Antitumor activity of murine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) against transplanted murine tumors and heterotransplanted human tumors in nude mice.

The antitumor activity of highly purified tumor necrosis factor (TNF) was tested against eight kinds of murine tumor and five kinds of human tumor heterotransplanted into nude mice. Mice were treated by intravenous or intratumoral injection of TNF, commencing when the tumors were well established. TNF showed an excellent curative effect against all kinds of murine and human tumors tested. Meth A sarcoma, Colon 26, Ehrlich, sarcoma 180, MM 46, MH 134, B16 melanoma, and Lewis lung tumors transplanted into mice underwent tumor necrosis and regression following a single injection of TNF. Sometimes a complete cure was observed in Meth A sarcoma, sarcoma 180, Ehrlich, and MM 46 tumors. Human cancers, SEKI, HMV-I, KATO-III, MKN 45, or KB, heterotransplanted into nude mice, also exhibited tumor necrosis and regression in size following several intratumoral injections of TNF. A great difference in curative effects of TNF was observed in Meth A sarcomas between those transplanted into BALB/c nu/+ and into BALB/c nu/nu mice: following a single intravenous administration the effect was stronger in BALB/c nu/+ than in nu/nu mice. In contrast, tumor necrosis was almost the same in nu/+ and nu/nu mice following intratumoral administration. The present results thus indicate that TNF from mice had an antitumor activity against not only murine tumors but also human tumors. In addition to direct cytotoxicity against tumor cells, TNF induced a host-mediated factor which contributed to the antitumor effects.