Significance And Mechanism Of NDV-ATV Immunotherapy For Patients With Malignant Tumors

Objective: New castle disease virus-modified autologous tumor vaccine (NDV-ATV) is a kind of tumor biotherapy which has been recently used clinically. But its mechanism is still unclear. In patients with malignant tumors, Th1/Th2 balance changes. There is a predominant response from Th1 to Th2. It is unclear whether tumor vaccines and other immunotherapies play beneficial roles in tumor therapy through reversing the predominance. Observing the change of Th1/Th2 balance, T cell subsets of peripheral blood and delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) response before and after treatment, we discussed the NDV-ATV ability to stimulate the cellular immunity.Methods: The patients proved to have malignant tumors pathologically. Th1 type(IL-2,IFN-γ)and Th2 type (IL-4,IL-10 )cytokines of these patients serum were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assays (ELISA) 2 days before operation,1 week before and after each NDV-ATV inoculation respectively. T cell subsets of peripheral blood were detected before and after treatment. The skin indurations were observed at inoculation spots of vaccine and purified protein derivative (PPD).Results: There was a predominant response from Th1 to Th2 in Th1/Th2 balance of immune system before operation and NDV-ATV inoculation. The IL-2/IL-4 ratio was 0.39±0.29,which was significantly lower than that of the control(P<0.01). After continuous 4 times(4 weeks) NDV-ATV inoculation, the ratio rose to 1.15±0.93(P<0.05).The response of predominance from Th1 to Th2 was reversed. The percent of CD4+T cell rose from 30.67±2.74 to 34.71±1.34(P<0.01), and the ratio of CD4+T/CD8+T rose from 1.26±0.16 to 1.45±0.11(P<0.01). The DTH response aiming at NDV-ATV formed in 12 of 19 patients, and skin indurations of the 5U PPD after NDV-ATV inoculation were larger than before the inoculation.Conclusion: There is a predominant response from Th1 to Th2 in Th1/Th2 balance of the immune system of patients with malignant tumors. The active specific immune therapy with NDV-ATV can elevate the cellular immunity and reverse the Th2 predominance, which may be beneficial for clinical therapy of malignant tumors.