciting neutralizing antibodies is thought to be a key activity of a vaccine against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, a number of studies have suggested that in addition to neutralization, interaction of IgG with Fc gamma receptors (FcγR) may play an important role in antibody-mediated protection. We have previously obtained evidence that the protective activity of the broadly neutralizing human IgG1 anti-HIV monoclonal antibody (MAb) b12 in macaques is diminished in the absence of FcγR binding capacity. To investigate antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) as a contributor to FcγR-associated protection, we developed a nonfucosylated variant of b12 (NFb12). We showed that, compared to fully fucosylated (referred to as wild-type in the text) b12, NFb12 had higher affinity for human and rhesus macaque FcγRIIIa and was more efficient in inhibiting viral replication and more effective in killing HIV-infected cells in an ADCC assay. Despite these more potent in vitro antiviral activities, NFb12 did not enhance protection in vivo against repeated low-dose vaginal challenge in the simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV)/macaque model compared to wild-type b12. No difference in protection, viral load, or infection susceptibility was observed between animals given NFb12 and those given fully fucosylated b12, indicating that FcγR-mediated activities distinct from FcγRIIIa-mediated ADCC may be important in the observed protection against SHIV challenge.