title: Inhibition of HHV-8/KSHV infected primary effusion lymphomas in NOD/SCID mice by azidothymidine and interferon-alpha.
abstract: Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus/human herpesvirus type-8 (KSHV/HHV-8) is associated with primary effusion lymphomas (PEL), a rare form of B-cell lymphoma. PEL cell lines infected with HHV-8, but negative for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), were analyzed for their tumorigenic potential in a small animal model system. Inoculation of PEL cell lines into non-obese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mice results in efficient engraftment and tumorigenesis in vivo. PEL-engrafted NOD/SCID (PEL/SCID) mice displayed malignant ascites development with notable abdominal distension, consistent with the clinical manifestations of PEL in humans. Azidothymidine (AZT, zidovudine) and interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) induce apoptosis in HHV-8+/EBV- PEL cells in culture, by induction of a tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL) mediated suicide program and has been proposed as a therapy for herpesvirus-associated lymphomas. Daily injection of AZT and IFN-alpha significantly increased mean survival time (MST) of PEL/SCID mice suggesting that induction of apoptosis in PEL cells in vivo may be exploited as an effective relatively non-toxic therapy targeting HHV-8 infected PEL. These data demonstrate that the PEL/SCID mouse is an important preclinical model to characterize efficacy and anti-tumor mechanisms of new therapeutic targets in vivo and will be useful in the design and testing of agents in viral lymphoproliferative diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Rosemary
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rochford
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Toomey
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Harrington
authors.forename: Gerold
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Feuer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D051017:Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins; D020031:Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D019288:Herpesvirus 8, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000821:virology*; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D016688:Mice, Inbred NOD; D016513:Mice, SCID; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015996:Survival Rate; D053221:TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand; D013997:Time Factors; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000637:transplantation; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D051017:Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors; D053221:TNF-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand; C505653:TNFSF10 protein, human; C505654:Tnfsf10 protein, mouse; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D015215:Zidovudine