Ex vivo blood stimulation assay as a translational research tool in the development of the ticilimumab (CP-675,206)

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (18_suppl) ◽  
pp. 2542-2542 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Millham ◽  
D. Pavlov ◽  
P. Canniff ◽  
D. Guyot ◽  
D. Hanson ◽  
...  

2542 Background: Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte-associated Antigen 4 (CTLA4) is an activation-induced T lymphocyte negative costimulatory receptor which down-regulates cellular immune responses. CTLA4 blockade may break peripheral immunological tolerance, leading to an effective immune response to cancer. Tools for assessing the effects of such a blockade are limited, as CTLA4 is not constitutively expressed on circulating T cells, and because activated lymphocytes are difficult to access in vivo. Therefore, we have employed ex vivo blood stimulation assays to define pharmacodynamic properties of the anti-CTLA4 antibody, ticilimumab. Methods: Ex vivo blood stimulation assays employed staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA) to stimulate isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) or whole blood. Stimulation was monitored by production of interleukin 2 (IL-2). This assay was used preclinically to predict in vivo responses in animal models and in samples from cancer patients, as a batch release assay for production runs of ticilimumab, and clinically as a pharmacodynamic measurement in clinical trials of ticilimumab. Results: Screening experiments using the SEA assay allowed us to identify the lead candidate mAb with optimal CTLA4 blockade activity, ticilimumab. Dose-dependent increases in IL-2 production were observed in PBMC and whole blood samples up to an in vitro concentration of 100 ug/mL of ticilimumab, with 10 ug/mL identified as the minimum predicted efficacious concentration (Ceff). This functional potency assay was adapted for qualification of production lots of ticilimumab. Whole blood taken from cynomolgus monkeys dosed with ticilimumab demonstrated significant enhancement of IL-2 production at the same magnitude observed in in vitro experiments. Additionally, longitudinal samples taken from healthy volunteers and cancer patients suggested that an enhancement of 2.8 fold would be indicative of a pharmacodynamic effect of ticilimumab. Conclusions: The SEA assay provides a functional assessment of ticilimumab activity and can be used to guide the clinical development of this agent. Our data suggest that T cell reactivity is enhanced in the presence of ticilimumab in vitro, in primate models and in humans. [Table: see text]

2006 ◽  
Vol 74 (7) ◽  
pp. 3817-3824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen L. Wozniak ◽  
Jatin M. Vyas ◽  
Stuart M. Levitz

ABSTRACT Dendritic cells (DC) have been shown to phagocytose and kill Cryptococcus neoformans in vitro and are believed to be important for inducing protective immunity against this organism. Exposure to C. neoformans occurs mainly by inhalation, and in this study we examined the in vivo interactions of C. neoformans with DC in the lung. Fluorescently labeled live C. neoformans and heat-killed C. neoformans were administered intranasally to C57BL/6 mice. At specific times postinoculation, mice were sacrificed, and lungs were removed. Single-cell suspensions of lung cells were prepared, stained, and analyzed by microscopy and flow cytometry. Within 2 h postinoculation, fluorescently labeled C. neoformans had been internalized by DC, macrophages, and neutrophils in the mouse lung. Additionally, lung DC from mice infected for 7 days showed increased expression of the maturation markers CD80, CD86, and major histocompatibility complex class II. Finally, ex vivo incubation of lung DC from infected mice with Cryptococcus-specific T cells resulted in increased interleukin-2 production compared to the production by DC from naïve mice, suggesting that there was antigen-specific T-cell activation. This study demonstrated that DC in the lung are capable of phagocytosing Cryptococcus in vivo and presenting antigen to C. neoformans-specific T cells ex vivo, suggesting that these cells have roles in innate and adaptive pulmonary defenses against cryptococcosis.


1999 ◽  
Vol 45 (9) ◽  
pp. 1477-1484 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Michael Stein ◽  
John J Murray ◽  
Alastair JJ Wood

Abstract Background: Prediction of cyclosporine (CSA) efficacy and toxicity in individual patients is difficult. There is no practical, biologically relevant, pharmacodynamic measure of CSA effect. A major effect of CSA is to decrease interleukin-2 (IL-2) production; however, measurement of this effect in isolated lymphocytes as a marker of response to CSA has been problematic. Methods: CSA inhibition of phytohemagglutinin-P (PHA)-stimulated IL-2 production, measured by ELISA, was studied ex vivo in whole blood drawn before, and after subjects received 4 mg/kg oral CSA. Results: Four hours after CSA was administered, the mean (± SD) CSA concentration was 702 ± 196 μg/L and PHA-stimulated IL-2 production decreased by 68.7% ± 17.2% (P <0.0001; n = 17). Twenty-four hours after CSA was administered, concentrations were low (64 ± 24 μg/L), with no inhibition of IL-2 production. A rapid, concentration-dependent response occurred. Maximum CSA concentrations (944 ± 187 μg/L) and maximum inhibition of IL-2 production (86.9% ± 13.7%) occurred 90 min after subjects received CSA. In vitro, 32.5–1200 μg/L CSA also inhibited PHA-stimulated IL-2 production in whole blood in a dose-dependent fashion with a similar IC50 (∼300–400 μg/L) ex vivo and in vitro. Conclusion: In the search for a pharmacodynamic marker to better guide immunosuppressive therapy, the relationship between this simple, biologically relevant measure of CSA effect and clinical outcome should be determined.


2002 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elijah W. MURIITHI ◽  
Philip R. BELCHER ◽  
Stephen P. DAY ◽  
Mubarak A. CHAUDHRY ◽  
Muriel J. CASLAKE ◽  
...  

Heparin, when administered to patients undergoing operations using cardiopulmonary bypass, induces plasma changes that gradually impair platelet macroaggregation, but heparinization of whole blood in vitro does not have this effect. The plasma changes induced by heparin in vivo continue to progress in whole blood ex vivo. Heparin releases several endothelial proteins, including lipoprotein lipase, hepatic lipase, platelet factor-4 and superoxide dismutase. These enzymes, which remain active in plasma ex vivo, may impair platelet macroaggregation after in vivo heparinization and during cardiopulmonary bypass. In the present study, proteins were added in vitro to hirudin (200units·ml-1)-anticoagulated blood from healthy volunteers, and the platelet macroaggregatory responses to ex vivo stimulation with collagen (0.6μg·ml-1) were assessed by whole-blood impedance aggregometry. Over a 4h period, human lipoprotein lipase and human hepatic lipase reduced the platelet macroaggregatory response from 17.0±2.3 to 1.5±1.3 and 1.2±0.6Ω respectively (means±S.D.) (both P<0.01; n = 6). Other lipoprotein lipases also impaired platelet macroaggregation, but platelet factor-4 and superoxide dismutase did not. Platelet macroaggregation showed an inverse linear correlation with plasma concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids (r2 = 0.69; two-sided P<0.0001; n = 8), suggesting that heparin-induced lipolysis inhibits platelet macroaggregation. Lipoprotein degradation products may cause this inhibition by interfering with eicosanoids and other lipid mediators of metabolism.


2011 ◽  
Vol 127 (6) ◽  
pp. 565-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chae-Wook Kim ◽  
Jun-Won Yun ◽  
Il-Hong Bae ◽  
Yang-Hui Park ◽  
Yeon Su Jeong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  

Blood ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 594-600 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Leon ◽  
Meike Alex ◽  
Antje Klocke ◽  
Eberhard Morgenstern ◽  
Christine Moosbauer ◽  
...  

Abstract While the adenosine 5′-diphosphate (ADP) pathway is known to enhance thrombus formation by recruiting platelets and leukocytes to the primary layer of collagen-adhering platelets, its role for the initiation of coagulation has not been revealed. Ex vivo inhibition of the P2Y12 ADP receptor by clopidogrel administration diminished the rapid exposure of tissue factor (TF), the major initiator of coagulation, in conjugates of platelets with leukocytes established by the contact of whole blood with fibrillar collagen. Under in vitro conditions, the P2Y12 and P2Y1 ADP receptors were both found to be implicated in the exposure of TF in collagen-activated whole blood. Immunoelectron-microscopy revealed that collagen elicited the release of TF from its storage pools within the platelets. Functional activation of the intravascular TF was reduced by inhibition of the ADP receptors, partially due to the disruption of the platelet-neutrophil adhesions. Injection of collagen into the venous system of mice increased the number of thrombin-antithrombin complexes, indicative for the formation of thrombin in vivo. In P2Y1-deficient mice, the ability of collagen to enhance the generation of thrombin was impaired. In conclusion, the platelet ADP pathway supports the initiation of intravascular coagulation, which is likely to contribute to the concomitant formation of fibrin at the site of the growing thrombus.


Author(s):  
Barbara Nunn

The effect of aspirin on human platelet function is usually assessed using platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Some preliminary results in vitro suggested that the effect of aspirin appears to be greater in PRP than whole blood. To explore this possibility further, a comparison of the effect of aspirin in humans ex vivo has been made taking measurements simultaneously in whole blood and PRP at 2 platelet concentrations. Blood samples (36ml) were drawn from 7 male volunteers after a light breakfast. Each took 300mg soluble aspirin and blood samples were drawn again 2 hours later. Blood was mixed with 0.1 volumes 129nM trisodium citrate. Some (30ml) was then centrifuged to prepare PRP and platelet -poor plasma (PPP) by standard techniques. Platelet concentration of some PRP was adjusted with PPP to equal that of the corresponding blood sample; the rest was adjusted to 350,000 per μl. Aggregation in response to collagen (Horm, Munich) was measured photometrically at 37°. Aggregation in 0.5ml aliquots of whole blood was measured after 4 min stirring with 154mM NaCl (control) or collagen at 37° as the fall in single platelet count determined using an Ultraflo- 100 whole blood platelet counter (Clay Adams). The concentrations of collagen producing a 50% maximal response (EC50) in PRP and blood were determined. Dose-ratios for each volunteer were calculated by dividing the EC50 obtained after aspirin by the corresponding value obtained before aspirin.The effect of aspirin was significantly (p<0.001) less in blood than PRP. Whether or not the results in whole blood more closely reflect the effect of aspirin in vivo remains to be determined.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariè van der Merwe ◽  
Richard J. Bloomer

Background. Inflammation is associated with strenuous exercise and methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) has been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties.Methods. Physically active men were supplemented with either placebo or MSM (3 grams per day) for 28 days before performing 100 repetitions of eccentric knee extension exercise.Ex vivoandin vitrotesting consisted of evaluating cytokine production in blood (whole blood and isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs)) exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), before and through 72 hours after exercise, whilein vivotesting included the evaluation of cytokines before and through 72 hours after exercise.Results. LPS stimulation of whole blood after MSM supplementation resulted in decreased induction of IL-1β, with no effect on IL-6, TNF-α, or IL-8. After exercise, there was a reduced response to LPS in the placebo, but MSM resulted in robust release of IL-6 and TNF-α. A small decrease in resting levels of proinflammatory cytokines was noted with MSM, while an acute postexercise increase in IL-10 was observed with MSM.Conclusion. Strenuous exercise causes a robust inflammatory reaction that precludes the cells from efficiently responding to additional stimuli. MSM appears to dampen the release of inflammatory molecules in response to exercise, resulting in a less incendiary environment, allowing cells to still have the capacity to mount an appropriate response to an additional stimulus after exercise.


1998 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 615-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jimmy D. Ballard ◽  
Amy M. Doling ◽  
Kathryn Beauregard ◽  
R. John Collier ◽  
Michael N. Starnbach

ABSTRACT We reported earlier that a nontoxic form of anthrax toxin was capable of delivering a cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) epitope in vivo, such that a specific CTL response was primed against the epitope. The epitope, of bacterial origin, was fused to an N-terminal fragment (LFn) from the lethal-factor component of the toxin, and the fusion protein was injected, together with the protective antigen (PA) component, into BALB/c mice. Here we report that PA plus LFn is capable of delivering a different epitope—OVA257–264 from ovalbumin. Delivery was accomplished in a different mouse haplotype,H-2Kb and occurred in vitro as well as in vivo. An OVA257–264-specific CTL clone, GA-4, recognized EL-4 cells treated in vitro with PA plus as little as 30 fmol of the LFn-OVA257–264 fusion protein. PA mutants attenuated in toxin self-assembly or translocation were inactive, implying that the role of PA in epitope delivery is the same as that in toxin action. Also, we showed that OVA257–264-specific CTL could be induced to proliferate by incubation with splenocytes treated with PA plus LFn-OVA257–264. These findings imply that PA-LFn may serve as a general delivery vehicle for CTL epitopes in vivo and as a safe, efficient tool for the ex vivo expansion of patient-derived CTL for use in adoptive immunotherapy.


2002 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 581-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid Langezaal ◽  
Sebastian Hoffmann ◽  
Thomas Hartung ◽  
Sandra Coecke

Immunotoxicology is a relatively new field in toxicology, and is one of emerging importance, because immunotoxicity appears to contribute to the development of cancer, autoimmune disorders, allergies and other diseases. At present, there is a lack of human cell-based immunotoxicity assays for predicting the toxicity of xenobiotics toward the immune system in a simple, fast, economical and reliable way. Existing immunotoxicity tests are mainly performed in animals, although species differences favour human-based testing. Whole-blood cytokine release models have attracted increasing interest, and are broadly used for pharmacological in vitro and ex vivo studies, as well as for pyrogenicity testing. We have adapted those methods for immunotoxicity testing, to permit the potency testing of immunostimulants and immunosuppressants. Following stimulation with a lipopolysaccharide or staphylococcal enterotoxin B, monocytes and lymphocytes release interleukin-1β and interleukin-4, respectively. Thirty-one pharmaceutical compounds, with known effects on the immune system, were used to optimise and standardise the method, by analysing their effects on cytokine release. The in vitro results were expressed as IC50 values for immunosuppression, and SC4 (fourfold increase) values for immunostimulation, and compared with therapeutic serum concentrations of the compounds in patients, and in vivo LD50 values from animal studies. The in vitro results correlated well with the in vivo data, so the test appears to reflect immunomodulation. Results were reproducible (CV = 20 ± 5%), and the method could be transferred to another laboratory (r2 = 0.99). We therefore propose this method for further validation and for use in immunotoxicity testing strategies.


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