Ganglioside Vaccine Induces Tumor Protection In B16 Mouse Model.(Brief Article)

2001 SEP 5 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) --

by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - A vaccine incorporating the glycolipid GM3 ganglioside offers long-term protection against melanoma in a mouse model, even after reintroduction of the disease.

"The presence of substantial amounts of GM3 ganglioside on human melanomas and other tumors, together with its peculiar biological properties, makes this glycolipid a unique target for cancer immunotherapy," noted A. Carr and colleagues working in Cuba. "B16 mouse melanoma expresses GM3 and constitutes an appropriate model for the development of novel GMS-based vaccines."

The researchers incorporated purified GM3 into the outer membrane protein complex from Neisseria meningitidis to form small proteoliposomes (GM3/VSSP). The antitumor properties of GM3/VSSP were then compared to those of GM3 incorporated in very low-density serum lipoproteins (GM3/VLDL).

The GM3/VSSP vaccine (120 (micro)g of ganglioside) plus Freund's adjuvant or Montanide ISA 51, given in four doses, significantly improved survival of mice that had been inoculated with 10(3) B16-F1 cells, but the GM3/VLDL immunogen was ineffective.

GM3/VSSP sustained this protection in surviving animals that were re-inoculated with melanoma, by reducing the subcutaneous growth of highly aggressive B16-F10 cells, reported Carr and coworkers.

Immunostaining and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay showed a high specificity of immune sera against GM3 and the presence of all four immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclasses, especially IgG2b and IgG3, highlighting the importance of ...