The in vivo anti-tumor effect of human recombinant interleukin-6.
Administration of recombinant interleukin-6 (IL-6) was found to induce in vivo generation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) against syngeneic transplantable erythroleukemia (FBL-3) in lymph node cells and peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) in C57BL/6 mice. Furthermore, 15 out of 16 C57BL/6 mice injected with 5 x 10(6) viable FBL-3 cells survived on day 100 when they were treated with 5 x 10(4) U of recombinant IL-6 three times a day on days 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 9 after the inoculation of tumor cells (the cure rate was 94%). Cured mice could reject the tumor cells rapidly after the re-inoculation of a large number of live FBL-3 cells. In contrast, all normal mice died of tumor development by day 10. In these cured mice, FBL-3-specific CD4-8+ CTL cells were found to be generated in PEC, spleen and lymph node cells by either in vivo or in vitro re-stimulation with FBL-3 cells, but lymphokine-activated killer cells never developed. The results suggested that the anti-tumor effect of IL-6 was mediated by in vivo induction of tumor-specific CTL.
Kitahara
M
M
Department of Medicine, Osaka University Hospital.
Kishimoto
S
S
Hirano
T
T
Kishimoto
T
T
Okada
M
M
D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic / Q000276:immunology; D007274:Injections, Intraperitoneal; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004915:Leukemia, Erythroblastic, Acute / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D051379:Mice; D009368:Neoplasm Transplantation; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology
D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D015850:Interleukin-6; D011994:Recombinant Proteins