[Serological analysis of melanoma patients receiving autologous melanoma cell vaccines].
By autologous serological typing we have defined 3 classes of cell surface antigens of cultured malignant melanoma, Class 1--unique (presents only on autologous melanoma cells); Class 2-a--shared tumor-restricted, Class 2-b--differentiation antigen of malignant melanoma; Class 3--widely distributed and not restricted to tumor cells. With this background, we studied whether humoral immune reactions to surface antigens of melanoma cells can be developed by immunization with autologous cultured melanoma cells. Vaccines were prepared by irradiating cultured melanoma cells with 10,000 rads from a Cobalt-60 source. An appropriate number of viable units of BCG were added. This mixture was injected intradermally at 3 week intervals. As the serological procedures, protein A assay (PA), immune adherence assay (IA), and anti-C3 mixed hemadsorption assay (C3-MHA) were performed. Absorption tests were also performed to define the specificity of cell surface antigens by using various kinds of cells. Ten melanoma patients who were vaccinated 5 or more times were analyzed by serological tests. Six patients showed an increased titer of antibodies to autologous melanoma cell antigens after vaccination. In two of these patients (AT, BD), the antibodies had specificity for shared melanoma antigens. In four patients (AV, BG, BT, CH), the antibodies were directed solely against antigens related to the fetal calf serum used in growing cells for tissue culture. Other four patients (AQ, BC, BW, CL) did not show any reactivity or showed low reactivity with Class 3.
D000368:Aged; D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005260:Female; D005266:Femoral Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D012703:Serotyping
D000912:Antibodies, Neoplasm; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm