Role of tumor necrosis factor and interleukin 1 in gamma-interferon-promoted activation of mouse tumoricidal macrophages.

The purpose of this study was to determine if recombinant murine interleukin 1 beta (rMu-IL-1 beta) alone or in combination with recombinant murine gamma-interferon (rMu-IFN-gamma) could activate murine macrophages to be tumoricidal against tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-insensitive target cells and to evaluate the possible role of interleukin 1 (IL-1) in murine macrophage activation by recombinant murine tumor necrosis factor (rMu-TNF) plus rMu-IFN-gamma. rMu-IL-1 beta and rMu-TNF alone or in combination could neither directly lyse the TNF-insensitive P815 mastocytoma nor activate resident peritoneal macrophages to be tumoricidal for this target. A synergistic induction of tumoricidal macrophage activity against P815 occurred, however, when either of these monokines was combined with rMu-IFN-gamma. The tumoricidal activity obtained was transitory, and the level of activity was dependent upon the monokine concentration and the length of induction period. Murine macrophages stimulated under the same conditions used to induce tumoricidal activity with rMu-TNF plus rMu-IFN-gamma or with rMu-IL-1 plus rMu-IFN-gamma were shown to produce low concentrations of IL-1 or TNF, respectively. Thus, a bidirectional cross-induction of the production of the two monokines occurred. The monokine production was also quite transitory, and the time of peak production of the monokines (12 h) was found to precede the time of peak tumoricidal activation (24 h). Using neutralizing antisera specific for rMu-IL-1s and rMu-TNF, the cross-induced production of TNF was shown to be required for macrophage tumoricidal activation by rMu-IL-1 beta alone (TNF-sensitive targets) or in combination with rMu-IFN-gamma (TNF-insensitive targets). There was no evidence, however, that the production of IL-1 was required for macrophage activation by rMu-TNF in combination with rMu-IFN-gamma.

Alterations in murine host defense functions by adriamycin or liposome-encapsulated adriamycin.

Peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) from C57BL/6 mice were collected on different days following an i.p. injection of Adriamycin (10 mg/kg) as free drug (ADM) or encapsulated in multilamellar liposomes (ADM/Lip). Macrophages harvested from mice at various times (Days 4-14) after either drug treatment were responsive to in vitro lipopolysaccharide induction of tumoricidal activity, maximum response being seen on Day 7. In addition, 18 days after treatment, significant macrophage tumoricidal activity was observed only in the ADM/Lip-treated group. When supernatants from cultures of PEC obtained 7 days after treatment were assayed for interleukin 1 following lipopolysaccharide stimulation, activity was found with both ADM- and ADM/Lip-treated cells. Without lipopolysaccharide stimulation, only PEC from ADM-treated mice elaborated factor(s) with interleukin 1-like activity. Both ADM and ADM/Lip induced significant PEC-natural killer (PEC-NK) activity by Day 4, while the ADM/Lip treatment sustained PEC-NK activity more effectively than free drug at later time points (7 or 11 days posttreatment). Drug-induced PEC-NK activity (Day 7) was (a) ablated by treatment in vitro with anti-asialo GM1 antibody and complement, and (b) associated with a population of PEC nonadherent to plastic. A transient suppression of splenic NK activity was seen 4 days following either ADM or ADM/Lip administration with recovery to control level by Day 7. These data demonstrate that following ADM or ADM/Lip administration some of the changes necessary for macrophage tumoricidal activation must have occurred in vivo. Liposome encapsulation of ADM extended the duration of ADM-induced augmentation of certain host defenses.

Cellular basis for adriamycin-induced augmentation of cell-mediated cytotoxicity in culture.

The cellular basis for the augmented cell-mediated cytotoxic (CMC) response seen when spleen cells from Adriamycin (ADM)-treated mice were stimulated in culture was investigated. Under conditions where mature macrophages were reduced (adherent or silica-sensitive cells removed) at time of alloantigen challenge, the cells from ADM-treated mice developed levels of CMC activity much higher than the low levels which were developed by similar subsets of cells from nontreated control mice. This indicates that ADM treatment enriched a subset of cells in spleen which was nonadherent, silica-insensitive, and nonphagocytic but was capable of providing accessory function. When mature macrophages were not removed, the capability to develop an augmented level of CMC was shown to be associated with a subset of cells from ADM-treated mice which was adherent to either plastic or nylon wool. In recombination experiments, it was found that the removal of Thy 1.2+ cells from the adherent subset from ADM-treated mice had little effect on the response, while their removal from the adherent subset from nontreated mice resulted in elevated levels of response. A similar effect was obtained when Lyt 2.2+ cells were eliminated but not when Lyt 1.2+ cells were removed. This indicates that a Thy 1.2+, Lyt 1-2+ cell, involved in regulation of the response, was missing from or failed to function in the ADM-treated population. Based on these findings, ADM apparently induces modifications in two cell subsets: (a) immature cells of the monocyte/macrophage lineage which can provide accessory function; and (b) adherent, Lyt 2+ T-cells which cooperate in maintaining levels of CMC activity at "normal" levels.

Tumoricidal activation of murine resident peritoneal macrophages by interleukin 2 and tumor necrosis factor alpha.

The capacity of recombinant human interleukin 2 (rH-IL2), alone or in combination with recombinant tumor necrosis factor (r-TNF alpha), to activate murine resident peritoneal macrophages to a tumoricidal state was examined. Resident peritoneal exudate cells from C57BL/6 mice were cultured for 18 h with activating agents and washed and the adherent cells (macrophages) were assessed for cytolytic activity against radiolabeled target tumor cells (EL4, P815). Under these conditions, rH-IL2 alone activated macrophages to a tumoricidal state in a concentration dependent fashion. Neither murine nor human r-TNF alpha alone had any activating effect but, when combined with rH-IL2, further stimulated rH-IL2-inducible responses. Using polymyxin B, it was shown that macrophage activation was not due to an inadvertent lipopolysaccharide contamination of the r-TNF alpha or rH-IL2 preparations. It was also unlikely that target cell lysis was a direct result of increased TNF alpha production by rH-IL2 stimulated macrophages since P815 is totally resistant to lysis by r-TNF alpha. Although the lytic effector function was mediated by adherent cells, nonadherent peritoneal exudate cells were required for activation to occur. Furthermore, antisera against murine gamma-interferon, when added to activation cultures, reduced the level of cytolytic activity which developed. These data suggest that rH-IL2-induced peritoneal macrophage activation requires stimulation of nonadherent cells and is dependent upon gamma-interferon mediated mechanisms.

Augmentation of the development of immune responses of mice against allogeneic tumor cells after adriamycin treatment.

In C57BL/6J mice, depending on the dose of P815 cells used for immunization, Adriamycin exerted different effects on the cell-mediated lytic response and complement-dependent cytotoxicity. At the dose of 3 X 10(7) P815 cells, Adriamycin treatment had no apparent effect on cell-mediated lytic response regardless of timing of drug treatment. At lower doses of antigen (10(7) or 5 X 10(6) cells), the response was augmented in Adriamycin-pretreated mice. Similarly, under conditions which led to a suboptimal complement-dependent humoral response of untreated control, Adriamycin pretreatment resulted in an augmented response; under conditions of maximal response, Adriamycin was suppressive. Suppression was maximal if the drug was injected at either the same time or shortly before or after antigen. The cell-mediated lytic response was proportional to the dose of antigen used, while the complement-dependent humoral lytic response was inversely proportional to dose of antigen in the range used in these experiments. Secondary cell-mediated lytic response in culture was also augmented if mice had been pretreated with Adriamycin 5 days before the primary immunization. The cell-mediated lytic response of spleen and peritoneal exudate cells from mice immunized with relatively low doses of P815 cells 5 days after treatment with Adriamycin was increased 12 to 15 days after immunization. The cytotoxic effects were present in both plastic adherent and nonadherent fractions of either spleen or peritoneal cell populations. All these effector cells were found to be anti-Thy 1.2 sensitive. The phagocytic activity of spleen cells was increased after immunization, but no drug effect was observed; following 24 hr of culture, however, cells from drug-treated immunized donors had increased phagocytic activity as compared to that of controls. Increased phagocytosis also developed in cells nonadherent to plastic.

Effect of recombinant tumor necrosis factor on tumoricidal activation of murine macrophages: synergism between tumor necrosis factor and gamma-interferon.

The activation of tumoricidal murine macrophages by recombinant human tumor necrosis factor (rH-TNF) alone or in combination with recombinant murine gamma-interferon (rM-IFN-gamma) was examined. When used alone, rH-TNF (10(-1)-10(5) units/ml) did not induce macrophage tumoricidal activity against TNF-insensitive P815 mastocytoma cells. Combining rH-TNF with rM-IFN-gamma resulted in the synergistic induction of tumoricidal activity in resident peritoneal macrophages. This synergistic effect was not due to contaminating bacterial lipopolysaccharide. A comparative study using recombinant murine tumor necrosis factor (rM-TNF) showed that rM-TNF alone also could not stimulate murine macrophages and there was no significant difference between effects of rM-TNF and rH-TNF on macrophage activation in the presence of rM-IFN-gamma. In experiments comparing sequential to simultaneous exposure of macrophages to rH-TNF and rM-IFN-gamma, it was found that: (a) when macrophages are primed with rM-IFN-gamma, rH-TNF serves only as a very weak triggering signal for tumoricidal activation; and (b) marked activation is obtained only when macrophages are exposed to the two cytokines simultaneously. These results suggest that TNF has an autocrine regulatory function in concert with lymphokines in macrophage-mediated host defense against tumors.

Modification of host antitumor defense mechanisms in mice by progressively growing tumor.

The EL4 lymphoma in C57BL/6 mice was used as a model to examine the effect of progressive tumor growth on a variety of cell mediated cytolytic effector functions which have been shown in other systems to have antitumor potential. The functions examined were those of cytolytic T-lymphocyte, lymphokine activated killer cells, natural killer cells, and tumoricidal macrophage (MO). The kinetics of each function displayed a unique pattern as a consequence of tumor growth, but all were inhibited in animals bearing large tumors (late tumor bearers). In cell mixing experiments it was shown that spleen cells from individual late tumor bearers were suppressive for cytotoxic T-lymphocytes, lymphokine activated killer cells, and splenic MO but not peritoneal MO or splenic natural killer cells. The suppression was nonspecific and was mediated primarily by nonadherent cells and/or their soluble products. Suppression appeared to be mediated, in part, by tumor cells in the spleen since the degree of suppressor activity associated with a particular spleen cell preparation correlated with the number of tumor cells present. Furthermore, the direct addition of viable ascites EL4 cells to response cultures or assays had similar suppressive effects as late TBM spleen cells, i.e., inhibited cytotoxic T-lymphocytes, lymphokine activated killer cells, and splenic MO but had no effect on natural killer cells or peritoneal MO. The mechanism of suppression by ascites EL4 was not determined but it was mediated by viable cells only and not due to contaminating viruses or other microorganisms.

Correlation between adriamycin-induced augmentation of interleukin 2 production and of cell-mediated cytotoxicity in mice.

Based on the observation that spleen cells from Adriamycin-treated mice could develop augmented levels of cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activity in response to heat-treated and/or X-irradiated alloantigens, it was postulated that modulations in soluble mediators could be involved in this phenomenon. In fact, in this study Adriamycin-induced increases in the levels of prostaglandin E2 and interleukin 2 activity have been observed with isolated cells. The "interleukin 2-like" activity was indistinguishable from that of partially purified interleukin 2 in terms of ability to restore responsiveness to experimentally inhibited primary alloantigen response cultures and to maintain long-term cultures of activated T-cells. Furthermore this latter activity was completely ablated by antiinterleukin 2 monoclonal antibody. While the modification in prostaglandin E2 production did not appear to play a role in determining augmentation of cytotoxic T-cell activity, the modification in interleukin 2 production was consistent with the possibility that this is a primary mechanism of Adriamycin-induced augmented cell-mediated cytotoxicity.

Selective modulation by alpha-difluoromethylornithine of T-lymphocyte and antibody-mediated cytotoxic responses to mouse tumor allografts.

alpha-Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), an inhibitor of polyamine biosynthesis, has been shown to be growth inhibitory in a wide variety of normal and tumor cell systems. Since cells of the host defense system are among the most rapidly proliferating cells in the body, DFMO may inhibit certain components of this system. In order to assess this possibility, four randomized groups of C57BL/6 mice were maintained either on water throughout (controls) or on 2% DFMO in drinking water for various periods of time. Mice were given DFMO from Days -4 to 0, Days 0 to +4, or Day 0 to day of assay. On Day 0 randomly selected mice from each group received P815 tumor allografts. Daily from Days +3 to +14, pools of spleen cells from three mice per group were assessed for allospecific cytolytic T-lymphocyte, antibody formation, natural killer cell, and phagocytic cell activities. While natural killer cell and phagocytic cell activities remained essentially unchanged under all conditions, both cytotoxic T-lymphocyte and antibody responses were modified. Somewhat similar effects were seen with both responses and involved to varying degrees: (a) a delay of the initiation of rapid increase in the response but not in the onset of first detectable response; (b) delay in the time of peak response; (c) increased level of maximal response; (d) two peaks of maximal response. The data indicate that DFMO treatment of whole animals, dependent upon schedule of administration and time of assay, induces very selective effects on both cytotoxic T-lymphocyte and antibody responses, without apparent modification of nonspecific host defense mechanisms, with the overall effect being a prolongation of the period of specific response.

Role of tumor necrosis factor in macrophage activation and tumoricidal activity.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-sensitive (LM) and -insensitive (P815) target cell lines were used to examine the role of TNF in both the activation and lytic phases of macrophage-mediated lysis. LM cells were lysed spontaneously by thioglycolate-elicited macrophages in an 18-h assay (media or activating agents added with targets) or 36-h assay (macrophages cultured with media or activating agents for 18 h, washed, and targets added for a subsequent 18 h). In contrast, P815 cells were lysed only in the 36-h assay by macrophages exposed to appropriate activation signals. Using antibody to murine TNF, it was shown that lysis of LM cells but not P815 cells was TNF mediated. The addition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to the 18-h assay resulted in augmented LM killing. This was probably due to the fact that LPS stimulates macrophages to produce TNF. Conversely, when macrophages were pretreated with LPS for 18 h, washed, and assessed for lytic activity during the subsequent 18 h, lysis of LM cells was reduced relative to the endogenous level. Although macrophage lysis of P815 was not mediated by TNF, the addition of TNF to macrophage activation cultures facilitated LPS triggering of cytolytic activity against P815. Similarly, the addition of TNF to the activation cultures partially prevented the LPS-induced reduction in macrophage-mediated LM cell lysis. Taken together, these data suggest that TNF may act as an autocrine signal during macrophage activation, in addition to being directly lytic to a select number of sensitive target cell lines.

Adriamycin-induced modulation of host defenses in tumor-bearing mice.

Using the C57BL/6/EL4 tumor model, studies were carried out to demonstrate the feasibility of administering Adriamycin (ADM) in therapeutic doses and schedules such that the host antitumor defenses would not be suppressed and in some cases might be stimulated by treatment. ADM treatment caused prolongation of survival and, in general, either stimulated host cytolytic activities above untreated control levels or had no effect. These effects by ADM were observed with the ADM-sensitive parent EL4 line as well as with an ADM-resistant subline, indicating that the effects did not result entirely from direct antitumor activity. The cytolytic activities examined were those of cytolytic T-lymphocytes, lymphokine-activated killer cells, and splenic and peritoneal macrophages. All activities were assessed against the syngeneic EL4 target line. The information obtained in this investigation provides a rational basis for the future development of curative protocols with ADM plus biological response modifiers, which would depend on a functional immune system for optimum efficacy and would also exploit synergistic immunomodulating effects of the agents used in combination.

Effect of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor on the induction of murine macrophage tumoricidal activity.

The ability of recombinant human tumor necrosis factor (rH-TNF) alone or in combination with lymphokines (LK) to induce the in vitro activation of murine macrophages was evaluated. The treatment of C57BL/6 mouse resident peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) with rH-TNF and LK was found to induce the activation of macrophages to a tumoricidal state against P815 mastocytoma cells. Neither rH-TNF nor LK alone induced macrophage cytotoxic activity. Furthermore, the macrophage activation seen was not due to small amounts of contaminating lipopolysaccharide. The TNF plus LK-mediated macrophage activation could be totally ablated by rabbit antiserum to murine gamma-interferon, thus suggesting a role for gamma-interferon in this system. Since adherent cells (greater than or equal to 95% macrophages) only marginally responded to stimulation with rH-TNF plus LK and the addition of nonadherent PEC caused a marked augmentation of rH-TNF plus LK-mediated macrophage activation, the involvement of nonadherent PEC was suggested. In addition, using antibodies and complement to deplete subsets of cells from the nonadherent PEC, the requirement for cells bearing Thy 1.2 and asialo GM1 surface markers was demonstrated. These results suggest that TNF may play an autocrine regulatory role in concert with lymphokines in macrophage-mediated host defense against malignant neoplasia.

Identification, characterization, and cloning of TIP-B1, a novel protein inhibitor of tumor necrosis factor-induced lysis.

Some cancer cells evade elimination by virtue of their insensitivity to agents that induce apoptosis. Conversely, the side effects of anticancer agents could be diminished if normal cells were more resistant. To further elucidate the factors that contribute to the susceptibility of a cell to apoptosis, these investigations were designed to identify proteins isolated from cells exposed to low concentrations of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) that, when incubated with normally TNF-sensitive cells, protect these cells from TNF-induced cytotoxicity. TIP-B1, a novel protein, has been identified, purified, and characterized from cytosolic extracts of TNF-treated human fibroblasts. The approximately 27 kDa pI-4.5 TIP-B1 protein is unique based on both the sequence of three internal peptides (comprising 51 amino acids) and the nucleotide sequence of the corresponding 783-bp cDNA partial clone. Western blot analyses using polyclonal antisera raised against both the purified native TIP-B1 and the approximately 14 kDa product of the cDNA partial TIP-B1 clone, as well as Northern blot analyses using the cDNA insert as a probe, indicate that TIP-B1 may belong to a family of proteins that are expressed in a number of cell lines from diverse tissues. TNF-sensitive cells, when exposed to 4-10 microg/ml concentrations of TIP-B1 prior to the addition of TNF, are completely protected from TNF-induced lysis. Furthermore, TIP-B1 protects cells from apoptotic lysis induced by TNF. Preincubation of TIP-B1 with TNF does not affect the ability of TNF to induce lysis. Moreover, TIP-B1 does not seem to interfere with the interactions between TNF and the TNF receptors, based on a preliminary flow cytometric analysis of the cellular binding of biotinylated TNF. On the basis of these characteristics, TIP-B1 is not a soluble TNF receptor, an anti-TNF antibody, nor a protease that degrades TNF; yet TIP-B1 functions when added exogenously to cells. These characteristics, its novel sequence, and its function when added exogenously to cells indicate that TIP-B1 is unique and is not one of the other proteins reported previously to be involved in resistance to TNF. The ability of TIP-B1 to function after exogenous incubation with target cells makes TIP-B1 a likely candidate for therapeutic manipulation of TNF-induced effects.

A novel TNF-inducible message with putative growth suppressor function.

We report the nucleotide sequence of a novel cDNA and TNF-induced expression of the corresponding message (mRNA) in human fibroblast cells. This message is also expressed in certain human tumor cell lines and is over-expressed in a colon cancer cell line (HT-29). NIH3T3 cells transfected with the antisense construct of the 5'-region of this novel cDNA formed 20-fold more colonies in culture compared to cells transfected with a sense construct of the same region or the sense and the antisense constructs of the central region of this cDNA. This observation suggests a possible growth suppressor function for the gene represented by this cDNA.

Lipopolysaccharide and splenic tumoricidal macrophage activation.

Splenic macrophage tumoricidal activity was examined and a splenic macrophage tumoricidal assay was established. Initially, mixtures of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and spleen single cell suspensions (SSCS) were cultured for 1-4 days. Adherent macrophages, washed free of nonadherent cells and LPS, were then examined and were found to lack tumoricidal activity in a standard 18-h 51Cr release assay. However, tumoricidal activity was generated if LPS was added to the SSCS cultures at later time points during the 4-day incubation period; maximal activity was seen when LPS was added on day 3. In parallel, significant changes in macrophage autofluorescence and morphology, but not phenotype, were observed. Next, SSCS were cultured for 1-4 days without stimulating agents. Adherent macrophages were then washed free of nonadherent cells and LPS was added. Significant tumoricidal activity developed in time- and LPS concentration-dependent fashions. The presence of nonadherent spleen cells in physical contact with the macrophages during the SSCS culture was essential for the macrophages in the resultant monolayer to be responsive to LPS. Activated splenic macrophage-mediated lysis of tumor cells was shown to depend on the contact between the two cells.

Expression, tissue distribution, and cellular localization of the antiapoptotic TIP-B1 protein.

TIP-B1 is a novel 27-kDa protein isolated from the cytosol of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-stimulated cells. Cells preincubated with TIP-B1 are protected from TNF-induced apoptosis. This study showed that, as with normal fibroblasts and U937 histiocytic lymphoma, human MCF7 mammary adenocarcinoma cells were protected from TNF in a concentration-dependent manner by pretreatment with either TNF or purified TIP-B1. Immunoblot and immunohistochemical analyses indicated expression of both TIP-B1 mRNA and protein in MCF7 cells and heart, kidney, brain, liver, ovary, uterus, thymus, spleen, lymph node, and mammary gland cells throughout their development. Expression of TIP-B1 was heterogeneous, with staining of specific cell types within tissues. Based on the ability of TIP-B1 to protect both normal and tumor cells from TNF-induced apoptosis and its broad tissue distribution, with expression only in select cells within those tissues, a role for TIP-B1 in the regulation of TNF-induced effects is strongly indicated.

Murine splenic macrophage tumoricidal activation by cytokines.

Interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-1 beta, interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), each alone and in all possible combinations, were studied for their capacity to activate murine resident splenic macrophages to a tumoricidal state. Two approaches were used in these studies. The first approach was to add cytokine directly to the adherent macrophages that had been washed free of nonadherent spleen cells. The only agent effective alone was IL-2, inducing significant tumoricidal activity in macrophages obtained after culturing whole spleen cell suspensions for 4, but not 1 to 3, days. Nonadherent splenic populations were required during this 4-day macrophage "culture conditioning." Only combinations of cytokines containing IL-2 were effective, but none more than IL-2 alone. The second approach was to add cytokine to the whole spleen cell suspensions for an activation period before isolation of adherent macrophages. Again, the only agent effective alone was IL-2. Macrophage tumoricidal activity was highest when IL-2 was added to the whole spleen cell suspensions at the initiation of the 4-day activation culture. In addition, TNF-alpha, but none of the other cytokines, significantly augmented the IL-2-induced effect. The tumoricidal activity was not a consequence of lipopolysaccharide contamination or of lymphokine-activated killer cells. Based on the utilization of neutralizing antibodies, IL-1 alpha, IL-1 beta, and IFN-gamma were not involved as soluble mediators during the activation of tumoricidal splenic macrophages by IL-2 with or without TNF-alpha.

Reversal by citrovorum factor of methotrexate-induced suppression of cell-mediated and humoral immune response in mouse model systems.

C3H/HeHa mice were immunized (day 0) with 5 X 10(8) sheep red blood cells (SRBC) or 3 X 10(7) EL-4 lymphoma cells (i.p.), and C57B1/6J mice were immunized (day 0) with 3 X 10(7) P815 mastocytoma cells (i.p.). Methotrexate (MTX, 100 mg/kg) was given i.p. on day +2, with or without citrovorum factor (CF) at equimolar dose. In the absence of CF in C57B1/6J mice, the complement-independent cellular cytotoxicity (CICC) response did not recover in 18 days from MTX suppression to levels seen in immunized controls, while in C3H mice, with EL-4 as antigen, the response equalled that of controls by day 18 and was similar to or greater than that of controls through day 28; in both cases the serum antibody response returned to control levels by day 20. In both mouse strains, CF produced immediate recovery of the responses measured. In contrast, with SRBC as antigen, while the MTX suppression of complement-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (CDCC) in the absence of CF recovered by day 7, the CICC response recovered much more slowly. CF administration produced a rapid (day 4) return of CDCC activity to control levels, but only a partial restoration of CICC activity by day 6. In conclusion, the kinetics of recovery of the CICC and CDCC responses and of CF rescue of MTX-induced immunosuppression were dependent on mouse strain and on immunogens used, as well as on the type of response measured. Thus, selectivity of MTX action is indicated.

Selective imbalances of cellular immune responses by adriamycin.

It has been demonstrated that spleen cells from mice treated with adriamycin not only develop an increased cell-mediated immune response during culture with allogeneic tumor cells, but also have increased phagocytic activity following culture, respond to heat-treated (45 degrees C) alloantigen, develop an increased suppressor cell function, and are less sensitive to a suppressor cell activity. Thus, changes in spleen cell subpopulations occurring in the donor mice consequent to drug treatment result in demonstrable selective imbalances of cellular functions involved in the immune response. One cell type which has been implicated as being necessary in the expression of all these functions is the monocyte-macrophage, and it is suggested that an effect of adriamycin on progenitors of this cell type may lead to the imbalances.

Intracellular doxorubicin kinetics in lymphoma cells and lymphocytes infiltrating the tumor area in vivo: a flow cytometric study.

Recently we have reported the development of a safe and effective chemoimmunotherapy protocol involving doxorubicin (Dox) in combination with interleukin 2 which, in C57BL/6 mice, boosts local T cell responses, and, in 50 to 80% of the cases, this resulted in the complete eradication of established syngeneic EL4 lymphoma or its Dox-resistant variant, EL4/A. Accumulation of host-derived leukocytes in the peritoneal cavity was increased up to 8-fold after tumor inoculation, but, in absolute numbers, did not increase further following Dox administration. The cellular pharmacokinetic studies undertaken to clarify the role of Dox following a single IV injection indicate that 4 h later, lymphocytes found in the peritoneal cavity have detectable levels of Dox; but the lymphoma cells (both EL4 and EL4/A) have, in proportion to their larger size, taken up more drug as judged by flow cytometry. The estimated drug "concentration" (i.e., intracellular amount divided by estimated cell size) at the 4-h time point, however, was found to be essentially equivalent in both the lymphoma cells and the lymphocytes. Thereafter, the drug content and intracellular "concentration" in the EL4/A cells rapidly declined while their numbers progressively increased. In contrast, the EL4 lymphoma cells and the lymphocytes found in the peritoneal cavity in the presence of either lymphoma consistently exhibited higher levels of drug 24-48 h than at 4 h. Splenic and tumor-infiltrating mature T (CD3+) cells were completely insensitive to Dox cytotoxicity and actually showed increased CTL activity when examined ex vivo. Although EL4 cells had identical Dox uptake patterns to those of CD3+ cells, they were sensitive to the drug and their numbers decreased, resulting in increased host/tumor cell ratios in these mice. The pharmacokinetic parameters of the drug and the insensitivity of the mature T cells to the drug determined in this study can explain, in part, the efficacy of a chemoimmunotherapy protocol boosting local T-cell responses.