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  - Sturm, Julia B.
A1  - Hess, Michael
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Chen, Nanhei G.
A1  - Yu, Yong A.
A1  - Zhang, Quian
A1  - Donat, Ulrike
A1  - Reiss, Cora
A1  - Gambaryan, Stepan
A1  - Krohne, Georg
A1  - Stritzker, Jochen
A1  - Szalay, Aladar A.
T1  - Functional hyper-IL-6 from vaccinia virus-colonized tumors triggers platelet formation and helps to alleviate toxicity of mitomycin C enhanced virus therapy
N2  - 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.
KW  - Biologie
KW  - vaccinia virus
KW  - cancer
KW  - cytokine
KW  - hyper-IL-6
KW  - oncolysis
KW  - chemotherapy
Y1  - 2012
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-75224
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kober, Christina
A1  - Rohn, Susanne
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Geissinger, Ulrike
A1  - Chen, Nanhai G.
A1  - Szalay, Aladar A.
T1  - Microglia and astrocytes attenuate the replication of the oncolytic vaccinia virus LIVP 1.1.1 in murine GL261 gliomas by acting as vaccinia virus traps
JF  - Journal of Translational Medicine
N2  - Background
Oncolytic virotherapy is a novel approach for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) which is still a fatal disease. Pathologic features of GBM are characterized by the infiltration with microglia/macrophages and a strong interaction between immune- and glioma cells. The aim of this study was to determine the role of microglia and astrocytes for oncolytic vaccinia virus (VACV) therapy of GBM.

Methods
VACV LIVP 1.1.1 replication in C57BL/6 and \(Foxn1^{nu/nu}\) mice with and without GL261 gliomas was analyzed. Furthermore, immunohistochemical analysis of microglia and astrocytes was investigated in non-, mock-, and LIVP 1.1.1-infected orthotopic GL261 gliomas in C57BL/6 mice. In cell culture studies virus replication and virus-mediated cell death of GL261 glioma cells was examined, as well as in BV-2 microglia and IMA2.1 astrocytes with M1 or M2 phenotypes. Co-culture experiments between BV-2 and GL261 cells and apoptosis/necrosis studies were performed. Organotypic slice cultures with implanted GL261 tumor spheres were used as additional cell culture system.

Results
We discovered that orthotopic GL261 gliomas upon intracranial virus delivery did not support replication of LIVP 1.1.1, similar to VACV-infected brains without gliomas. In addition, recruitment of \(Iba1^+\) microglia and \(GFAP^+\) astrocytes to orthotopically implanted GL261 glioma sites occurred already without virus injection. GL261 cells in culture showed high virus replication, while replication in BV-2 and IMA2.1 cells was barely detectable. The reduced viral replication in BV-2 cells might be due to rapid VACV-induced apoptotic cell death. In BV-2 and IMA 2.1 cells with M1 phenotype a further reduction of virus progeny and virus-mediated cell death was detected. Application of BV-2 microglial cells with M1 phenotype onto organotypic slice cultures with implanted GL261 gliomas resulted in reduced infection of BV-2 cells, whereas GL261 cells were well infected.

Conclusion
Our results indicate that microglia and astrocytes, dependent on their activation state, may preferentially clear viral particles by immediate uptake after delivery. By acting as VACV traps they further reduce efficient virus infection of the tumor cells. These findings demonstrate that glia cells need to be taken into account for successful GBM therapy development.
KW  - GBM
KW  - tumor microenvironment
KW  - microglia
KW  - polarization
KW  - VACV
KW  - OSC
KW  - IMA2.1
KW  - BV-2
Y1  - 2015
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-126517
VL  - 13
IS  - 216
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Couch, Fergus J.
A1  - Wang, Xianshu
A1  - McGuffog, Lesley
A1  - Lee, Andrew
A1  - Olswold, Curtis
A1  - Kuchenbaecker, Karoline B.
A1  - Soucy, Penny
A1  - Fredericksen, Zachary
A1  - Barrowdale, Daniel
A1  - Dennis, Joe
A1  - Gaudet, Mia M.
A1  - Dicks, Ed
A1  - Kosel, Matthew
A1  - Healey, Sue
A1  - Sinilnikova, Olga M.
A1  - Lee, Adam
A1  - Bacot, Françios
A1  - Vincent, Daniel
A1  - Hogervorst, Frans B. L.
A1  - Peock, Susan
A1  - Stoppa-Lyonnet, Dominique
A1  - Jakubowska, Anna
A1  - Radice, Paolo
A1  - Schmutzler, Rita Katharina
A1  - Domchek, Susan M.
A1  - Piedmonte, Marion
A1  - Singer, Christian F.
A1  - Friedman, Eitan
A1  - Thomassen, Mads
A1  - Hansen, Thomas V. O.
A1  - Neuhausen, Susan L.
A1  - Szabo, Csilla I.
A1  - Blanco, Ingnacio
A1  - Greene, Mark H.
A1  - Karlan, Beth Y.
A1  - Garber, Judy
A1  - Phelan, Catherine M.
A1  - Weitzel, Jeffrey N.
A1  - Montagna, Marco
A1  - Olah, Edith
A1  - Andrulis, Irene L.
A1  - Godwin, Andrew K.
A1  - Yannoukakos, Drakoulis
A1  - Goldgar, David E.
A1  - Caldes, Trinidad
A1  - Nevanlinna, Heli
A1  - Osorio, Ana
A1  - Terry, Mary Beth
A1  - Daly, Mary B.
A1  - van Rensburg, Elisabeth J.
A1  - Hamann, Ute
A1  - Ramus, Susan J.
A1  - Toland, Amanda Ewart
A1  - Caligo, Maria A.
A1  - Olopade, Olufunmilayo I.
A1  - Tung, Nadine
A1  - Claes, Kathleen
A1  - Beattie, Mary S.
A1  - Southey, Melissa C.
A1  - Imyanitov, Evgeny N.
A1  - Tischkowitz, Marc
A1  - Janavicius, Ramunas
A1  - John, Esther M.
A1  - Kwong, Ava
A1  - Diez, Orland
A1  - Kwong, Ava
A1  - Balmaña, Judith
A1  - Barkardottir, Rosa B.
A1  - Arun, Banu K.
A1  - Rennert, Gad
A1  - Teo, Soo-Hwang
A1  - Ganz, Patricia A.
A1  - Campbell, Ian
A1  - van der Hout, Annemarie H.
A1  - van Deurzen, Carolien H. M.
A1  - Seynaeve, Caroline
A1  - Garcia, Encarna B. Gómez
A1  - van Leeuwen, Flora E.
A1  - Meijers-Heijboer, Hanne E. J.
A1  - Gille, Johannes J. P.
A1  - Ausems, Magreet G. E. M.
A1  - Blok, Marinus J.
A1  - Ligtenberg, Marjolinjin J. L.
A1  - Rookus, Matti A.
A1  - Devilee, Peter
A1  - Verhoef, Senno
A1  - van Os, Theo A. M.
A1  - Wijnen, Juul T.
A1  - Frost, Debra
A1  - Ellis, Steve
A1  - Fineberg, Elena
A1  - Platte, Radke
A1  - Evans, D. Gareth
A1  - Izatt, Luise
A1  - Eeles, Rosalind A.
A1  - Adlard, Julian
A1  - Eccles, Diana M.
A1  - Cook, Jackie
A1  - Brewer, Carole
A1  - Douglas, Fiona
A1  - Hodgson, Shirley
A1  - Morrison, Patrick J.
A1  - Side, Lucy E.
A1  - Donaldson, Alan
A1  - Houghton, Catherine
A1  - Rogers, Mark T.
A1  - Dorkins, Huw
A1  - Eason, Jacqueline
A1  - Gregory, Helen
A1  - McCann, Emma
A1  - Murray, Alex
A1  - Calender, Alain
A1  - Hardouin, Agnès
A1  - Berthet, Pascaline
A1  - Delnatte, Capucine
A1  - Nogues, Catherine
A1  - Lasset, Christine
A1  - Houdayer, Claude
A1  - Leroux,, Dominique
A1  - Rouleau, Etienne
A1  - Prieur, Fabienne
A1  - Damiola, Francesca
A1  - Sobol, Hagay
A1  - Coupier, Isabelle
A1  - Venat-Bouvet, Laurence
A1  - Castera, Laurent
A1  - Gauthier-Villars, Marion
A1  - Léoné, Mélanie
A1  - Pujol, Pascal
A1  - Mazoyer, Sylvie
A1  - Bignon, Yves-Jean
A1  - Zlowocka-Perlowska, Elzbieta
A1  - Gronwald, Jacek
A1  - Lubinski,, Jan
A1  - Durda, Katarzyna
A1  - Jaworska, Katarzyna
A1  - Huzarski, Tomasz
A1  - Spurdle, Amanda B.
A1  - Viel, Alessandra
A1  - Peissel, Bernhard
A1  - Bonanni, Bernardo
A1  - Melloni, Guilia
A1  - Ottini, Laura
A1  - Papi, Laura
A1  - Varesco, Liliana
A1  - Tibiletti, Maria Grazia
A1  - Peterlongo, Paolo
A1  - Volorio, Sara
A1  - Manoukian, Siranoush
A1  - Pensotti, Valeria
A1  - Arnold, Norbert
A1  - Engel, Christoph
A1  - Deissler, Helmut
A1  - Gadzicki, Dorothea
A1  - Gehrig, Andrea
A1  - Kast, Karin
A1  - Rhiem, Kerstin
A1  - Meindl, Alfons
A1  - Niederacher, Dieter
A1  - Ditsch, Nina
A1  - Plendl, Hansjoerg
A1  - Preisler-Adams, Sabine
A1  - Engert, Stefanie
A1  - Sutter, Christian
A1  - Varon-Mateeva, Raymenda
A1  - Wappenschmidt, Barbara
A1  - Weber, Bernhard H. F.
A1  - Arver, Brita
A1  - Stenmark-Askmalm, Marie
A1  - Loman, Niklas
A1  - Rosenquist, Richard
A1  - Einbeigi, Zakaria
A1  - Nathanson, Katherine L.
A1  - Rebbeck, Timothy R.
A1  - Blank, Stephanie V.
A1  - Cohn, David E.
A1  - Rodriguez, Gustavo C.
A1  - Small, Laurie
A1  - Friedlander, Michael
A1  - Bae-Jump, Victoria L.
A1  - Fink-Retter, Anneliese
A1  - Rappaport, Christine
A1  - Gschwantler-Kaulich, Daphne
A1  - Pfeiler, Georg
A1  - Tea, Muy-Kheng
A1  - Lindor, Noralane M.
A1  - Kaufman, Bella
A1  - Paluch, Shani Shimon
A1  - Laitman, Yael
A1  - Skytte, Anne-Bine
A1  - Gerdes, Anne-Marie
A1  - Pedersen, Inge Sokilde
A1  - Moeller, Sanne Traasdahl
A1  - Kruse, Torben A.
A1  - Jensen, Uffe Birk
A1  - Vijai, Joseph
A1  - Sarrel, Kara
A1  - Robson, Mark
A1  - Kauff, Noah
A1  - Mulligan, Anna Marie
A1  - Glendon, Gord
A1  - Ozcelik, Hilmi
A1  - Ejlertsen, Bent
A1  - Nielsen, Finn C.
A1  - Jønson, Lars
A1  - Andersen, Mette K.
A1  - Ding, Yuan Chun
A1  - Steele, Linda
A1  - Foretova, Lenka
A1  - Teulé, Alex
A1  - Lazaro, Conxi
A1  - Brunet, Joan
A1  - Pujana, Miquel Angel
A1  - Mai, Phuong L.
A1  - Loud, Jennifer T.
A1  - Walsh, Christine
A1  - Lester, Jenny
A1  - Orsulic, Sandra
A1  - Narod, Steven A.
A1  - Herzog, Josef
A1  - Sand, Sharon R.
A1  - Tognazzo, Silvia
A1  - Agata, Simona
A1  - Vaszko, Tibor
A1  - Weaver, Joellen
A1  - Stravropoulou, Alexandra V.
A1  - Buys, Saundra S.
A1  - Romero, Atocha
A1  - de la Hoya, Miguel
A1  - Aittomäki, Kristiina
A1  - Muranen, Taru A.
A1  - Duran, Mercedes
A1  - Chung, Wendy K.
A1  - Lasa, Adriana
A1  - Dorfling, Cecilia M.
A1  - Miron, Alexander
A1  - Benitez, Javier
A1  - Senter, Leigha
A1  - Huo, Dezheng
A1  - Chan, Salina B.
A1  - Sokolenko, Anna P.
A1  - Chiquette, Jocelyne
A1  - Tihomirova, Laima
A1  - Friebel, Tara M.
A1  - Agnarsson, Bjarne A.
A1  - Lu, Karen H.
A1  - Lejbkowicz, Flavio
A1  - James, Paul A.
A1  - Hall, Per
A1  - Dunning, Alison M.
A1  - Tessier, Daniel
A1  - Cunningham, Julie
A1  - Slager, Susan L.
A1  - Chen, Wang
A1  - Hart, Steven
A1  - Stevens, Kristen
A1  - Simard, Jacques
A1  - Pastinen, Tomi
A1  - Pankratz, Vernon S.
A1  - Offit, Kenneth
A1  - Easton, Douglas F.
A1  - Chenevix-Trench, Georgia
A1  - Antoniou, Antonis C.
T1  - Genome-Wide Association Study in BRCA1 Mutation Carriers Identifies Novel Loci Associated with Breast and Ovarian Cancer Risk
JF  - PLOS Genetics
N2  - BRCA1-associated breast and ovarian cancer risks can be modified by common genetic variants. To identify further cancer risk-modifying loci, we performed a multi-stage GWAS of 11,705 BRCA1 carriers (of whom 5,920 were diagnosed with breast and 1,839 were diagnosed with ovarian cancer), with a further replication in an additional sample of 2,646 BRCA1 carriers. We identified a novel breast cancer risk modifier locus at 1q32 for BRCA1 carriers (rs2290854, P = 2.7 x 10(-8), HR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.09-1.20). In addition, we identified two novel ovarian cancer risk modifier loci: 17q21.31 (rs17631303, P = 1.4 x 10(-8), HR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.17-1.38) and 4q32.3 (rs4691139, P = 3.4 x 10(-8), HR = 1.20, 95% CI: 1.17-1.38). The 4q32.3 locus was not associated with ovarian cancer risk in the general population or BRCA2 carriers, suggesting a BRCA1-specific association. The 17q21.31 locus was also associated with ovarian cancer risk in 8,211 BRCA2 carriers (P = 2 x 10(-4)). These loci may lead to an improved understanding of the etiology of breast and ovarian tumors in BRCA1 carriers. Based on the joint distribution of the known BRCA1 breast cancer risk-modifying loci, we estimated that the breast cancer lifetime risks for the 5% of BRCA1 carriers at lowest risk are 28%-50% compared to 81%-100% for the 5% at highest risk. Similarly, based on the known ovarian cancer risk-modifying loci, the 5% of BRCA1 carriers at lowest risk have an estimated lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer of 28% or lower, whereas the 5% at highest risk will have a risk of 63% or higher. Such differences in risk may have important implications for risk prediction and clinical management for BRCA1 carriers.
KW  - common variants
KW  - susceptibility alleles
KW  - genetic variants
KW  - modifiers
KW  - ZNF365
KW  - investigators
KW  - population
KW  - consortium
KW  - selection
KW  - subtypes
Y1  - 2013
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-127947
SN  - 1553-7404
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Adelfinger, Marion
A1  - Gentschev, Ivaylo
A1  - de Guibert, Julio Grimm
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Langbein-Laugwitz, Johanna
A1  - Härtl, Barbara
A1  - Escobar, Hugo Murua
A1  - Nolte, Ingo
A1  - Chen, Nanhai G.
A1  - Aguilar, Richard J.
A1  - Yu, Yong A.
A1  - Zhang, Qian
A1  - Frentzen, Alexa
A1  - Szalay, Aladar A.
T1  - Evaluation of a New Recombinant Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus Strain GLV-5b451 for Feline Mammary Carcinoma Therapy
JF  - PLoS ONE
N2  - Virotherapy on the basis of oncolytic vaccinia virus (VACV) infection is a promising approach for cancer therapy. In this study we describe the establishment of a new preclinical model of feline mammary carcinoma (FMC) using a recently established cancer cell line, DT09/06. In addition, we evaluated a recombinant vaccinia virus strain, GLV-5b451, expressing the anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) single-chain antibody (scAb) GLAF-2 as an oncolytic agent against FMC. Cell culture data demonstrate that GLV-5b451 virus efficiently infected, replicated in and destroyed DT09/06 cancer cells. In the selected xenografts of FMC, a single systemic administration of GLV-5b451 led to significant inhibition of tumor growth in comparison to untreated tumor-bearing mice. Furthermore, tumor-specific virus infection led to overproduction of functional scAb GLAF-2, which caused drastic reduction of intratumoral VEGF levels and inhibition of angiogenesis.
In summary, here we have shown, for the first time, that the vaccinia virus strains and especially GLV-5b451 have great potential for effective treatment of FMC in animal model.
KW  - antibodies
KW  - cancer treatment
KW  - carcinomas
KW  - vaccinia virus
KW  - oncolytic viruses
KW  - viral replication
KW  - cell cultures
KW  - enzyme-linked immunoassays
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-119387
VL  - 9
IS  - 8
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Donat, Ulrike
A1  - Rother, Juliane
A1  - Schäfer, Simon
A1  - Hess, Michael
A1  - Härtl, Barbara
A1  - Kober, Christina
A1  - Langbein-Laugwitz, Johanna
A1  - Stritzker, Jochen
A1  - Chen, Nanhai G.
A1  - Aguilar, Richard J.
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Szalay, Alandar A.
T1  - Characterization of Metastasis Formation and Virotherapy in the Human C33A Cervical Cancer Model
JF  - PLoS ONE
N2  - 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.
KW  - metastasis
KW  - renal cancer
KW  - oncolytic viruses
KW  - lymph nodes
KW  - kidneys
KW  - lung and intrathoracic tumors
KW  - secondary lung tumors
KW  - cancer treatment
Y1  - 2014
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-119674
SN  - 1932-6203
VL  - 9
IS  - 6
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Gerszten, Peter C.
A1  - Sahgal, Arjun
A1  - Sheehan, Jason P.
A1  - Kersh, Ronald
A1  - Chen, Stephanie
A1  - Flickinger, John C.
A1  - Quader, Mubina
A1  - Fahim, Daniel
A1  - Grills, Inga
A1  - Shin, John H.
A1  - Winey, Brian
A1  - Oh, Kevin
A1  - Sweeney, Reinhart A.
A1  - Guckenberger, Matthias
T1  - A multi-national report on methods for institutional credentialing for spine radiosurgery
JF  - Radiation Oncology
N2  - Background: Stereotactic body radiotherapy and radiosurgery are rapidly emerging treatment options for both malignant and benign spine tumors. Proper institutional credentialing by physicians and medical physicists as well as other personnel is important for the safe and effective adoption of spine radiosurgery. This article describes the methods for institutional credentialing for spine radiosurgery at seven highly experienced international institutions. 
Methods: All institutions (n = 7) are members of the Elekta Spine Radiosurgery Research Consortium and have a dedicated research and clinical focus on image-guided spine radiosurgery. A questionnaire consisting of 24 items covering various aspects of institutional credentialing for spine radiosurgery was completed by all seven institutions. 
Results: Close agreement was observed in most aspects of spine radiosurgery credentialing at each institution. A formal credentialing process was believed to be important for the implementation of a new spine radiosurgery program, for patient safety and clinical outcomes. One institution has a written policy specific for spine radiosurgery credentialing, but all have an undocumented credentialing system in place. All institutions rely upon an in-house proctoring system for the training of both physicians and medical physicists. Four institutions require physicians and medical physicists to attend corporate sponsored training. Two of these 4 institutions also require attendance at a non-corporate sponsored academic society radiosurgery course. Corporate as well as non-corporate sponsored training were believed to be complimentary and both important for training. In 5 centers, all cases must be reviewed at a multidisciplinary conference prior to radiosurgery treatment. At 3 centers, neurosurgeons are not required to be involved in all cases if there is no evidence for instability or spinal cord compression. Backup physicians and physicists are required at only 1 institution, but all institutions have more than one specialist trained to perform spine radiosurgery. All centers believed that credentialing should also be device specific, and all believed that professional societies should formulate guidelines for institutions on the requirements for spine radiosurgery credentialing. Finally, in 4 institutions radiation therapists were required to attend corporate-sponsored device specific training for credentialing, and in only 1 institution were radiation therapists required to also attend academic society training for credentialing. 
Conclusions: This study represents the first multi-national report of the current practice of institutional credentialing for spine radiosurgery. Key methodologies for safe implementation and credentialing of spine radiosurgery have been identified. There is strong agreement among experienced centers that credentialing is an important component of the safe and effective implementation of a spine radiosurgery program.
KW  - cyberknife radiosurgery
KW  - advanced technology
KW  - conformal radiotherapy
KW  - clinical trials
KW  - quality assurance
KW  - credentialing
KW  - spine tumors
KW  - stereotactic body radiotherapy
KW  - spine Radiosurgery
KW  - paraspinal tumors
KW  - intensity modulated radiotherapy
KW  - ACR practice guidelines
KW  - radiation therapy
Y1  - 2013
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-131485
VL  - 8
IS  - 158
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Gentschev, Ivaylo
A1  - Müller, Meike
A1  - Adelfinger, Marion
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Grummt, Friedrich
A1  - Zimmermann, Martina
A1  - Bitzer, Michael
A1  - Heisig, Martin
A1  - Zhang, Qian
A1  - Yu, Yong A.
A1  - Chen, Nanhai G.
A1  - Stritzker, Jochen
A1  - Lauer, Ulrich M.
A1  - Szalay, Aladar A.
T1  - Efficient Colonization and Therapy of Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) Using the Oncolytic Vaccinia Virus Strain GLV-1h68
JF  - PLOS ONE
N2  - Virotherapy using oncolytic vaccinia virus strains is one of the most promising new strategies for cancer therapy. In this study, we analyzed for the first time the therapeutic efficacy of the oncolytic vaccinia virus GLV-1h68 in two human hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines HuH7 and PLC/PRF/5 (PLC) in cell culture and in tumor xenograft models. By viral proliferation assays and cell survival tests, we demonstrated that GLV-1h68 efficiently colonized, replicated in, and did lyse these cancer cells in culture. Experiments with HuH7 and PLC xenografts have revealed that a single intravenous injection (i.v.) of mice with GLV-1h68 resulted in a significant reduction of primary tumor sizes compared to uninjected controls. In addition, replication of GLV-1h68 in tumor cells led to strong inflammatory and oncolytic effects resulting in intense infiltration of MHC class II-positive cells like neutrophils, macrophages, B cells and dendritic cells and in up-regulation of 13 pro-inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, GLV-1h68 infection of PLC tumors inhibited the formation of hemorrhagic structures which occur naturally in PLC tumors. Interestingly, we found a strongly reduced vascular density in infected PLC tumors only, but not in the non-hemorrhagic HuH7 tumor model. These data demonstrate that the GLV-1h68 vaccinia virus may have an enormous potential for treatment of human hepatocellular carcinoma in man.
KW  - Breast-tumors
KW  - Nude-mice
KW  - In-vivo
KW  - Cancer
KW  - Inhibitor
KW  - Tissue
KW  - Agent
KW  - COX-2
Y1  - 2011
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-135319
VL  - 6
IS  - 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  - Schäfer, Simon
A1  - Weibel, Stephanie
A1  - Donat, Ulrike
A1  - Zhang, Qian
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
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  - Biochemie
Y1  - 2012
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-78220
ER  -