Epitope Mapping for a Preclinical Bevacizumab (Avastin) Biosimilar on an Extended Construct of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A Using Millisecond Hydrogen–Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry

The success of bevacizumab (Avastin), a monoclonal antibody (mAb) anticancer drug targeting vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), has motivated the development of biosimilars. Establishing target epitope similarity using epitope mapping is a critical step in preclinical mAb biosimilar development. Here we use time-resolved electrospray ionization hydrogen-deuterium exchange (HDX) mass spectrometry to rapidly compare the epitopes of commercial Avastin and a biosimilar in preclinical development (ApoBev) on an extended construct of VEGF-A. The Avastin and ApoBev epitopes determined in our experiments agree with each other and with the known epitope derived from the Avastin Fab domain/truncated VEGF co-crystal structure. However, subtly different allosteric effects observed exclusively at short (millisecond) HDX labeling times may reflect a slightly different binding mode for ApoBev.