Enzyme Activation of Triggerable Polymeric Lysosome Targeting Chimeras

Abstract

Targeted protein degradation (TPD) has been highly effective for intracellular targets, but extending this approach to extracellular and membrane-bound proteins remains difficult because most extracellular TPD (eTPD) strategies depend on ligand-targeting receptors (LTRs) whose expression and recycling vary across tissues. Existing LTR-independent, multivalent platforms expand the scope of eTPDs by eliminating this dependence on LTRs and enabling cancer-selective designs. Layering in an additional degree of selectivity through endogenously activatable triggers, such as overexpressed enzymes, can enhance the tissue tropism of the LTR-independent platforms and widen therapeutic window. Here we report triggerable polymeric lysosome targeting chimeras (tPolyTACs), which combine antibody-defined targeting with locally triggered covalent capture. tPolyTACs conjugate monoclonal antibodies to phosphatase-cleavable substrates that, upon engagement of endogenous cell-surface phosphatases, unmask a reactive quinone methide electrophile, covalently trapping the target complex and driving its clathrin-mediated internalization and autolysosomal degradation. We show tPolyTAC-mediated degradation of the membrane proteins EGFR, PD-L1, and cMET, and demonstrate that para-substituted electrophiles outperform ortho-substituted analogues likely due to more favorable active-site positioning. These results establish tPolyTACs as a modular, covalent, enzyme-responsive platform that resolves the efficiency-selectivity trade-off limitations in extracellular degradation.