Rapid characterization of structural and functional similarity for a candidate bevacizumab (Avastin) biosimilar using a multipronged mass-spectrometry-based approach.

The ongoing shift from small molecule drugs to protein therapeutics in the pharmaceuticals industry presents a considerable challenge to generic drug developers who are increasingly required to demonstrate biosimilarity for biological macromolecules, a task that is decidedly more complex than doing the same for small molecule drugs. In this work, we demonstrate a multipronged mass-spectrometry-based workflow that allows rapid and facile molecular characterization of antibody-based protein therapeutics, applied to biosimilars development. Specifically, we use a combination of native mass spectrometry (MS), ion mobility spectrometry (IMS), and global time-resolved hydrogen deuterium exchange (HDX) to provide an unambiguous assessment of the structural, dynamic, and chemical similarity between Avastin (bevacizumab) and a biosimilar in the late stages of pre-clinical development. Minor structural and dynamic differences between the biosimilar and Avastin, and between lots of the biosimilar, were tested for functional relevance using Surface Plasmon Resonance-derived kinetic and equilibrium binding parameters.