Immunological prevention of spontaneous tumors: a new prospect?
Recent demonstrations of the specific immune prevention of mammary cancer in female BALB/c mice transgenic for the rat Her-2/neu oncogene (BALB-neuT) have resulted in reconsideration of the immune mechanisms that inhibit tumor growth. All the mammary glands of these mice progress asynchronously, but consistently, from hyperplasia to invasive carcinoma. Overexpression of the oncogene product p185neu is first evident in the rudimentary glands of 3-week-old mice. Carcinogenesis is prevented by vaccination with plasmids coding for the extracellular and transmembrane domains of this p185neu, or with allogeneic cells expressing p185neu on their membrane, plus the systemic administration of IL-12. This inhibition is the outcome of a delayed-type hypersensitivity specific for p185neu and the production of anti-p185neu antibodies that restrain the proliferation of tumor cells by stripping p185neu from their membrane, whereas cytotoxic T lymphocytes seem devoid of a major role.
Quaglino
Elena
E
Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, Ospedale San Luigi Gonzaga, University of Turin, I-10043 Orbassano, Italy.
Rovero
Stefania
S
Cavallo
Federica
F
Musiani
Piero
P
Amici
Augusto
A
Nicoletti
Giordano
G
Nanni
Patrizia
P
Forni
Guido
G
D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006968:Hypersensitivity, Delayed / Q000276:immunology; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D051381:Rats; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015996:Survival Rate; D014611:Vaccination
D000906:Antibodies; D018664:Interleukin-12; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases