PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Huebener, Nicole
AU  - Fest, Stefan
AU  - Hilt, Kerstin
AU  - Schramm, Alexander
AU  - Eggert, Angelika
AU  - Durmus, Tahir
AU  - Woehler, Anja
AU  - Stermann, Alexander
AU  - Bleeke, Matthias
AU  - Baykan, Bianca
AU  - Weixler, Silke
AU  - Gaedicke, Gerhard
AU  - Lode, Holger N.
TI  - Xenogeneic immunization with human tyrosine hydroxylase DNA vaccines suppresses growth of established neuroblastoma
AID  - 10.1158/1535-7163.MCT-09-0107
DP  - 2009 Aug 01
TA  - Molecular Cancer Therapeutics
PG  - 2392--2401
VI  - 8
IP  - 8
4099  - http://mct.aacrjournals.org/content/8/8/2392.short
4100  - http://mct.aacrjournals.org/content/8/8/2392.full
SO  - Mol Cancer Ther2009 Aug 01; 8
AB  - Neuroblastoma (NB) is a challenging malignancy of the sympathetic nervous tissue characterized by a very poor prognosis. One important marker for NB is the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), the first-step enzyme of catecholamine biosynthesis. We could show stable and high TH gene expression in 67 NB samples independent of the clinical stage. Based on this observation, we addressed the question of whether xenogeneic TH DNA vaccination is effective in inducing an anti-NB immune response. For this purpose, we generated three DNA vaccines based on pCMV-F3Ub and pBUD-CE4.1 plasmids encoding for human (h)THcDNA (A), hTH minigene (B), and hTHcDNA in combination with the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin 12 (C), and tested prophylactic and therapeutic efficacy to suppress primary tumor growth and spontaneous metastasis. Here we report that xenogeneic TH DNA vaccination was effective in eradicating established primary tumors and inhibiting metastasis. Interestingly, this effect could not be enhanced by adding the Th1 cytokine interleukin 12. However, increased IFN-γ production and NB cytotoxicity of effector cells harvested from vaccinated mice suggested the participation of tumor-specific CTLs in the immune response. The depletion of CD8+T cells completely abrogated the hTH vaccine–mediated anti-NB immune response. Furthermore, rechallenging of surviving mice resulted in reduced primary tumor growth, indicating the induction of a memory immune response. In conclusion, xenogeneic immunization with TH-derived DNA vaccines is effective against NB, and may open a new venue for a novel and effective immunotherapeutic strategy against this challenging childhood tumor. [Mol Cancer Ther 2009;8(8):2392–401]