Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Generation of Orthotopic Pancreatic Tumors and Ex vivo Characterization of Tumor-Infiltrating T Cell Cytotoxicity
Published on: December 7, 2019
Do autochthonous tumors interfere with effector T cell responses?
1Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine, Robert-Rössle-Str. 10, 13092 Berlin, Germany. tblanke@mdc-berlin.de
Autochthonous tumors may fail to induce effective anti-tumor immunity, unlike virus-induced cancers. Spontaneous tumors may evade immune responses due to a lack of evolutionary pressure, leading to tolerance or resistance.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Oncology
- Cancer Research
Background:
- Autochthonous tumors are assumed to induce effector T cell (T(E)) responses.
- Functional T(E) cells typically persist as memory cells and prevent tumor recurrence.
- Virus-induced tumors often demonstrate this phenomenon, linked to evolutionary pressure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the immune response dynamics in spontaneous autochthonous tumors versus virus-induced tumors.
- To understand why spontaneous tumors may evade T(E) cell-mediated control.
- To explore the role of evolutionary pressure in anti-tumor immunity.
Main Methods:
- Monitoring of tumor antigen-specific T cells in models of spontaneous and induced tumors.
- Analysis of T(E) cell functionality, persistence, and memory formation.
- Comparative study of immune evasion strategies in different tumor types.
Main Results:
- Spontaneous autochthonous tumors may evade immune detection or induce T(E) cells too late for effective control.
- Tumor resistance to T(E) cells or induced tolerance can occur in spontaneous tumor models.
- Absence of evolutionary pressure is a potential explanation for immune evasion in spontaneous tumors.
Conclusions:
- Spontaneous tumor development may bypass effective T(E) cell surveillance due to a lack of evolutionary pressure.
- Immune tolerance or resistance mechanisms are critical in the failure to control autochthonous tumors.
- Understanding these differences is crucial for developing effective cancer immunotherapies.
Related Concept Videos
Tumor Immunotherapy
Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response
Immunological surveillance is the ability of immune cells to monitor and eliminate infected cells with intracellular pathogens, neoplastically transformed cells, and cells with non-self antigens. Cytotoxic T cells and NK...
Cell-mediated Immune Responses
T Cell Types and Functions
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...
T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...
The Tumor Microenvironment

