Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0025202 (melanoma)
 69,561 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Fc receptor-positive lymphocytes (FcR+) contain lymphokine-activated killer cell (LAK) precursors that in response to IL-2 develop potent antitumor cytotoxicity. These FcR+ cells are also capable of antibody-dependent cytotoxicity (ADCC), which can be detected using fresh human peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) directed to murine targets, however, PBL-mediated ADCC to human tumors usually is very low, requiring a stimulation of the PBL, which also can be accomplished with IL-2. Using human melanoma tumor target cells, with and without the 14G2a monoclonal antibody, we examined in parallel the role of p75 IL-2 receptor for regulation of the induction of both LAK and ADCC forms of antitumor cytotoxicity. Enrichment of FcR+ cells from fresh peripheral blood by elutriation and flow cytometry, followed by varying periods of IL-2 culture, revealed a differential kinetics of activation. ADCC was detectable after PBL exposure to IL-2 for as short as the 4 h cytotoxicity assay, while LAK activation required more than 24 h of exposure. Elimination of the FcR+ cells by magnetic bead depletion from large granular lymphocyte populations (LGL) resulted in a loss of both LAK and ADCC. Addition of antibody known to block the binding of IL-2 to the p75 molecule of the IL-2 receptor complex (Mik-beta 1) to activation cultures at zero time resulted in abrogation of both cytotoxicities. These results suggest that differentiation and maturation of the ADCC effectors occurs in response to IL-2 via the p75 molecule, as also does LAK activation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Tumor recognition and lytic competence of IL-2-activated lymphocytes: regulation of both antibody-independent and -dependent cellular cytotoxicity via P75 IL-2 receptor. 142 May 99

Fas antigen and two tumor necrosis factor receptors (TNFR), p55 and p75, are implicated in the triggering of cell death upon stimulation by natural ligands and specific monoclonal antibodies. However, the relative efficiency of each receptor, the mechanisms that regulate their function and the signaling pathways they employ, remain to be elucidated. In this study, fusion proteins, composed of the extracellular domain of CD40 and the intracellular and transmembrane domains of Fas, TNFRp55 and TNFRp75, were stably expressed in a human melanoma cell line that is deficient in Fas and TNFR expression. Transfectants were stimulated by a soluble recombinant form of the CD40 ligand gp39, and the effect on cell viability determined. Engagement of all three fusion proteins by the gp39 ligand induced lethal signals, but the rate at which cell death occurred was distinct. Fas-derived signals were observed to have the most rapid effect, killing most cells within hours of stimulation, whereas TNFRp55- and TNFRp75-associated signals resulted in cell death within 2-3 d after engagement by ligand. It is interesting to note that optimal cell killing by all three fusion proteins was dependent on a critical, low to intermediate, cell surface expression level. High levels of fusion protein expression, on the other hand, were associated with inhibition of cell death. Our results provide a model to study Fas and TNFR-mediated cell death and suggest a novel mechanism for the regulation of death signals triggered by members of the TNFR family.
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PMID:Fas and tumor necrosis factor receptor-mediated cell death: similarities and distinctions. 751 40

The formation of brain metastases is an important clinical end point in patients with cancer. The brain provides a unique microenvironment enclosed by the skull, lacking lymphatic drainage and maintaining a highly regulated vascular transport barrier. In the brain microcirculation, brain-metastatic tumor cells must attach to endothelial cells, respond to brain-derived invasion factors, and invade the blood-brain barrier. Neurotrophins are important brain invasion-stimulating factors in this process, and in responsive tumor cells neurotrophins can promote invasion by enhancing the production of basement-membrane-degradative enzymes (gelatinase and heparanase) capable of locally destroying the blood-brain barrier. We examined human melanoma variant lines that express low-affinity p75 neurotrophin receptor in relation to their brain-metastatic potentials. Expression of p75 in these variants occurs in the absence of expression of trkA, the gene encoding the high-affinity nerve growth factor (NGF) tyrosine kinase receptor. Brain-metastatic tumor cells can also produce factors and inhibitors that influence their growth, invasion and survival in the brain. We found that brain-metastatic melanoma cells synthesize transcripts for tumor growth factor-beta, basic fibroblast growth factor, tumor growth factor-alpha, and interleukin-1 beta. Synthesis of these factors may influence the production of neurotrophins by adjacent brain tissues. In support of this, we found increased amounts of NGF in tumor-adjacent tissues at the invasion front of human melanoma tumors in the brain. These and other factors may determine whether metastatic cells can successfully invade, colonize, and grow in the central nervous system.
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PMID:Involvement of neurotrophins and growth factors in brain metastasis formation. 765 30

Frozen sections of 52 human solid tumours (38 malignant and 14 benign) of varied histogenesis were immunohistochemically stained with well characterised monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) to human interleukin 2 (IL-2) and the alpha and beta chains of its receptor (R). In all malignant specimens, the tumour cells expressed the IL-2R beta subunit (p75) but not the IL-2R alpha subunit (CD25). In 36 of 38 malignant tumours examined, there was conspicuous staining for IL-2 in the tumour cell nuclei/nucleoli and perinuclear cytoplasm. In the human solid tumour cell lines G361 (melanoma), A549 (lung), MCF-7 (breast) and WiDR (colorectal), both subunits of the IL-2R appeared to be expressed, although the alpha subunit only weakly. Exogenous addition of human recombinant (r) interleukin 2 altered cell numbers in 3 of the 4 cell lines (WiDR was refractory). When grown in the absence of exogenously added rIL-2, IL-2 staining was observed in all cell lines. The pattern of distribution was similar to that exhibited by the tumour cells in situ (i.e., a nuclear/nucleolar localisation). In G361 melanoma cells, this IL-2 staining was present in proliferating cells but disappeared as the cultures approached confluence. Addition of an IL-2R beta subunit blocking antibody to growing G361 cultures (grown in the absence of rIL-2) resulted in a significant reduction in cell numbers. We propose, therefore, that the presence of immunoreactive IL-2 and IL-2R expression is characteristic of human malignant cells and that IL-2 may play a role in the autocrine stimulation of proliferation of malignant cells, such as G361 melanoma cells.
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PMID:Interleukin 2 receptor expression and interleukin 2 localisation in human solid tumor cells in situ and in vitro: evidence for a direct role in the regulation of tumour cell proliferation. 789 42

Treatment of metastatic melanoma patients with an autologous vaccine modified by the hapten, dinitrophenyl (DNP), produces a striking immunological effect: the induction of clinically evident inflammatory responses in metastatic tumors. Histological examination shows these tumors to be infiltrated with T lymphocytes. We studied the expression of activation markers on those cells and compared them with matched peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) and with lymphocytes extracted from metastases before treatment with DNP-conjugated vaccine. The median fraction of cells that were T cells in post-vaccine tumors was 41%, as compared with 9% in pre-treatment tumors, and those T cells were predominantly CD8+ (mean CD8/CD4 ratio = 5.0). A high proportion of both pre- and post-treatment infiltrating T cells expressed HLA-DR (mean +/- SE = 48% +/- 4%), CD69 (56% +/- 7%), and ganglioside GD3 (68% +/- 5%). This distinguished them from matched PBL in which expression of those markers was significantly lower (HLA-DR = 10% +/- 2%; CD69 = 2% +/- 0.4%; GD3 = 49% +/- 4%). These changes were not accompanied by increased cell-surface expression of interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptors, either CD25 or p75, which were expressed by 1%-2% and 12% of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL), respectively. The pattern of activation marker expression that we identified appears to be characteristic of tissue T cells with the memory phenotype. The low expression of IL-2 receptors could indicate functional impairment of TIL in situ, perhaps because of inhibitory molecules produced by melanoma cells.
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PMID:Activation markers on T cells infiltrating melanoma metastases after therapy with dinitrophenyl-conjugated vaccine. 792 43

Using flow cytometry, cellular IL-2 receptors were studied before and following chemoimmunotherapy combination in 20 patients with metastatic malignant melanoma (MMM). Patients received cisplatin (100 mg/m2) at days 1 and 28, recombinant IL-2 by continuous infusion from days 3 to 6, 17 to 21, 31 to 34, and 45 to 49. Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) was given subcutaneously three times weekly. In terms of clinical response, we observed 55% objective response (complete: 15%). When pretreatment blood samples were compared with those of healthy donors, we did not observe any change in low (alpha chain) and high affinity receptor (alpha + beta) expression. In contrast, intermediate affinity p75 (beta chain) expression was decreased significantly (P < or = 0.0001) in MMM patients. During treatment, we found a dramatic increase of beta chain as well as high affinity (alpha + beta) expression in responding patients, as soon as IL-2 therapy began. Furthermore, the increase of beta chain expression was limited to natural killer (NK) cells (CD56+). In non-responding patients, on the other hand, increase of both receptors was seen only at day 31. These data suggest the involvement of beta chain expression in the mechanism of cell activation after chemoimmunotherapy. Moreover, this early beta chain expression is correlated with the clinical response to chemoimmunotherapy.
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PMID:Study of IL-2 receptor expression after chemoimmunotherapy in patients treated for metastatic malignant melanoma. 808 89

We have demonstrated that A375 melanoma cells express mRNA for both types of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptors and receptor proteins on their plasma membranes. Specific agonist and blocking antibodies to either 55-kDa (TNF-R1) or 75-kDa (TNF-R2) TNF receptors combined with two-dimensional gel analysis were employed to determine which receptor type is responsible for mediating the induction of individual melanoma proteins. Our results indicate that the enhanced synthesis of proteins 21/>7 (M(r)/pI), 28/5.6, and 41/5.7 is selectively induced through TNF-R1. TNF induces these proteins; antagonist antibody to TNF-R1 prevents their induction by TNF, and TNF-R1 agonist induces them in the absence of TNF. Identification of these proteins by immunoblot analysis proved that 21/>7 is manganese superoxide dismutase, protein 28/5.6 is unrelated to 27/28-kDa heat shock protein, and protein 41/5.7 is plasminogen activator inhibitor-2. Furthermore, TNF cytotoxicity for A375 cells is also mediated by TNF-R1. These studies indicate that TNF-R1 is a critical signaling receptor for TNF action on A375 cells and demonstrate the potential use of TNF-R1 antibodies to selectively block or enhance specific effects of TNF on melanoma cells.
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PMID:Enhanced synthesis of tumor necrosis factor-inducible proteins, plasminogen activator inhibitor-2, manganese superoxide dismutase, and protein 28/5.6, is selectively triggered by the 55-kDa tumor necrosis factor receptor in human melanoma cells. 814 83

This study was undertaken to investigate the pathways involved in the interleukin 2 (IL-2)-driven growth of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). For this purpose, TIL lines and freshly isolated TILs obtained from 16 patients with solid cancer (three melanoma, seven primary colorectal carcinoma, four hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer and two lung cancer) were evaluated for (a) expression of IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) both at the RNA level and on the cell surface by flow cytometric analysis and (b) their proliferative activity in response to IL-2 and the role of IL-2R subunits in the IL-2-driven TIL growth. Northern blot analysis showed that TILs express a strong message for both the p55 and the p75 IL-2R. Accordingly, flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that TILs bear both IL-2R chains. TILs cultured in vitro in the presence of rIL-2 were able to proliferate in response to different concentrations of this cytokine. Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specifically recognising the p55 and p75 IL-2R chains (anti-Tac and TU27 respectively) exhibited a marked inhibitory effect on IL-2-driven growth when added individually or in appropriate combinations. Our results demonstrated that TILs are equipped with a fully functional IL-2 receptor system, thus suggesting the involvement of this structure in the activation and expansion of TILs following immunotherapy with IL-2.
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PMID:Functional role of IL-2 receptors on tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes. 819 69

Although overexpression of the low-affinity p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) is frequently associated with advanced stages of human melanoma progression, the functional significance of this finding is unknown. We examined whether the degree of cell surface expression of p75NTR in human melanoma cell variants determines their extent of invasion stimulated by nerve growth factor (NGF). Treatment of MeWo melanoma cells or a metastatic spontaneous wheat germ agglutinin-resistant variant subline (70W) of MeWo cells with 2.5S NGF resulted in a dose-dependent enhancement of invasion through a reconstituted basement membrane. This effect was most pronounced with the 70W subline that exhibits brain-metastasizing potential in nude mice but was not found with a poorly metastatic MeWo variant subline (3S5). The expression of p75NTR as determined by Northern blotting and immunoprecipitation analysis of 125I-labeled cell surface proteins correlated with NGF-stimulated invasion. The MeWo melanoma sublines used in this study did not express p140proto-trkA mRNA or any p140proto-trkA variant transcripts including p70trkA as determined by Northern analysis and RT-PCR analysis. Thus, these melanoma cells would not be expected to form functional p75-p140 heterodimers or p140-p140 homodimers capable of transducing an NGF-generated signal to p140proto-trkA cytoplasmic substrates. These cells did express authentic p145trkC transcripts. However, NGF did not catalytically activate p145trkC receptors via increased tyrosine phosphorylation as would be expected if p145trkC participated in the signaling established by NGF. Furthermore, a NGF-stimulated purine-analogue-sensitive kinase activity was found to coimmunoprecipitate with p75NTR. This p75NTR-associated kinase may coordinate initial signaling events evoked by p75NTR ligand interaction. Addition of 2.5S NGF, at concentrations that should saturate cell surface p75NTR, to matrix-adherent cultures of human MeWo and 70W but not 3S5 melanoma cells suppressed the expression of 92-kDa type IV collagenase and stimulated the production of 72-kDa type IV collagenase in its fully active 68-kDa form. In the absence of p140proto-trkA, the matrix-dependent effects of NGF on metalloproteinase expression of brain-metastatic 70W melanoma cells suggest a signaling role for the low-affinity melanoma p75NTR receptor and its associated purine-analogue-sensitive kinase in signaling enhanced matrix penetration of NGF-rich stromal microenvironments such as the brain.
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PMID:Mediation of NGF-stimulated extracellular matrix invasion by the human melanoma low-affinity p75 neurotrophin receptor: melanoma p75 functions independently of trkA. 830 39

Melanoma cells can secrete several cytokines and express various cell surface molecules, such as the intercellular adhesion molecule ICAM-1, class II histocompatibility antigens, and the CALLA antigen, typically found in cells of the immune system. We have investigated the possible expression of interleukin-2 (IL-2) receptors in melanoma using monoclonal antibodies specific for the p55/alpha chain (TAC antigen) and the p75/beta subunit. Flow cytometric analysis of cultured melanoma cells showed the presence of low levels of the TAC antigen and of the beta chain on the surface of several cell lines. Similar results were obtained in vivo by immunohistochemistry on cryosections prepared from cutaneous and ocular melanoma explants. Positive staining was observed for the alpha chain of the IL-2 receptor in a high percentage of tumour cells. The beta chain could also be detected, although in a limited number of specimens. Analysis of RNA from melanoma cell lines by Northern blot showed the presence of typical 4 Kb transcripts for the p75 subunit, while low-abundance message for the p55 chain could be detected using combined reverse transcription/polymerase chain reaction analysis. Together, these results suggest that melanoma cells may express high affinity receptors for IL-2.
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PMID:Expression of IL-2 receptors in human melanoma cells. 831 84


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