Challenges and compromises: Predicting unbound antibody structures with deep learning

Therapeutic antibodies are manufactured, stored and administered in the free state; this makes understanding the unbound form key to designing and improving development pipelines. Prediction of unbound antibodies is challenging, specifically modelling of the CDRH3 loop, where inaccuracies are potentially worse due to a bias in structural data towards antibody-antigen complexes. This class imbalance provides a challenge for deep learning models trained on this data, potentially limiting generalisation to unbound forms.

Here we discuss the importance of unbound structures in antibody development pipelines. We explore how the latest generation of structure predictors can provide new insights and assess how conformational heterogeneity may influence binding kinetics. We hypothesise that generative models may address some of these issues. While prediction of antibodies in complex is essential, we should not ignore the need for progress in modelling the unbound form.