Dokument-ID Dokumenttyp Verfasser/Autoren Herausgeber Haupttitel Abstract Auflage Verlagsort Verlag Erscheinungsjahr Seitenzahl Schriftenreihe Titel Schriftenreihe Bandzahl ISBN Quelle der Hochschulschrift Konferenzname Quelle:Titel Quelle:Jahrgang Quelle:Heftnummer Quelle:Erste Seite Quelle:Letzte Seite URN DOI Abteilungen OPUS4-14080 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Schäfer, Simon; Weibel, Stephanie; Donat, Ulrike; Zhang, Quian; Aguilar, Richard J.; Chen, Nanhai G.; Szalay, Aladar A. Vaccinia virus-mediated intra-tumoral expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 enhances oncolysis of PC-3 xenograft tumors Background Oncolytic viruses, including vaccinia virus (VACV), are a promising alternative to classical mono-cancer treatment methods such as surgery, chemo- or radiotherapy. However, combined therapeutic modalities may be more effective than mono-therapies. In this study, we enhanced the effectiveness of oncolytic virotherapy by matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-9)-mediated degradation of proteins of the tumoral extracellular matrix (ECM), leading to increased viral distribution within the tumors. Methods For this study, the oncolytic vaccinia virus GLV-1h255, containing the mmp-9 gene, was constructed and used to treat PC-3 tumor-bearing mice, achieving an intra-tumoral over-expression of MMP-9. The intra-tumoral MMP-9 content was quantified by immunohistochemistry in tumor sections. Therapeutic efficacy of GLV-1h255 was evaluated by monitoring tumor growth kinetics and intra-tumoral virus titers. Microenvironmental changes mediated by the intra-tumoral MMP-9 over-expression were investigated by microscopic quantification of the collagen IV content, the blood vessel density (BVD) and the analysis of lymph node metastasis formation. Results GLV-1h255-treatment of PC-3 tumors led to a significant over-expression of intra-tumoral MMP-9, accompanied by a marked decrease in collagen IV content in infected tumor areas, when compared to GLV-1h68-infected tumor areas. This led to considerably elevated virus titers in GLV-1h255 infected tumors, and to enhanced tumor regression. The analysis of the BVD, as well as the lumbar and renal lymph node volumes, revealed lower BVD and significantly smaller lymph nodes in both GLV-1h68- and GLV-1h255- injected mice compared to those injected with PBS, indicating that MMP-9 over-expression does not alter the metastasis-reducing effect of oncolytic VACV. Conclusions Taken together, these results indicate that a GLV-1h255-mediated intra-tumoral over-expression of MMP-9 leads to a degradation of collagen IV, facilitating intra-tumoral viral dissemination, and resulting in accelerated tumor regression. We propose that approaches which enhance the oncolytic effect by increasing the intra-tumoral viral load, may be an effective way to improve therapeutic outcome. 2012 BMC Cancer 12 366 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-140800 10.1186/1471-2407-12-366 Lehrstuhl für Biochemie OPUS4-13003 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Patil, Sandeep S.; Gentschev, Ivaylo; Adelfinger, Marion; Donat, Ulrike; Hess, Michael; Weibel, Stephanie; Nolte, Ingo; Frentzen, Alexa; Szalay, Aladar A. Virotherapy of Canine Tumors with Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus GLV-1h109 Expressing an Anti-VEGF Single-Chain Antibody Virotherapy using oncolytic vaccinia virus (VACV) strains is one promising new strategy for cancer therapy. We have previously reported that oncolytic vaccinia virus strains expressing an anti-VEGF (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor) single-chain antibody (scAb) GLAF-1 exhibited significant therapeutic efficacy for treatment of human tumor xenografts. Here, we describe the use of oncolytic vaccinia virus GLV-1h109 encoding GLAF-1 for canine cancer therapy. In this study we analyzed the virus-mediated delivery and production of scAb GLAF-1 and the oncolytic and immunological effects of the GLV-1h109 vaccinia virus strain against canine soft tissue sarcoma and canine prostate carcinoma in xenograft models. Cell culture data demonstrated that the GLV-1h109 virus efficiently infect, replicate in and destroy both tested canine cancer cell lines. In addition, successful expression of GLAF-1 was demonstrated in virus-infected canine cancer cells and the antibody specifically recognized canine VEGF. In two different xenograft models, the systemic administration of the GLV-1h109 virus was found to be safe and led to anti-tumor and immunological effects resulting in the significant reduction of tumor growth in comparison to untreated control mice. Furthermore, tumor-specific virus infection led to a continued production of functional scAb GLAF-1, resulting in inhibition of angiogenesis. Overall, the GLV-1h109-mediated cancer therapy and production of immunotherapeutic anti-VEGF scAb may open the way for combination therapy concept i.e. vaccinia virus mediated oncolysis and intratumoral production of therapeutic drugs in canine cancer patients. 2012 e47472 PLoS One 7 10 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-130039 10.1371/journal.pone.0047472 Rudolf-Virchow-Zentrum OPUS4-12999 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Gentschev, Ivaylo; Adelfinger, Marion; Josupeit, Rafael; Rudolph, Stephan; Ehrig, Klaas; Donat, Ulrike; Weibel, Stephanie; Chen, Nanhai G.; Yu, Yong A.; Zhang, Qian; Heisig, Martin; Thamm, Douglas; Stritzker, Jochen; MacNeill, Amy; Szalay, Aladar A. Preclinical Evaluation of Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus for Therapy of Canine Soft Tissue Sarcoma Virotherapy using oncolytic vaccinia virus (VACV) strains is one promising new strategy for canine cancer therapy. In this study we describe the establishment of an in vivo model of canine soft tissue sarcoma (CSTS) using the new isolated cell line STSA-1 and the analysis of the virus-mediated oncolytic and immunological effects of two different Lister VACV LIVP1.1.1 and GLV-1h68 strains against CSTS. Cell culture data demonstrated that both tested VACV strains efficiently infected and destroyed cells of the canine soft tissue sarcoma line STSA-1. In addition, in our new canine sarcoma tumor xenograft mouse model, systemic administration of LIVP1.1.1 or GLV-1h68 viruses led to significant inhibition of tumor growth compared to control mice. Furthermore, LIVP1.1.1 mediated therapy resulted in almost complete tumor regression and resulted in long-term survival of sarcoma-bearing mice. The replication of the tested VACV strains in tumor tissues led to strong oncolytic effects accompanied by an intense intratumoral infiltration of host immune cells, mainly neutrophils. These findings suggest that the direct viral oncolysis of tumor cells and the virus-dependent activation of tumor-associated host immune cells could be crucial parts of anti-tumor mechanism in STSA-1 xenografts. In summary, the data showed that both tested vaccinia virus strains and especially LIVP1.1.1 have great potential for effective treatment of CSTS. 2012 PLoS One 7 5 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-129998 10.1371/journal.pone.0037239 Institut für Medizinische Strahlenkunde und Zellforschung OPUS4-11967 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Donat, Ulrike; Rother, Juliane; Schäfer, Simon; Hess, Michael; Härtl, Barbara; Kober, Christina; Langbein-Laugwitz, Johanna; Stritzker, Jochen; Chen, Nanhai G.; Aguilar, Richard J.; Weibel, Stephanie; Szalay, Alandar A. Characterization of Metastasis Formation and Virotherapy in the Human C33A Cervical Cancer Model More than 90% of cancer mortalities are due to cancer that has metastasized. Therefore, it is crucial to intensify research on metastasis formation and therapy. Here, we describe for the first time the metastasizing ability of the human cervical cancer cell line C33A in athymic nude mice after subcutaneous implantation of tumor cells. In this model, we demonstrated a steady progression of lumbar and renal lymph node metastases during tumor development. Besides predominantly occurring lymphatic metastases, we visualized the formation of hematogenous metastases utilizing red fluorescent protein (RFP) expressing C33A-RFP cells. RFP positive cancer cells were found migrating in blood vessels and forming micrometastases in lungs of tumor-bearing mice. Next, we set out to analyze the influence of oncolytic virotherapy in the C33A-RFP model and demonstrated an efficient virus-mediated reduction of tumor size and metastatic burden. These results suggest the C33A-RFP cervical cancer model as a new platform to analyze cancer metastases as well as to test novel treatment options to combat metastases. 2014 e98533 PLoS ONE 9 6 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-119674 10.1371/journal.pone.0098533 Rudolf-Virchow-Zentrum OPUS4-9601 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Szalay, Aladar A; Weibel, Stephanie; Hofmann, Elisabeth; Basse-Luesebrink, Thomas Christian; Donat, Ulrike; Seubert, Carolin; Adelfinger, Marion; Gnamlin, Prisca; Kober, Christina; Frentzen, Alexa; Gentschev, Ivaylo; Jakob, Peter Michael Treatment of malignant effusion by oncolytic virotherapy in an experimental subcutaneous xenograft model of lung cancer Background Malignant pleural effusion (MPE) is associated with advanced stages of lung cancer and is mainly dependent on invasion of the pleura and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) by cancer cells. As MPE indicates an incurable disease with limited palliative treatment options and poor outcome, there is an urgent need for new and efficient treatment options. Methods In this study, we used subcutaneously generated PC14PE6 lung adenocarcinoma xenografts in athymic mice that developed subcutaneous malignant effusions (ME) which mimic pleural effusions of the orthotopic model. Using this approach monitoring of therapeutic intervention was facilitated by direct observation of subcutaneous ME formation without the need of sacrificing mice or special imaging equipment as in case of MPE. Further, we tested oncolytic virotherapy using Vaccinia virus as a novel treatment modality against ME in this subcutaneous PC14PE6 xenograft model of advanced lung adenocarcinoma. Results We demonstrated significant therapeutic efficacy of Vaccinia virus treatment of both advanced lung adenocarcinoma and tumor-associated ME. We attribute the efficacy to the virus-mediated reduction of tumor cell-derived VEGF levels in tumors, decreased invasion of tumor cells into the peritumoral tissue, and to viral infection of the blood vessel-invading tumor cells. Moreover, we showed that the use of oncolytic Vaccinia virus encoding for a single-chain antibody (scAb) against VEGF (GLAF-1) significantly enhanced mono-therapy of oncolytic treatment. Conclusions Here, we demonstrate for the first time that oncolytic virotherapy using tumor-specific Vaccinia virus represents a novel and promising treatment modality for therapy of ME associated with advanced lung cancer. 2013 Journal of Translational Medicine urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-96016 doi:10.1186/1479-5876-11-106 Physikalisches Institut OPUS4-6641 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Schäfer, Simon; Weibel, Stephanie; Donat, Ulrike; Zhang, Qian; Aguilar, Richard J.; Chen, Nanhai G.; Szalay, Aladar A. Vaccinia virus-mediated intra-tumoral expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 enhances oncolysis of PC-3 xenograft tumors Background: Oncolytic viruses, including vaccinia virus (VACV), are a promising alternative to classical mono-cancer treatment methods such as surgery, chemo- or radiotherapy. However, combined therapeutic modalities may be more effective than mono-therapies. In this study, we enhanced the effectiveness of oncolytic virotherapy by matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-9)-mediated degradation of proteins of the tumoral extracellular matrix (ECM), leading to increased viral distribution within the tumors. Methods: For this study, the oncolytic vaccinia virus GLV-1h255, containing the mmp-9 gene, was constructed and used to treat PC-3 tumor-bearing mice, achieving an intra-tumoral over-expression of MMP-9. The intra-tumoral MMP-9 content was quantified by immunohistochemistry in tumor sections. Therapeutic efficacy of GLV-1h255 was evaluated by monitoring tumor growth kinetics and intra-tumoral virus titers. Microenvironmental changes mediated by the intra-tumoral MMP-9 over-expression were investigated by microscopic quantification of the collagen IV content, the blood vessel density (BVD) and the analysis of lymph node metastasis formation. Results: GLV-1h255-treatment of PC-3 tumors led to a significant over-expression of intra-tumoral MMP-9, accompanied by a marked decrease in collagen IV content in infected tumor areas, when compared to GLV-1h68-infected tumor areas. This led to considerably elevated virus titers in GLV-1h255 infected tumors, and to enhanced tumor regression. The analysis of the BVD, as well as the lumbar and renal lymph node volumes, revealed lower BVD and significantly smaller lymph nodes in both GLV-1h68- and GLV-1h255- injected mice compared to those injected with PBS, indicating that MMP-9 over-expression does not alter the metastasis-reducing effect of oncolytic VACV. Conclusions: Taken together, these results indicate that a GLV-1h255-mediated intra-tumoral over-expression of MMP-9 leads to a degradation of collagen IV, facilitating intra-tumoral viral dissemination, and resulting in accelerated tumor regression. We propose that approaches which enhance the oncolytic effect by increasing the intra-tumoral viral load, may be an effective way to improve therapeutic outcome. 2012 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-78220 Lehrstuhl für Biochemie OPUS4-6480 Wissenschaftlicher Artikel Sturm, Julia B.; Hess, Michael; Weibel, Stephanie; Chen, Nanhei G.; Yu, Yong A.; Zhang, Quian; Donat, Ulrike; Reiss, Cora; Gambaryan, Stepan; Krohne, Georg; Stritzker, Jochen; Szalay, Aladar A. Functional hyper-IL-6 from vaccinia virus-colonized tumors triggers platelet formation and helps to alleviate toxicity of mitomycin C enhanced virus therapy Background: Combination of oncolytic vaccinia virus therapy with conventional chemotherapy has shown promise for tumor therapy. However, side effects of chemotherapy including thrombocytopenia, still remain problematic. Methods: Here, we describe a novel approach to optimize combination therapy of oncolytic virus and chemotherapy utilizing virus-encoding hyper-IL-6, GLV-1h90, to reduce chemotherapy-associated side effects. Results: We showed that the hyper-IL-6 cytokine was successfully produced by GLV-1h90 and was functional both in cell culture as well as in tumor-bearing animals, in which the cytokine-producing vaccinia virus strain was well tolerated. When combined with the chemotherapeutic mitomycin C, the anti-tumor effect of the oncolytic virotherapy was significantly enhanced. Moreover, hyper-IL-6 expression greatly reduced the time interval during which the mice suffered from chemotherapy-induced thrombocytopenia. Conclusion: Therefore, future clinical application would benefit from careful investigation of additional cytokine treatment to reduce chemotherapy-induced side effects. 2012 urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-75224 Theodor-Boveri-Institut für Biowissenschaften