Melanoma Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Melanoma, including details on identification, causes, prevention, treatment.

Therapeutic effect of gene-therapy in combination with local X-irradiation in a mouse malignant melanoma model.

Jin GH, Jin SZ, Liu Y, Xu RM, Yang JZ, Pan XN, Liu SZ

Immunobiology Laboratory, MH Radiobiology Research Unit, Jilin University Norman, Bethune Health Sciences Center, 828 Xinmin Street, Changchun 130021, PR China.

Plasmid containing mIL-18 and B7.1 genes downstream of Egr-1 promoter was constructed and used in gene-radiotherapy on malignant melanoma in C57BL/6J mice implanted with B16 cells followed by exploration of the immunologic mechanism of the therapeutic effect. The treatment with plasmid pEgr-IL-18-B7.1 plus local X-irradiation showed more effective suppression of tumor growth than the treatment with radiation alone, pEgr-IL-18-B7.1 alone, or single gene pEgr-IL-18 (or pEgr-B7.1) combined with local X-irradiation. Anticancer immunity was found to be significantly upregulated in tumor-bearing mice treated with pEgr-IL-18-B7.1 plus local X-irradiation. IL-18 showed no direct killing effect on malignant melanoma cells in vitro, and the mechanism of the combined therapy with pEgr-IL-18-B7.1 and local X-irradiation was apparently related with the stimulation of host anticancer immunity by increased secretion of IL-18 and upregulated immunogenicity of the tumor cells by increased expression of B7.1 on their surface in addition to the direct effect of local X-irradiation on the tumor cells.

Published 5 April 2005 in Biochem Biophys Res Commun, 330(3): 975-81.
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