Improved efficacy of DNA vaccination against breast cancer by boosting with the repeat beta-hCG C-terminal peptide carried by mycobacterial heat-shock protein HSP65

Vaccine. 2006 Mar 24;24(14):2575-84. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2005.12.030. Epub 2006 Jan 18.

Abstract

Studies have demonstrated that active-specific immunotherapy has potential for controlling mammary tumor progression. Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is expressed and extremely sensitive, easily detectable and highly correlated with breast cancer. We developed a gene vaccine using a plasmid vector to deliver the six copies of 10-amino acid residues of beta-hCG 109-118 and beta hCG C-terminal 37-amino acid (CTP37). BALB/c female mice were immunized with a combination of pCR-HBc-X6-betahCGCTP37 DNA vaccine and HSP-X6-betahCGCTP37 protein vaccine. pCR-HBc-X6-betahCGCTP37 DNA vaccine were injected intramuscularly three times, on days -46,-25 and -11 and HSP-X6-betahCGCTP37 protein were applied two times, 21 and 14 days before tumor cell challenge. We assessed a combined DNA and protein vaccine for its effect of against murine EMT6 mammary tumor cells. In this study, animals vaccinated DNA vaccination boosting with the repeat beta-hCG C-terminal peptide carried by mycobacterial heat-shock protein HSP65 induced higher avidity antibodies and effectively inhibited the growth of tumor, compared with treatment using DNA alone or BCG priming HSP-X6-betahCGCTP37 protein boosting. The data presented demonstrate that improve immunogenicity of DNA vaccination by boosting with the repeat beta-hCG C-terminal peptide carried by mycobacterial heat-shock protein HSP65, which should prove useful in the development of new DNA vaccine against growth factors for cancer immunotherapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antibodies, Neoplasm / blood
  • Bacterial Proteins / chemistry*
  • Breast Neoplasms / immunology
  • Breast Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Cancer Vaccines / therapeutic use*
  • Carrier Proteins / administration & dosage
  • Carrier Proteins / chemistry
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Chaperonin 60
  • Chaperonins / chemistry*
  • Chorionic Gonadotropin / administration & dosage*
  • Chorionic Gonadotropin / chemistry
  • Humans
  • Immunotherapy
  • Mice
  • Mycobacterium / chemistry
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid
  • Vaccination / methods
  • Vaccination / standards
  • Vaccines, DNA / administration & dosage*
  • Vaccines, DNA / immunology

Substances

  • Antibodies, Neoplasm
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Cancer Vaccines
  • Carrier Proteins
  • Chaperonin 60
  • Chorionic Gonadotropin
  • Vaccines, DNA
  • heat-shock protein 65, Mycobacterium
  • Chaperonins