Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: KEGG:D00748 (Proleukin)
 34 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Since the immune system plays an important role in the rejection of tumours, current tumour therapy includes immunostimulation. This can be done by interleukin 2 (IL-2), which activates T and killer cells and induces lysis of the tumour. Because the intravenous application of IL-2 may have serious side effects, we treated two patients with peritumoral injections in a pilot study. Both patients suffered from multiple cutaneous metastases of melanoma. A total of 31 and 39 x 10(6) IU recombinant IL-2 (Proleukin) respectively was injected in increasing concentrations in one metastasis of each patient. Histologically, almost complete necrosis of the tumour was induced. In comparison with the control specimen, the T-cell-rich infiltrate increased intra- and, in particular, peritumorally. While the ratio of helper to suppressor T cells remained unchanged, the proportions of NK cells, monocytes/macrophages and IL-2-receptor-bearing cells increased. This reaction was restricted to treated metastases. No clinical side effects or laboratory changes were registered apart from local erythema and swelling.
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PMID:[Peritumoral administered IL-2-induced tumor regression in melanoma. Pilot study]. 796 Jul 53

There is growing evidence that in multiple myeloma (MM) tumor-directed immune responses exist, might influence tumor progress and could be putative targets for immunotherapeutic approaches. Peripheral blood T lymphocytes are capable of suppressing monoclonal immunoglobulin production of autologous myeloma plasma cells in vitro. This activity can be enhanced by stimulation with mitogens, OKT3 monoclonal antibody or interleukin 2 (IL-2), and is obviously mediated by cytolytic T lymphocytes as demonstrated in a cytotoxicity assay using purified MM plasma cells as targets. The lytic activity is significantly higher when the effectors are prestimulated with irradiated autologous MM plasma cells. Based on these results 18 MM patients of advanced stages with tumor progress received 9 x 10(6) IU/m2 recombinant IL-2 (Proleukin) twice daily on days 1 and 2 and 0.9 x 10(6) IU/m2 twice daily for five subsequent days per week s.c. from days 3-56 (q 12 weeks). During therapy the number of eosinophils increased 15-fold, CD4+ T lymphocytes were activated as demonstrated by CD25 antigen expression and CD56+ natural killer (NK) cells expanded in the peripheral blood. NK cell activity and lymphokine-activated killer cell activity were significantly enhanced. IL-2 therapy induced endogenous IL-2 production and elevated soluble IL-2 receptor serum concentrations. Tumor response was observed in 6/17 evaluable patients. These data indicate that low-dose IL-2 treatment can stimulate immune enhancement in MM patients despite their characteristic tumor-induced immunodeficiency, and has proven to have limited efficacy in advanced MM patients.
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PMID:Tumor-directed cytotoxicity in multiple myeloma--the basis for an experimental treatment approach with interleukin 2. 852 May 15

The FDA approved interleukin 2 (IL2) for clinical use in 1992 in a high-dose bolus intravenous infusion schedule. IL2 administered by continuous low- and intermediate-dose infusion can result in a variety of immunologic effects including the expansion of the Natural Killer (NK) cell pool and immune reconstitution in immune-deficient hosts. These immune modifications are essential for augmentation of both currently available and evolving immunotherapies. The manufacturer's data indicate stability of the IL2 for a period of 6 days. This time frame is not practical for prolonged infusional schemes necessitating frequent changes of drug depots. We tested the biologic stability and sterility of the commercially available recombinant IL2 preparation (aldesleukin; Proleukin, Chiron) under clinical conditions for up to 30 days. Our results confirm that IL2 retains its biologic activity and sterility under these conditions for prolonged periods. This information will simplify IL2 outpatient regimens, allowing for convenient intervals for drug depot renewal, leading to improved patient compliance and conserved health care expenditures.
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PMID:Interleukin 2 maintains biologic stability and sterility over prolonged time. 1099 39

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential efficacy of alternating two outpatient regimens for the treatment of metastatic renal cell cancer. These regimens consisted of 4 weeks of recombinant interleukin 2 (rIL-2) plus IFN-alpha2B followed by 4 weeks of 5-fluorouracil plus IFN-alpha2B. Fifty patients meeting eligibility criteria of previous Cytokine Working Group studies were treated on an outpatient basis. Patients received s.c. rIL-2 (Proleukin; Chiron, Emeryville, CA) during weeks 1-4 of the 8-week regimen. During weeks 1 and 4, the dosage for rIL-2 was 10 MIU/m2 twice daily on days 3-5, and the dosage for IFN-alpha2B (Intron; Schering Plough, Kenilworth, NJ) was 6 MIU/m2 on day 1. During weeks 2 and 3, the dosage for rIL-2 was 5 MIU/m2 on days 1, 3, and 5, and the dosage for IFN-alpha2B was 6 MIU/m2 on days 1, 3, 5. During weeks 5-8, 5-fluorouracil (750 mg/m2) was administered once weekly by i.v. infusion, and IFN-alpha2B (9 MIU/mZ) was administered as a s.c. injection three times weekly. Throughout the treatment, an assessment of quality of life was made and a symptom-distress scale was evaluated. There were two patients with complete responses (CRs) and seven with partial responses (PRs) for an objective response rate of 18% (95% confidence interval, 10-25). The median response duration was 8 months (range, 3-51+ months). The CRs lasted 5 months and 51+ months and the PRs ranged from 3+ to 18 months. After completing at least one course of treatment, eight patients (three with PR, one with minor response, four with stable disease) became CRs after surgery for remaining metastatic disease. Six remain alive at 43+ to 53+ months, and 5 remain disease-free since surgery. The median survival of the study group is 17.5 months, with a maximal follow-up of 53+ months. The range in survival is 1-53+ months. Toxicity was primarily constitutional. and treatment modifications were designed to maintain toxicity at grade 2/3. The most common toxicities during treatment with IL-2/IFN were fatigue, nausea/vomiting, anorexia, skin reaction, diarrhea, fever, and liver enzyme elevations. One-third had central nervous system toxicity (headache, depression, insomnia). During 5FU/IFN treatment, 49 of 50 patients experienced grade 2/3 myelosuppression during course 1. Eight patients experienced grade 4 toxicities. In conclusion, the activity of this alternating regimen is similar to that of IL-2/IFN alone, given in 4-week cycles. The addition of 5FU/IFN failed to increase the efficacy and added new toxicity (myelosuppression). This report does not confirm the results previously reported for either alternating or simultaneous administration of these three agents. Because 5FU does not appear to add to the antitumor activity of IL-2-based therapy for renal cancer, current efforts are directed toward a Phase III randomized comparison of high-dose i.v. bolus inpatient IL-2 treatment versus treatment with outpatient s.c. injection of IL-2 plus IFN.
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PMID:Phase II trial of interleukin 2, interferon alpha, and 5-fluorouracil in metastatic renal cell cancer: a cytokine working group study. 1099 27

Human interleukin 2 (IL-2; Proleukin) is an approved therapeutic for advanced-stage metastatic cancer; however, its use is restricted because of severe systemic toxicity. Its function as a central mediator of T-cell activation may contribute to its efficacy for cancer therapy. However, activation of natural killer (NK) cells by therapeutically administered IL-2 may mediate toxicity. Here we have used targeted mutagenesis of human IL-2 to generate a mutein with approximately 3,000-fold in vitro selectivity for T cells over NK cells relative to wild-type IL-2. We compared the variant, termed BAY 50-4798, with human IL-2 (Proleukin) in a therapeutic dosing regimen in chimpanzees, and found that although the T-cell mobilization and activation properties of BAY 50-4798 were comparable to human IL-2, BAY 50-4798 was better tolerated in the chimpanzee. BAY 50-4798 was also shown to inhibit metastasis in a mouse tumor model. These results indicate that BAY 50-4798 may exhibit a greater therapeutic index than IL-2 in humans in the treatment of cancer and AIDS.
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PMID:A T-cell-selective interleukin 2 mutein exhibits potent antitumor activity and is well tolerated in vivo. 1106 41