Science Sub-Journal: The fusion of cytokines and antibodies promises to treat glioblastoma

17, 2020 /--- In a new study, researchers from the University of Zurich, the Federal Institute of Technology zurich, the University Hospital of Zurich and the biotechnology company Philochem have found that fusing cytokines with antibodies is an effective treatment for glioblastoma in mice.
study was published in the October 7, 2020 issue of the Journal of Science Translational Medicine under the title "Immunocytokines are a a-a-good immunotherapeutic approach against glioblastoma".
paper, they described their technique and tested its effects using mouse models.
images from Science Translational Medicine, 2020, doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.abb2311.
glioblastoma is a cancerous brain tumor that is extremely difficult to treat.
surgery to remove it is difficult and full of side effects, and the effects of the drug are minimal.
recent years, scientists have tried and failed to use drugs that alert the immune system to the presence of tumors.
the new study, the researchers tried another method -- fusing cytokines with antibodies to attack tumors.
they hope the combination of the two will boost the immune system to attack the tumor more strongly and hopefully destroy it.
are small proteins secreted by cells in the immune system.
their usual role is to send signals to other cells in the immune system.
and antibodies are type Y proteins produced by plasma cells.
are the main force of the immune system, producing antibodies that attack viruses and bacteria.
the new study, the researchers combined L19 antibodies with cytokine TNF to form immunocytokine L19TNF.
the L19 antibody because previous studies have shown that it can look for signs of glioblastoma.
confirmed that L19TNF was injected into mice with induced glioblastoma and then monitored for its effects on the brain tumor.
the researchers found that injecting the immunocytokine into the experimental mice did increase the immune response, slowing the growth of the tumor in some cases and reversing growth in others.
found that in some mice, the tumor disappeared completely.
researchers also found some evidence of long-term stability.
they have found no evidence of adverse side effects.
their next step is to begin testing to determine if human clinical trials can begin as soon as possible.
(bioon.com) Reference: 1.Tobias Weiss et al. Immunocytokines are adioedd immunotherapeutic again approachst glioblastoma. Science Translational Medicine, 2020, doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.abb2311.2.Fusing cytokines with antibodies found to be effective at treating brain tumors in mice