For some individuals with leukemia, the best treatment option is to receive a bone marrow transplant from a person who is not an identical genetic match. The donor bone marrow gives rise to immune cells that attack the leukemia (a response known as a graft-versus leukemia [GVL] response). In some cases, however, the immune cells generated by the donor bone marrow attack other cells in the patient's body and this highly toxic response is known as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Much research is being conducted to identify drugs that can prevent GVHD but preserve GVL responses and responses against infectious agents. A team of researchers, led by Amer Beg and Xue-Zhong Yu, at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, has now identified the protein PKC-theta as a potential drug target in this context by determining that it is required in mice for GVHD induction but not for GVL or protective responses to infectious agents.
TITLE: PKC-theta is required for alloreactivity and GVHD but not for immune responses toward leukemia and infection in mice
AUTHOR CONTACT:
Amer A. Beg
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Phone: (813) 745-5714; Fax: (813) 979-7265; E-mail: amer.beg@moffitt.org .
Xue-Zhong Yu
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Phone: (813) 745-3562; Fax: (813) 979-7265; E-mail: xue.yu@moffitt.org .
View this article at: http://www.jci.org/articles/view/39692?key=zd7vNZFNtFlFYjT9Mfn6
Journal of Clinical Investigation