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. 2000 Jan 18;82(3):691–701. doi: 10.1054/bjoc.1999.0982

Lack of evidence for MHC-unrestricted (atypical) recognition of mucin by mucinous pancreatic tumour-reactive T-cells

R S Selvan 1, T N Pappas 1, F E Ward 2
PMCID: PMC2363309  PMID: 10682684

Abstract

Cytotoxic T-cells generated against heterologous, mucinous pancreatic tumour cells were shown to recognize mucin in a major histocombatibility complex (MHC)-unrestricted fashion. In contrast, the present study demonstrates a typical allogeneic response of heterologous cytotoxic T-cells established against mucin-expressing pancreatic tumour cells. Heterologous cytotoxic T cells lysed targets that were used as stimulators and other targets that shared human leucocyte antigen (HLA) with the stimulator. These cytotoxic T-cells lysed mucin-expressing stimulator cells but not autologous tumour cells in spite of expressing mucin on their surface. Likewise, tumour-infiltrating CD4+T-cells proliferated against its own tumour cell target, while such T-cells did not respond to heterologous, mucin-expressing pancreatic tumour cells. Culturing heterologous tumour-specific cytotoxic T-cells with purified pancreatic tumour cell-mucin rendered them unresponsive to their target cells. Furthermore, purified mucin did not produce a mucin-specific response in mucinous pancreatic tumour patients' primary T-cells even in the presence of antigen-presenting cells. Our study finds no evidence for MHC-unrestricted recognition of mucin by pancreatic cancer patients' T-cells. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaign

Keywords: mucin, tumour antigen, T-cell, immune response, pancreatic tumour

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Selected References

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