Visible light triggers the formation of reactive oxygen species in monoclonal antibody formulations

Most monoclonal antibody formulations require the presence of a surfactant, such as polysorbate, to ensure protein stability. The presence of high concentrations of polysorbate have been shown to enhance photooxidation of certain protein drug products when exposed to visible light. The current literature, however, suggest that photooxidation of polysorbate only occurs when exposed to visible light in combination with UVA light. This is probable as peroxides present in polysorbate solutions can be cleaved homolytically in the UVA region. In the visible region, photooxidation is not expected to occur as cleavage of peroxides is not expected at these wavelengths. This report presents findings suggesting that the presence of one or more photosensitiser(s) in polysorbate must be a cause and is required to catalyse the aerobic oxidation of polysorbate solutions upon exposure to visible light. Our investigation aimed to clarify the mechanism(s) of polysorbate photooxidation and explore the kinetics and the identity of the generated radicals and their impact on monoclonal antibody (mAb) degradation. Our study reveals that when polysorbate solutions are exposed to visible light between 400–––800 nm in the absence of proteins, discoloration, radical formation, and oxygen depletion occur. We discuss the initial formation of reactive species, most likely occurring directly after reaction of molecular oxygen, with the presence of a triplet state photosensitizer, which is generated by intersystem crossing of the excited singlet state, leading predominantly to the formation of reactive species such as singlet oxygen species. When comparing the photooxidation of PS20 and PS80 in varying quality grades, we propose that singlet oxygen possesses potential for reacting with unsaturated fatty acids in PS80 HP, however, PS20 HP itself exhibited no measurable oxidation under the tested conditions. The study's final part delves into the photooxidation behaviour of different PS grades, examining its influence on the integrity of a mAb in the formulation. Finally, we examined the effect of photooxidation on the integrity of monoclonal antibodies. Our findings show that the exposure to visible light in polysorbate-containing mAb solutions at high PS concentrations of 4 mg∙ml−1 results in increased monoclonal antibody degradation, highlighting the need for cautious evaluation of the correct PS concentration to stabilise protein therapeutics.