Demonstration of the antitumor activity of the INKT agonist ABX196, a novel enhancer of cancer immunotherapy, in melanoma and hepatocarcinoma mouse models. (PubMed, Mol Cancer Ther)
In the melanoma model, immune response evaluation included immunofluorescence staining and detection by flow cytometry to identify anti-CD45, anti-CD8, anti-CD4, anti-CD3, anti-CD19, anti-FoxP3, CD1d tetramer, and anti-PD-1 markers. A synergistic combination effect was apparent when interferon-γ was measured in peripheral blood, indicating sustained activation of iNKT cells. In both models, the anti-tumor effects were associated with a generation of a more advantageous T-effector to Treg cell ratio within the tumor, which could lead to in the proliferation and accumulation of cells that would otherwise be anergized.