TY - JOUR A1 - Patil, Sandeep S. A1 - Gentschev, Ivaylo A1 - Adelfinger, Marion A1 - Donat, Ulrike A1 - Hess, Michael A1 - Weibel, Stephanie A1 - Nolte, Ingo A1 - Frentzen, Alexa A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Virotherapy of Canine Tumors with Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus GLV-1h109 Expressing an Anti-VEGF Single-Chain Antibody JF - PLoS One N2 - 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. KW - angiogenesis KW - microenvironment KW - model KW - cancer KW - therapy KW - pet dogs KW - nude-mice KW - breast-tumors KW - microvascular density KW - endothelial growth-factor Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-130039 VL - 7 IS - 10 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schäfer, Simon A1 - Weibel, Stephanie A1 - Donat, Ulrike A1 - Zhang, Quian A1 - Aguilar, Richard J. A1 - Chen, Nanhai G. A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Vaccinia virus-mediated intra-tumoral expression of matrix metalloproteinase 9 enhances oncolysis of PC-3 xenograft tumors JF - BMC Cancer N2 - 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. KW - microenvironment KW - angiogenesis KW - therapy KW - cancer KW - breast-tumors KW - matrix metalloproteinases KW - adenovirus KW - carcinoma KW - prostate KW - mice Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-140800 VL - 12 IS - 366 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Adelfinger, Marion A1 - Bessler, Simon A1 - Cecil, Alexander A1 - Langbein-Laugwitz, Johanna A1 - Frentzen, Alexa A1 - Gentschev, Ivaylo A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Preclinical Testing Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus Strain GLV-5b451 Expressing an Anti-VEGF Single-Chain Antibody for Canine Cancer Therapy JF - Viruses N2 - Virotherapy on the basis of oncolytic vaccinia virus (VACV) strains is a novel approach for canine cancer therapy. Here we describe, for the first time, the characterization and the use of VACV strain GLV-5b451 expressing the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) single-chain antibody (scAb) GLAF-2 as therapeutic agent against different canine cancers. Cell culture data demonstrated that GLV-5b451 efficiently infected and destroyed all four tested canine cancer cell lines including: mammary carcinoma (MTH52c), mammary adenoma (ZMTH3), prostate carcinoma (CT1258), and soft tissue sarcoma (STSA-1). The GLV-5b451 virus-mediated production of GLAF-2 antibody was observed in all four cancer cell lines. In addition, this antibody specifically recognized canine VEGF. Finally, in canine soft tissue sarcoma (CSTS) xenografted mice, a single systemic administration of GLV-5b451 was found to be safe and led to anti-tumor effects resulting in the significant reduction and substantial long-term inhibition of tumor growth. A CD31-based immuno-staining showed significantly decreased neo-angiogenesis in GLV-5b451-treated tumors compared to the controls. In summary, these findings indicate that GLV-5b451 has potential for use as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of CSTS. KW - canine cancer therapy KW - canine soft tissue sarcoma (CSTS) KW - oncolytic virus KW - cancer KW - canine cancer cell lines KW - antibody production KW - angiogenesis Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-125705 VL - 7 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gentschev, Ivaylo A1 - Adelfinger, Marion A1 - Josupeit, Rafael A1 - Rudolph, Stephan A1 - Ehrig, Klaas A1 - Donat, Ulrike A1 - Weibel, Stephanie A1 - Chen, Nanhai G. A1 - Yu, Yong A. A1 - Zhang, Qian A1 - Heisig, Martin A1 - Thamm, Douglas A1 - Stritzker, Jochen A1 - MacNeill, Amy A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Preclinical Evaluation of Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus for Therapy of Canine Soft Tissue Sarcoma JF - PLoS One N2 - 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. KW - breast-tumors KW - animal-model KW - nude-mice KW - cell-line KW - in-vitro KW - glv-1h68 KW - cancer KW - virotherapy KW - dogs KW - neutrophils Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-129998 VL - 7 IS - 5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gentschev, Ivaylo A1 - Patil, Sadeep S. A1 - Petrov, Ivan A1 - Cappello, Joseph A1 - Adelfinger, Marion A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Oncolytic Virotherapy of Canine and Feline Cancer JF - Viruses N2 - Cancer is the leading cause of disease-related death in companion animals such as dogs and cats. Despite recent progress in the diagnosis and treatment of advanced canine and feline cancer, overall patient treatment outcome has not been substantially improved. Virotherapy using oncolytic viruses is one promising new strategy for cancer therapy. Oncolytic viruses (OVs) preferentially infect and lyse cancer cells, without causing excessive damage to surrounding healthy tissue, and initiate tumor-specific immunity. The current review describes the use of different oncolytic viruses for cancer therapy and their application to canine and feline cancer. KW - oncolytic virus KW - oncolysis KW - cancer KW - canine and feline cancer therapy Y1 - 2014 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-119753 VL - 6 IS - 5 ER - TY - THES A1 - Koderer, Corinna T1 - In Vitro Analyse der Methionin-Restriktion im murinen Modellsystem L929 sowie im Platteneptihelkarzinom - HNSCC T1 - In vitro analysis of methionine restriction in the murine model system L929 and in squamous cell carcinoma - HNSCC N2 - Die Krebstherapie und Behandlung von Tumoren stellt für die moderne Medizin auch in Zukunft eine enorme Herausforderung dar. Trotz intensiver Forschung konnten in den letzten Jahrzehnten zwar zunehmend Fortschritte erzielt werden, allerdings muss das Spektrum an neuen Therapieformen und Möglichkeiten kontinuierlich erweitert werden. In den letzten Jahren haben die Kalorienrestriktion sowie die Aminosäuren- und Proteinrestriktion zunehmend an Bedeutung gewonnen, da sie einen erheblichen positiven Einfluss auf die Entstehung von altersassoziierten Erkrankungen wie z.B. Krebs haben. Allen Formen gemeinsam ist die Induktion eines Low-Energy-Metabolismus, der die Zellen in einen antiproliferativen und selbst-regenerierenden Zustand versetzt. In dieser Arbeit sollte untersucht werden, ob die Methionin-Restriktion als eine Form der Aminosäurerestriktion sich grundsätzlich als Therapieform im Plattenepithelkarzinom (HNSCC) eignet. Zusätzlich sollte ein einfaches zelluläres Modellsystem etabliert werden, das auf metaboler Ebene die Charakterisierung und Analyse des Low-Energy-Metabolismus ermöglicht. Es konnte aufgezeigt werden, dass die Methionin-Restriktion eine effektive Methode ist, um die Proliferation ausgesuchter Zelllinien des HNSCC zu inhibieren. Des Weiteren konnte aufgezeigt werden, dass der Einsatz von Aminosäure-Analoga eine weitere Möglichkeit darstellt, auf die Proliferation von Tumorzellen Einfluss zu nehmen. Die massenspektrometrische Analyse der murinen Zelllinie L929 mittels LC/MS lieferte über einen Zeitraum von 5 Tagen ein detailliertes Bild des Stoffwechsels von mehr als 150 Metaboliten unter Methionin-Restriktion. Durch die Definition eines charakteristischen Fingerabdrucks nach 48 h und eines nur wenige Metabolite umfassenden Fußabdrucks konnte ein murines Modellsystem etabliert werden, dass die Analyse von potentiellen Wirkstoffen, u.a. sogenannten caloric restriction mimetics, ermöglicht. N2 - Cancer therapy and the treatment of tumors will continue to represent an enormous challenge for modern medicine in the future. Despite intensive research, increasing progress has been made in recent decades, but the spectrum of new forms of therapy and options must be continuously expanded. In recent years, caloric restriction as well as amino acid and protein restriction have become increasingly important as they have a significant positive influence on the development of age-associated diseases such as cancer. Common to all forms is the induction of low-energy metabolism, which places cells in an antiproliferative and self-regenerative state. This work aimed to investigate whether methionine restriction, as a form of amino acid restriction, is suitable in principle as a form of therapy in squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In addition, we aimed to establish a simple cellular model system that would allow characterization and analysis of low-energy metabolism at the metabolic level. It could be shown that methionine restriction is an effective method to inhibit proliferation of selected cell lines of HNSCC. Furthermore, it could be shown that the use of amino acid analogues represents another possibility to influence the proliferation of tumor cells. Mass spectrometric analysis of murine cell line L929 by LC/MS provided a detailed picture of the metabolism of more than 150 metabolites under methionine restriction over a period of 5 days. By defining a characteristic fingerprint after 48 h and a footprint comprising only a few metabolites, a murine model system could be established that allows the analysis of potential active compounds, including so-called caloric restriction mimetics. KW - Plattenepithelkarzinom KW - methionine KW - cancer KW - hnscc KW - restriction Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-271897 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ehrig, Klaas A1 - Kilinc, Mehmet O. A1 - Chen, Nanhai G. A1 - Stritzker, Jochen A1 - Buckel, Lisa A1 - Zhang, Qian A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Growth inhibition of different human colorectal cancer xenografts after a single intravenous injection of oncolytic vaccinia virus GLV-1h68 JF - Journal of Translational Medicine N2 - Background: Despite availability of efficient treatment regimens for early stage colorectal cancer, treatment regimens for late stage colorectal cancer are generally not effective and thus need improvement. Oncolytic virotherapy using replication-competent vaccinia virus (VACV) strains is a promising new strategy for therapy of a variety of human cancers. Methods: Oncolytic efficacy of replication-competent vaccinia virus GLV-1h68 was analyzed in both, cell cultures and subcutaneous xenograft tumor models. Results: In this study we demonstrated for the first time that the replication-competent recombinant VACV GLV-1h68 efficiently infected, replicated in, and subsequently lysed various human colorectal cancer lines (Colo 205, HCT-15, HCT-116, HT-29, and SW-620) derived from patients at all four stages of disease. Additionally, in tumor xenograft models in athymic nude mice, a single injection of intravenously administered GLV-1h68 significantly inhibited tumor growth of two different human colorectal cell line tumors (Duke’s type A-stage HCT-116 and Duke’s type C-stage SW-620), significantly improving survival compared to untreated mice. Expression of the viral marker gene ruc-gfp allowed for real-time analysis of the virus infection in cell cultures and in mice. GLV-1h68 treatment was well-tolerated in all animals and viral replication was confined to the tumor. GLV-1h68 treatment elicited a significant up-regulation of murine immune-related antigens like IFN-γ, IP-10, MCP-1, MCP-3, MCP-5, RANTES and TNF-γ and a greater infiltration of macrophages and NK cells in tumors as compared to untreated controls. Conclusion: The anti-tumor activity observed against colorectal cancer cells in these studies was a result of direct viral oncolysis by GLV-1h68 and inflammation-mediated innate immune responses. The therapeutic effects occurred in tumors regardless of the stage of disease from which the cells were derived. Thus, the recombinant vaccinia virus GLV-1h68 has the potential to treat colorectal cancers independently of the stage of progression. KW - oncolytic virotherapy KW - colorectal KW - vaccinia virus KW - cancer KW - metastasis Y1 - 2013 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-129619 VL - 11 IS - 79 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Draganov, Dobrin D. A1 - Santidrian, Antonio F. A1 - Minev, Ivelina A1 - Duong, Nguyen A1 - Kilinc, Mehmet Okyay A1 - Petrov, Ivan A1 - Vyalkova, Anna A1 - Lander, Elliot A1 - Berman, Mark A1 - Minev, Boris A1 - Szalay, Aladar A. T1 - Delivery of oncolytic vaccinia virus by matched allogeneic stem cells overcomes critical innate and adaptive immune barriers JF - Journal of Translational Medicine N2 - Background Previous studies have identified IFNγ as an important early barrier to oncolytic viruses including vaccinia. The existing innate and adaptive immune barriers restricting oncolytic virotherapy, however, can be overcome using autologous or allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells as carrier cells with unique immunosuppressive properties. Methods To test the ability of mesenchymal stem cells to overcome innate and adaptive immune barriers and to successfully deliver oncolytic vaccinia virus to tumor cells, we performed flow cytometry and virus plaque assay analysis of ex vivo co-cultures of stem cells infected with vaccinia virus in the presence of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy donors. Comparative analysis was performed to establish statistically significant correlations and to evaluate the effect of stem cells on the activity of key immune cell populations. Results Here, we demonstrate that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) have the potential to eradicate resistant tumor cells through a combination of potent virus amplification and sensitization of the tumor cells to virus infection. Moreover, the ADSCs demonstrate ability to function as a virus-amplifying Trojan horse in the presence of both autologous and allogeneic human PBMCs, which can be linked to the intrinsic immunosuppressive properties of stem cells and their unique potential to overcome innate and adaptive immune barriers. The clinical application of ready-to-use ex vivo expanded allogeneic stem cell lines, however, appears significantly restricted by patient-specific allogeneic differences associated with the induction of potent anti-stem cell cytotoxic and IFNγ responses. These allogeneic responses originate from both innate (NK)- and adaptive (T)- immune cells and might compromise therapeutic efficacy through direct elimination of the stem cells or the induction of an anti-viral state, which can block the potential of the Trojan horse to amplify and deliver vaccinia virus to the tumor. Conclusions Overall, our findings and data indicate the feasibility to establish simple and informative assays that capture critically important patient-specific differences in the immune responses to the virus and stem cells, which allows for proper patient-stem cell matching and enables the effective use of off-the-shelf allogeneic cell-based delivery platforms, thus providing a more practical and commercially viable alternative to the autologous stem cell approach. KW - vaccinia KW - cancer KW - stem Cells KW - oncolysis KW - oncolytic virus KW - virotherapy KW - immunity KW - immunotherapy Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-226312 SN - 100 VL - 17 ER -