Gene therapy protocol at UCSD activates immune system in patients with leukemiaFebruary 12, 2008A research team at the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) reports that patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who were treated with a gene therapy protocol began making antibodies that reacted against their own leukemia cells. The study will be published on line the week of February 11-15 in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Researchers led by Thomas J. Kipps, M.D., Ph.D., inserted a gene with the potential to activate an immune response - a gene therapy protocol developed at UCSD - into six patients with CLL, the most common form of adult leukemia. Several of the patients started making antibodies that reacted against their own leukemia cells. When tested in the lab, the antibodies also reacted with the leukemia cells of other patients with the disease. "The patient's own leukemia cells were modified outside of their body and given back as a vaccine," said Kipps. "The result raises hope that it may be possible to activate a patient's immune system against their own cancer." The patients were shown to make antibodies reactive with a leukemia-associated antigen - a protein made by leukemia cells that can stimulate the body's immune system to produce antibodies - called ROR1. This antigen appears to be found only on the cell surface of the leukemia cells, but not on normal cells, and serves as a receptor that binds to a ligand called Wnt5a, which activates a pathway important for the survival of the leukemia cells. "The Wnt5a ligand interacts with ROR1 to enhance leukemia-cell survival. Antibodies that react with ROR1 can interfere with this survival signal and might also specifically target the leukemia cells for destruction," Kipps said. He also noted that because the ROR1 antigen is found only on leukemia cells, it could be developed as a very specific marker to monitor for the continued presence of leukemia cells after treatment or for identifying leukemia cells in patients with early disease, when the cancer otherwise might not be detected. It also provides a much more specific target for antibody therapy. Antibodies that target ROR1 would be unlike currently used antibodies, which bind antigens found not only on leukemia cells, but also on normal cells. Because they can destroy normal cells, the antibodies currently used to treat patients with this leukemia can cause side-effects and weaken the immune system. The ROR1 antigen is ordinarily found on a few cells in early embryonic development and is not detected on adult human cells or tissues. However, high amounts of this antigen are found on all the leukemia cells of patients with CLL. In the PNAS paper, the UCSD researchers present data on the leukemia cells of approximately 70 patients, all of which expressed the ROR1 antigen. University of California - San Diego |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Leukemia Current Events and Leukemia News Articles New research into the mechanisms of gene regulation A team led by Penn State's Ross Hardison, T. Ming Chu Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, has taken a large step toward unraveling how regulatory proteins control the production of gene products during development and growth. UAB Researchers Discover Antibody Receptor Identity, Propose Renaming Immune-System Gene Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) have uncovered the genetic identity of a cellular receptor for the immune system's first-response antibody, a discovery that sheds new light on infection control and immune disorders. U of M researchers find 2 units of umbilical cord blood reduce risk of leukemia recurrence A new study from the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota shows that patients who have acute leukemia and are transplanted with two units of umbilical cord blood (UCB) have significantly reduced risk of the disease returning. Aileron collaborates study in Nature: Stapled peptides inhibit Notch1 transcription factor This research validates the potential for Stapled Peptides to modulate key intracellular biological targets, such as transcription factors, that have not been addressable with current small molecule or biologic drug modalities. Researchers 'notch' a victory toward new kind of cancer drug Scientists have devised an innovative way to disarm a key protein considered to be "undruggable," meaning that all previous efforts to develop a drug against it have failed. FDA approved leukemia drugs shows promise in ovarian cancer cells The drug Sprycel, approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia, significantly inhibited the growth and invasiveness of ovarian cancer cells and also promoted their death, a study by researchers with UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center found. First use of antibody and stem cell transplantation to successfully treat advanced leukemia For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have reported the use of a radiolabeled antibody to deliver targeted doses of radiation, followed by a stem cell transplant, to successfully treat a group of leukemia and pre-leukemia patients for whom there previously had been no other curative treatment options. American Dietetic Association Releases Updated Position Paper Promoting and Supporting Breastfeeding The American Dietetic Association has released an updated position paper on breastfeeding that details health benefits for both infants and mothers and encourages promotion of breastfeeding whenever possible. Drug shows promise in treating dangerous complication of erectile disorder Thousands of men are afflicted with an embarrassing and painful condition that triggers spontaneous, long-lasting erections. There are limited treatment options, but a solution could be on the way thanks to new research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Brain tumors in childhood leave a lasting mark on cognition, life status Brain tumors in childhood cast a long shadow on survivors. The first study of the lasting impact of these tumors -- the most common solid malignancies in childhood -- shows that survivors have ongoing cognitive problems. More Leukemia Current Events and Leukemia News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||