Effects of levamisole on normal and malignant murine lymphocytes

Levamisole enhanced transformation of murine lymphocytes stimulated either by mitogens or allogeneic lymphocytes. In a similar dose-dependent pattern it stimulated in vitro growth of L1210, P1798, and 6C3HED but not YAC lymphoma cells. Stimulation of growth of lymphoma cells was greater by peritoneal cells harvested from normal mice 4 days after levamisole injection than by peritoneal cells from untreated mice. This effect correlated with the shortened survival time of BALB/c mice treated with levamisole prior to P1798 implantation compared to that of a control group not pretreated. Administration of levamisole with iodoacetamide-modified tumor cells in immunoprophylaxis studies had no effect on the rejection of a tumor implant or on development of tumor-specific antibody. Levamisole was added to regimens involving asparaginase therapy of 6C3HED-bearing C3H mice and chemoimmunotherapy of BALB/c mice bearing P1798 with methotrexate and iodoacetamide-modified P1798 cells. In neither case were there increased numbers of survivors, and mean survival time was generally decreased for the levamisole-treated groups. The stimulated tumor growth may have been mediated by a direct effect of levamisole on the lymphoma cells, through an effect on other cell types, or by both effects; these effects apparently outweighed potentially beneficial effects of levamisole on the immune system.