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Chen X, Tao Z, Liang Y, Ma M, Adah D, Ding W, Chen L, Li X, Dai L, Fanuel S, Zhao S, Hu W, Wu D, Duan Z, Zhou F, Qin L, Chen X, Yang Z. Plasmodium immunotherapy combined with gemcitabine has a synergistic inhibitory effect on tumor growth and metastasis in murine Lewis lung cancer models. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1181176. [PMID: 37916167 PMCID: PMC10618005 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1181176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective Our previous studies have demonstrated that Plasmodium immunotherapy (infection) has antitumor effects in mice. However, as a new form of immunotherapy, this therapy has a weakness: its specific killing effect on tumor cells is relatively weak. Therefore, we tested whether Plasmodium immunotherapy combined with gemcitabine (Gem), a representative chemotherapy drug, has synergistic antitumor effects. Methods We designed subcutaneously and intravenously implanted murine Lewis lung cancer (LLC) models to test the antitumor effect of Plasmodium chabaudi ASS (Pc) infection in combination with Gem treatment and explored its underlying mechanisms. Results We found that both Pc infection alone and Gem treatment alone significantly inhibited tumor growth in the subcutaneous model, and combination therapy was more effective than either monotherapy. Monotherapy only tended to prolong the survival of tumor-bearing mice, while the combination therapy significantly extended the survival of mice, indicating a significant synergistic effect of the combination. In the mechanistic experiments, we found that the combination therapy significantly upregulated E-cadherin and downregulated Snail protein expression levels, thus inhibiting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of tumor cells, which may be due to the blockade of CXCR2/TGF-β-mediated PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signaling pathway. Conclusion The combination of Pc and Gem plays a synergistic role in inhibiting tumor growth and metastasis, and prolonging mice survival in murine lung cancer models. These effects are partially attributed to the inhibition of EMT of tumor cells, which is potentially due to the blockade of CXCR2/TGF-β-mediated PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β/Snail signaling pathway. The clinical transformation of Plasmodium immunotherapy combined with Gem for lung cancer is worthy of expectation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Chen
- Department of Medical Oncology, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhu Tao
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Yun Liang
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, China
| | - Meng Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- The Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medical Diagnostics, College of Laboratory Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Dickson Adah
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Wenting Ding
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Lili Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Xiaofen Li
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Linglin Dai
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Songwe Fanuel
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- Department of Applied Biosciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Midlands State University, Gweru, Zimbabwe
| | - Siting Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Wen Hu
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Donghai Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Ziyuan Duan
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Fang Zhou
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Li Qin
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Xiaoping Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, Center for Infection and Immunity, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- CAS-Lamvac (Guangzhou) Biomedical Technology Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhaoqing Yang
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, China
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Russell TL, Grignard L, Apairamo A, Kama N, Bobogare A, Drakeley C, Burkot TR. Getting to zero: micro-foci of malaria in the Solomon Islands requires stratified control. Malar J 2021; 20:248. [PMID: 34090430 PMCID: PMC8180101 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-021-03779-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 05/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Solomon Islands has made significant progress in the control of malaria through vector control, access and use of improved diagnostics and therapeutic drugs. As transmission is reduced there is a need to understand variations in transmission risk at the provincial and village levels to stratify control methods. METHODS A cross-sectional survey of malaria in humans was conducted in the Solomon Islands during April 2018. Nineteen villages across 4 provinces were included. The presence of Plasmodium species parasites in blood samples was detected using PCR. RESULTS Blood samples were analysed from 1,914 participants. The prevalence of DNA of Plasmodium falciparum was 1.2 % (n = 23) and for Plasmodium vivax was 1.5 % (n = 28). 22 % (n = 5/23) of P. falciparum DNA positive participants were febrile and 17 % of P. vivax DNA positive participants (n = 5/28). The prevalence of both P. falciparum and P. vivax was extremely spatially heterogeneous. For P. falciparum, in particular, only 2 small foci of transmission were identified among 19 villages. Plasmodium falciparum infections were uniformly distributed across age groups. Insecticide-treated bed net use the night prior to the survey was reported by 63 % of participants and significantly differed by province. CONCLUSIONS Malaria transmission across the Solomon Islands has become increasingly fragmented, affecting fewer villages and provinces. The majority of infections were afebrile suggesting the need for strong active case detection with radical cure with primaquine for P. vivax. Village-level stratification of targeted interventions based on passive and active case detection data could support the progress towards a more cost-effective and successful elimination programme.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanya L Russell
- Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia.
| | - Lynn Grignard
- Department of Infection Biology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Alan Apairamo
- National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, Ministry of Health and Medical Services, Honiara, Solomon Islands
| | - Nathan Kama
- National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, Ministry of Health and Medical Services, Honiara, Solomon Islands
| | - Albino Bobogare
- National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, Ministry of Health and Medical Services, Honiara, Solomon Islands
| | - Chris Drakeley
- Department of Infection Biology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Thomas R Burkot
- Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia
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