Suppression of human corneal epithelial proliferation with breast carcinoma immunotoxin.

We examined the effects of the immunotoxin 260F9 Mab-recombinant ricin A (developed against human breast carcinoma) on proliferating and confluent human corneal epithelium (HCE) cells in vitro. HCE cells derived from explants of discarded human donor corneoscleral rims were established as proliferating and confluent cell cultures, and were exposed continuously for 7 days to immunotoxin. Final cell counts at day 7, and thymidine uptake measured at days 1 and 7 postexposure, showed > 95% suppression of proliferating cells at an immunotoxin concentration of 10 ng/ml, with confluent HCE cells relatively unaffected. This immunotoxin may prove useful in treatment of proliferative ocular epithelial diseases such as epithelial downgrowth or squamous cell carcinoma of the ocular surface.