Differential antiproliferative effects of combinations of recombinant interferons alpha and gamma on two murine tumor cell lines.

The in vitro antiproliferative effects of recombinant interferons (IFNs) alpha and gamma against the murine reticulum-cell sarcoma M5076 and the malignant melanoma B16 F10 were evaluated using the human hybrid IFN-alpha A/D (rHuIFN-alpha A/D), which is active on murine cells, and recombinant murine IFN gamma (rMuIFN-gamma). An isobologram analysis was used to evaluate the interactive antiproliferative effects of the recombinant IFNs on these two tumor cell lines. The data, in contrast to prior reports, indicate that rHuIFN-alpha A/D and rMuIFN-gamma interact in an additive rather than a synergistic manner against M5076 cells. When a similar analysis was performed on B16 F10 cells, synergy was obtained. Thus, either a synergistic or an additive antiproliferative effect can be obtained by combining IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma, depending upon the cell line used in the assay.