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Cancer vaccine work continues at Baylor Baylor College of Medicine news release August 26, 2005 HOUSTON -- (August 25, 2005) -- A special stretch of genetic material may turn off the immune suppression that stymies attempts to fight cancer with a vaccine, said researchers at Baylor College of Medicine at Houston. "Since 1995, many groups have tried to develop a vaccine for the treatment of cancer," said Wang, also a member of the faculty of the BCM Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. "The only problem is that after 10 years of clinical trials, the data suggest that you can induce (cancer) antigen-specific immune responses, but such responses are too weak and transient to eradicate tumor cells." The answer lies in a group of cells called CD4+ regulatory T cells (Treg for short). These cells have the ability to suppress the body's natural immune response. If they are depleted, autoimmune diseases will result because the immune system is unchecked and goes on to attack the body's own tissues. One way to stop this action is to simply wipe out the cells with chemoagents or a specific antibody. "But you may also deplete the good cells needed for fighting cancer," said Wang. He and his group identified particular ligands (a special stretch of guanosine-containing DNA material) that can bind specifically to a particular receptor called human Toll-like receptor 8 and then turn off the suppressive function of Treg cells. Treatment of Treg cells with these ligands converts suppressive Treg cells into non-suppressive T cells. "In fact, in some cases, this treatment actually enhanced anti-tumor immunity," he said. He hopes that clinical trials with these special ligands in patients with cancer can get underway quickly. "It could have a huge impact on cancer therapy or treatment of infectious disease," said Wang. "It could boost response to cancer vaccine as well." Others who participated in this research include: Drs. Guangyong Peng, Yukiko Kiniwa, Kui shin Voo, Tihui Fu, and Yanchun Li; and Zhong Guo, Weiyi Peng, Daniel Y. Wang, and Helen Y. Wang, all of BCM. This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Cancer Research Institute. Contact: Ross Tomlin 713-798-7973 htomlin[AT]bcm.tmc.edu This is a Baylor College of Medicinenews release. The original version appears Research improves hopes for cancer vaccine, August 25, 2005 Health News index | News index News index | RSS | Add to MyYahoo! Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
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