Richichi Barbara, Thomas Baptiste, Fiore Michele, Bosco Rosa, Qureshi Huma, Nativi Cristina, Renaudet Olivier, BenMohamed Lbachir
Department of Chemistry "Ugo Schiff", University of Florence via della Lastruccia, 13, 50019 Sesto F.no (FI) (Italy).
Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2014 Oct 27;53(44):11917-20. doi: 10.1002/anie.201406897. Epub 2014 Aug 28.
Tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs) are key components of cancer vaccines. A variety of vaccines based on native TACAs such as α-Tn have shown immunogenicity and protection in preclinical animal studies, however, their weak immunogenicity, low in vivo instability, and poor bioavailability, have discouraged their further evaluations in clinical studies. A new improved vaccine prototype is reported. It is composed of four clustered Tn-antigen mimetics and a immunogenic peptide epitope that are conjugated to a cyclopeptide carrier. The immunization of mice with this vaccine 1) was safe, 2) induced a strong and long-lasting Tn-specific response with IgM/IgG antibodies able to recognize native carbohydrate antigens; 3) produced high titers of IgG1, IgG2a, and IgG3 antibodies; and 4) produced a significant antibody-dependent regression of tumors and conferred protection. Altogether, these findings pave the way for the clinical development of safe and effective therapeutic vaccines against Tn-expressing cancers.
肿瘤相关碳水化合物抗原(TACAs)是癌症疫苗的关键组成部分。多种基于天然TACAs(如α-Tn)的疫苗在临床前动物研究中已显示出免疫原性和保护作用,然而,其免疫原性较弱、体内稳定性低以及生物利用度差,阻碍了它们在临床研究中的进一步评估。本文报道了一种新的改良疫苗原型。它由四个聚集的Tn抗原模拟物和一个免疫原性肽表位组成,这些成分与一个环肽载体偶联。用这种疫苗免疫小鼠:1)安全;2)诱导出强烈且持久的Tn特异性反应,产生的IgM/IgG抗体能够识别天然碳水化合物抗原;3)产生高滴度的IgG1、IgG2a和IgG3抗体;4)产生显著的抗体依赖性肿瘤消退并提供保护作用。总之,这些发现为针对表达Tn的癌症开发安全有效的治疗性疫苗的临床研究铺平了道路。