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. 1999 Jul;80(9):1420–1426. doi: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6690538

Tumour cells engineered to secrete interleukin-15 augment anti-tumour immune responses in vivo

S Hazama 1, T Noma 2, F Wang 1, N Iizuka 1, Y Ogura 1, K Yoshimura 1, E Inoguchi 3, M Hakozaki 3, K Hirose 3, T Suzuki 1, M Oka 1
PMCID: PMC2363078  PMID: 10424745

Abstract

We examined the effect of interleukin-15 (IL-15) gene transfer into tumour cells on the host's anti-tumour response. In BALB/c mice IL-15 producing Meth-A cells (Meth-A/IL-15) underwent complete rejection, in a response characterized by massive infiltration of CD4+ T-cells and neutrophils. In contrast, Meth-A cells transfected with vector alone (Meth-A/Neo) grew rapidly. Moreover, rechallenged parental cells also were rejected in association with CD8+ T-cell infiltration. However, in nude mice there was no drastic difference between Meth-A/IL-15 and Meth-A/Neo cells. These results demonstrate that IL-15-secreting tumour cells can stimulate local and systemic T-cell-dependent immunity and therefore may have a potential role in cancer therapy. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaign

Keywords: IL-15, tumour immunity, vaccination, in vivo animal models, gene therapy

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Selected References

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