New Anti-Tumor Cell Therapy Strategies Are More Effective

Oct. 25, 2012 - PRLog -- New Rochelle, NY-Targeted T-cells can seek out and destroy tumor cells that carry specific antigen markers.  Two novel anti-tumor therapies that take advantage of this T-cell response are described in articles published in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The articles are available free on the Human Gene Therapy website at liebertpub.com/hum.

Richard Morgan and colleagues from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD, and Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, used engineered T-cells to attack glioma stem cells, which are one of the cell types present in glioblastoma, an aggressive and fatal type of brain cancer. There is no curative treatment for glioblastoma, and patients usually live less than two years from diagnosis. In the article "Recognition of Glioma Stem Cells by Genetically Modified T Cells Targeting EGFRvIII and Development of Adoptive Cell Therapy for Glioma," the authors describe how targeting tumor stem cells, in combination with traditional therapies aimed at killing other types of glioma tumor cells, could improve the effectiveness of treatment and reduce tumor recurrence.

In a related article, Karen Kaluza and coauthors, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, conducted a study using T-cells capable of recognizing two different antigens simultaneously and showed that this dual targeting strategy could be more effective at clearing tumor cells and reducing the risk of "tumor escape" and cancer recurrence. In "Adoptive Transfer of Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes Targeting Two Different Antigens Limits Antigen Loss and Tumor Escape," the authors conclude that T-cell therapies targeting two or more antigens will have significant added value compared to single-antigen therapies.

“These studies represent important advances in the development of novel treatments for cancer that combine the power of  gene transfer and cell transplantation,” says James M. Wilson, MD, PhD, Editor-in-Chief, and Director of the Gene Therapy Program, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia.

About the Journal
Human Gene Therapy, the Official Journal of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy, British Society for Gene and Cell Therapy, French Society of Cell and Gene Therapy, German Society of Gene Therapy, and five other gene therapy societies is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published monthly in print and online. Led by Editor-in-Chief James M. Wilson, MD, PhD, Director of the Gene Therapy Program, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Human Gene Therapy presents reports on the transfer and expression of genes in mammals, including humans. Related topics include improvements in vector development, delivery systems, and animal models, particularly in the areas of cancer, heart disease, viral disease, genetic disease, and neurological disease, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory issues related to the gene transfer in humans. Tables of content and a free sample issue may be viewed on the Human Gene Therapy website at liebertpub.com/hum.

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Nucleic Acid Therapeutics, Tissue Engineering, Stem Cells and Development, and Cellular Reprogramming. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 70 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website at liebertpub.com.