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A breast and melanoma-shared tumor antigen: T cell responses to antigenic peptides translated from different open

R F Wang1, S L Johnston, G Zeng

  • 1Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. rongfu@pop.nci.nih.gov

Insights

Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) targeting the cancer antigen gene 3 (CAG-3), also known as NY-ESO-1, demonstrated effectiveness against melanoma and breast tumors. This study identified NY-ESO-1 as a dual target for antibody and T-cell responses.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Metastatic melanoma treatment with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and interleukin-2 (IL-2) showed objective tumor regression.
  • Screening of a cDNA library from the 586mel cell line using TIL586-derived CTL clones led to the identification of a novel gene.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify the gene targeted by TIL586 and investigate its role in anti-tumor immunity.
  • To determine if the identified gene product is recognized by T-cells in other cancer types.

Main Methods:

  • cDNA library screening using CTL clones.
  • Sequence analysis of the isolated gene.
  • Testing of NY-ESO-1 specific CTL clones against breast and melanoma tumor cells.
  • Identification of antigenic peptides from NY-ESO-1.

Main Results:

  • The isolated gene, CAG-3, was found to be identical to NY-ESO-1, a known immune target.
  • NY-ESO-1 specific CTL clones recognized both HLA-A31-positive breast and melanoma tumor cells.
  • A 10-mer antigenic peptide (ESO10-53) was identified from the normal reading frame of NY-ESO-1.
  • CTLs recognized peptides from both normal and alternative reading frames of NY-ESO-1.

Conclusions:

  • NY-ESO-1 is recognized by both antibody and T-cell mediated responses, serving as a dual immune target.
  • This study provides the first direct evidence of tumor-specific CTLs recognizing both breast and melanoma tumor cells.
  • The identification of NY-ESO-1 peptides from alternative reading frames suggests a novel mechanism of tumor antigen presentation with potential implications for cancer immunotherapy.

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