Conjugated critical reagent characterization for ligand-binding assays: using MALDI-TOF-MS as an orthogonal tool to assess assay performance.

Large-molecule biotherapeutics are forming an increasingly large percentage of emerging pharmaceutical pipelines. These molecules present specific challenges to the bioanalysts charged with measuring in vivo concentrations of the biotherapeutic. The challenges are typically met using ligand-binding assays in support of pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and immunogenicity assays. Ligand-binding assays employ complex biological molecules that specifically recognize the biotherapeutic for quantitation. Generally, a minimum of one of these critical reagents must be chemically modified to generate a signal that is measured in the assay. Once chemically modified it is necessary to characterize the reagent prior to use in an assay. The concentration, purity and molar incorporation ratio of chemical modification are key characteristics. This article presents mass spectral techniques for determining the molar incorporation ratio. Case studies are provided to demonstrate the time and cost savings that can be realized with timely and detailed characterization of critical reagents for ligand-binding assays.