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Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology logoLink to Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical Oncology
. 1997 Aug;123(8):420–428. doi: 10.1007/BF01372545

Interleukin-2-activated killer cell activity in colorectal tumor patients: evaluation of in vitro effects by prothymosinα1

K Eckert 1, E Grünberg 1, P Immenschuh 2, F Garbin 1, E D Kreuser 2, H R Maurer 1,✉
PMCID: PMC12201504  PMID: 9292704

Abstract

The effects of prothymosin α1 (Pro α1) in combination with interleukin-2 (IL-2) on peripheral blood lymphocytes from 50 colorectal tumor patients at different stages were studied with respect to immunocytotoxicity, adhesion to cultured SW620 colon carcinoma cells, secretion of cytokines and expression of adhesion and surface marker molecules. On average, the patients showed lower natural killer (NK) cell activity than healthy donors, which was associated with a lower adhesion capacity to the tumor target cells. The NK cell activity of the patients was inversely related to the tumor stage. The generation of lymphokine(IL-2)-activated killer (LAK) cell activity was found to be comparable on lymphocytes from healthy individuals and patients and was not correlated to tumor stage. Pro α1 stimulated patients' LAK cell activity only, primarily at the early stage (Dukes A/B). The Pro α1 effect was associated with an increased adhesion of lymphocytes to tumor target cells and an increased secretion of the deficient IL-2-induced IFNγ secretion. No significant effects on the low level of TNFα secretion was noted. By flow cytometry, Pro α1 in combination with IL-2 augmented the expression of the NK cell markers CD56, CD16/56, the subset CD3/16/56 and CD25 on lymphocytes of the patients. In contrast, Pro α1 was equally effective by increasing the expression of CD18 and CD11a, on lymphocytes from the patients and from normal controls. In conclusion, Pro α1, in combination with IL-2, can partially normalize lymphocyte deficiencies of colon cancer patients in vitro. This potential might provide an experimental basis for applying Pro α1 or related thymic peptides in selected immunotherapies against colorectal tumors.

Key words: Colorectal cancer, LAK cell activity, Prothymosin α1, Cytokines, Adhesion molecules

Abbreviations

Pro

α1 prothymosin α1

NK

natural killer

LAK

lymphokine-activated killer

IL-2

interleukin-2

TNFα

tumor necrosis factor α

IFNγ

interferon γ

PBL

peripheral blood lymphocytes

ELISA

enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

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