Paul Carter

Senior Director, Antibody Engineering

POSTDOC MENTOR

"The long duration of drug development relative to the span of a career reminds me that, like the renown landscape gardener, Lancelot "Capability" Brown, one needs to plant for future generations."

• 27
  years at Genentech
• 3
  publications (2010-12)

I first joined Genentech as a Postdoctoral Fellow in 1986 and left as a Senior Scientist and Head of the Postdoctoral Program in 2000. I then rejoined Genentech in 2010 as a Senior Director and Staff Scientist to lead the Antibody Engineering.

My most significant contributions to drug development include initiating the antibody humanization program at Genentech and co-inventing Herceptin® (trastuzumab), a humanized antibody approved by the FDA for the treatment of HER2-overexpressing breast cancer. I am a co-inventor of three other antibodies that have reached at least early clinical development.

Beyond antibody therapeutics, my laboratory has developed technologies for high-level antibody Fab fragment expression that were subsequently utilized for production of the anti-VEGF Fab, Lucentis® (ranibizumab injection). We also developed "knobs-in-holes" technology for creating bispecific human IgG and other bifunctional molecules. This technology was enabling for MetMAb, a monovalent anti-Met antibody currently in phase II clinical trials.

• My Focus

  My research interests focus on creating future generations of antibody therapeutics by rational design and molecular evolution approaches. My prime motivator is the desire to generate antibodies that provide greater benefit to patients than achieved with current antibody drugs.

  Improving the clinical potential of antibodies seems feasible given the growing repertoire of antibody optimization technologies. For example, one can potentially overcome biophysical, functional and immunogenic limitations of antibodies, enhance existing properties as well as endow these molecules with novel activities. Growing knowledge of the mechanisms of action and mechanisms of resistance of antibody drugs are anticipated to guide the design of next generation antibodies.

  Commercial impetus to improve antibody performance is provided by the need to differentiate one self from others. Competition will surely intensify as many approved and investigational drugs target the same antigen and/or diseases.

• Publications

  • A strategy for risk mitigation of antibodies with fast clearance

    mAbs, 2012, ISSN: 1942-0862

    Hoetzel, Isidro; Theil, Frank-Peter; Bernstein, Lisa J.; Prabhu, Saileta; Deng, Rong; Quintana, Leah; Lutman, Jeff; Sibia, Renuka; Chan, Pamela; Bumbaca, Daniela; Fielder, Paul; Carter, Paul J.; Kelley, Robert F.

     View on PubMed

  • Engineering upper hinge improves stability and effector function of a human IgG1

    Journal of Biological Chemistry, 2012, ISSN: 0021-9258

    Yan, Boxu; Boyd, Daniel; Kaschak, Timothy; Tsukuda, Joni; Shen, Amy; Lin, Yuwen; Chung, Shan; Gupta, Priyanka; Kamath, Amrita; Wong, Anne; Vernes, Jean-Michel; Meng, Gloria Y.; Totpal, Klara; Schaefer, Gabriele; Jiang, Guoying; Nogal, Bartek; Emery, Craig; Vanderlaan, Martin; Carter, Paul; Harris, Reed; Amanullah, Ashraf

     View on PubMed

  • Therapeutic antibodies for autoimmunity and inflammation.

    Nature Reviews Immunology, 2010, ISSN: 1474-1741

    Chan, A.; Carter, P.

• Education
  • Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, University of Cambridge, U.K., Ph.D. – 1986
  • University of Cambridge, U.K. Natural Sciences, B.A. – 1982