Induction of mucosal and systemic immune responses against human carcinoembryonic antigen by an oral vaccine

Cancer Res. 2005 Aug 1;65(15):6990-9. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-04-3669.

Abstract

Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) is a tumor-associated antigen targeted for the development of colorectal tumor vaccines. In this study, we developed papillomavirus pseudoviruses encoding the truncated CEA without NH2-terminal signal peptide (PV-CEA) as an oral vaccine to induce CEA-specific CTL responses. In CEA transgenic (CEA-Tg) mice orally immunized with PV-CEA, the immunologic tolerance to CEA as a "self-antigen" was overcome and both mucosal and systemic CEA-specific cytolytic activities were detected by in vitro 51Cr release assays. In a tumor prevention model, the growth rate of CEA+ tumors was significantly delayed in CEA-Tg mice orally immunized with PV-CEA when compared with the control vaccine. Further, the IFN-gamma enzyme-linked ImmunoSPOT and in vitro 51Cr release assay results showed that HLA-A2-restricted, CEA-specific CTL responses were induced in both mucosal and systemic lymphoid tissues in A2 transgenic mice after oral immunization with PV-CEA. Finally, we showed that coadministration of papillomavirus pseudoviruses encoding interleukin-2 with PV-CEA enhanced the generation of A2-restricted, CEA-specific CTLs in aged CEA/A2 double transgenic mice, which were more clinically relevant. Our data suggest that PV-CEA pseudovirus vaccine is a promising oral CEA vaccine for humans to induce CEA-specific CTLs at the site of colorectal tumors (i.e., intestinal mucosa), which might efficiently eliminate CEA+ colorectal tumor cells in the mucosa.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenocarcinoma / immunology
  • Adenocarcinoma / prevention & control
  • Administration, Oral
  • Animals
  • Bovine papillomavirus 1 / genetics
  • Bovine papillomavirus 1 / immunology*
  • Cancer Vaccines / genetics
  • Cancer Vaccines / immunology*
  • Carcinoembryonic Antigen / genetics
  • Carcinoembryonic Antigen / immunology*
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / immunology
  • Colorectal Neoplasms / prevention & control
  • Female
  • HLA-A2 Antigen / immunology
  • Humans
  • Immunity, Mucosal / immunology
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Peptide Fragments / immunology
  • Plasmids / genetics
  • Protein Sorting Signals / genetics
  • T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / immunology
  • Viral Vaccines / genetics
  • Viral Vaccines / immunology

Substances

  • Cancer Vaccines
  • Carcinoembryonic Antigen
  • HLA-A2 Antigen
  • Peptide Fragments
  • Protein Sorting Signals
  • Viral Vaccines