Next-generation optimized biotherapeutics - A review and preclinical study.

Biotherapeutics have been clinically used since the 1990s. Recently, next-generation optimized biotherapeutics, which are expected to act on the same molecular target as their predecessors with further properties by antibody-drug conjugation, radiolabeling, PEGylation and glycoconjugation, are on the market. This article reviews recent next-generation optimized biotherapeutics. Moreover, since trials of protein engineering for biotherapeutics have been conducted, these preclinical approaches are also described. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Recent advances in molecular engineering of antibody.