Abstract
Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) recognize peptide antigens associated with cell surface major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules. The identification of tumor cell-derived peptides capable of eliciting anti- tumor CTL responses would enable the design of antigen-specific immunotherapies. Our strategy to identify such potentially therapeutic peptides relies on selecting high-affinity MHC binders from known tumor- associated antigens. These peptides are subsequently tested for their ability to induce CTLs capable of killing tumor cells. With this strategy, we have identified a nine-residue epitope, derived from the product of the tumor- associated gene MAGE-3, which has the capacity to induce in vitro CTLs that kill melanoma and other tumor cell lines. These results show the primary in vitro induction of tumor-specific human CTLs and illustrate the feasibility of ex vivo antigen-specific approaches to the immunological therapy of cancer.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 2105-2109 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |
Volume | 91 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 15 1994 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- MAGE antigens
- major histocompatibility complex antigen-binding peptides
- melanoma immunity
- tumor-specific cytotoxic T cells
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General