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823 CD4 T cells are essential for an anti-tumor effect in a B78 murine melanoma tumor model
  1. Arika Feils,
  2. Mackenzie Heck,
  3. Anna Hoefges,
  4. Peter Carlson,
  5. Luke Zangl,
  6. Ravi Patel,
  7. Dmitriy Kravtsov,
  8. Jacquelyn Hank,
  9. Zachary Morris,
  10. Alexander Rakhmilevich,
  11. Paul Sondel and
  12. Amy Erbe
  1. University of Wisconsin-Madison, Fitchburg, WI, USA

Abstract

Background Mice bearing B78 melanoma tumors can be cured using an in situ vaccine (ISV) regimen that includes radiation (RT) together with immunocytokine (tumor-targeting mAb conjugated to IL-2). B78 melanoma cells, derived from B16 cells, express minimal to no MHC-I but express MHC-II upon IFN-g/TNF-a stimulation. Although B78 cells are primarily MHC-I-deficient, an increased CD8 T cell infiltration into the tumor microenvironment (TME) has been shown following ISV.1 To further investigate the potential role of specific immune cell lineages in the B78 anti-tumor response to ISV, immune subset depletion studies and flow cytometric analyses were performed.

Methods C57BL/6 mice bearing B78 tumors were depleted of immune cell subsets with mAbs (anti-CD4, anti-CD8, anti-NK1.1, or Rat IgG control) for 3 weeks during the course of treatment. Treatment groups included no treatment, RT (12 Gy), or ISV (RT D0 and immunocytokine D5-D9). 6 mice/group (repeated three times) were followed for survival/tumor growth, and flow cytometry studies included 4 mice/group, sacrificed on D8 and D13 following the start of ISV.

Results Mice depleted of CD4 T cells during the course of ISV showed a significant reduction of anti-tumor effect as compared to mice treated with ISV/Rat IgG (p

Conclusions These studies suggest that CD4 T cells are essential for an anti-tumor response in the B78 melanoma model. In vivo depletion data show that CD4 T cells, but not CD8 or NK cells, are required for a decrease in tumor growth via ISV. Flow cytometric analyses suggest an interplay between CD4 and CD8 T cells as indicated by a decrease in CD8/IFN-g expression following ISV in the absence of CD4 T cells. The role that MHC-I and MHC-II expression plays in this CD4/CD8 T cell anti-tumor response is under investigation. In future studies, B78 melanoma may serve as a critical syngeneic model for development of more effective immunotherapy treatment regimens.

Ethics Approval All animal experiments were performed in accordance with protocols approved by Animal Care and Use Committees of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Reference

  1. Morris Z, Guy E, Francis D, et al. In situ tumor vaccination by combining local radiation and tumor-specific antibody or immunocytokine treatments. Cancer Res 2016;76(13):3929-3941.

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