An IL-12/Shh-C domain fusion protein-based IL-12 autocrine loop for sustained natural killer cell activation

The dependency of activated natural killer (NK) cells on the continuous support of exogenous interleukin (IL)-2 for their in vivo survival, tumor localization and consequently, their antitumor effect, is a major obstacle for NK cell-mediated tumor therapy. In the present study, a fusion gene between IL-12 and mouse sonic hedgehog C-terminal domain (Shh-C) was constructed. The fusion protein was autocatalytically processed to form cholesterol-modified IL-12 molecules and an autocrine loop of IL-12 was established for the sustained activation of NK cells. The transduced NK cells matured more rapidly in vitro with the enhanced expression of granule-related proteins. NKIL-12/Shh-C cells reached the same proliferation rate as NK cells transduced with enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP)/Shh-C (NKEGFP/Shh-C) with <10-fold IL-2 supplementation, suggesting that the fusion protein reduced the dependency of NK cells on IL-2. The amount of interferon‑γ (IFN-γ) in the supernatants of NKIL-12/Shh-C cells 5 and 7 days after transduction was significantly higher than that in the supernatants of NKIL-12 cells. Immunofluorescent staining of lung tissues from B16-bearing mice which had received an intravenous injection of lentivirus-transduced NK cells without exogenous IL-2 confirmed that donor NK cells successfully infiltrated into the lung tissues. The survival time of the mice which had received NKIL-12/Shh-C cells was significantly prolonged compared to the mice which had received NKEGFP/Shh-C cells.