(Press-News.org) August 27, 2012 -- In one of the most comprehensive peer-reviewed discussions on cancer vaccines and immunotherapeutics, a Special Focus in the journal Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics provides a critical view on cancer vaccines and a discussion on best approaches for the future. From firsthand accounts of principal investigators involved in numerous failed cancer vaccine programs, including Oncophage® and MVAX®, to commentary from world experts in cancer vaccine development, authors in the Special Focus recount the mistakes of the past and provide an critical lens into the future of cancer vaccines with a potential for success.
Of special consideration is the technological advancement in Second Generation DNA sequencing technology that has resulted in the vast amount of genetic data of tumor cells gathered over the past few years. According to authors in the Special Focus, these data confirm that the degree of antigenic heterogeneity of tumor cells has been greatly underestimated. Tumors, once thought to be made of homogeneous collections of cells, are actually comprised of cells that carry an extreme diversity of antigens, the molecular signatures that are responsible for triggering immune response against cancer. This influences the important area of Antigen Discovery, a major criteria of vaccine formulation.
"Due in large part to genomic sequencing data, it has become quite clear that cancer is a heterogeneous disease and thus cannot be treated by homogeneous therapies. Many past cancer vaccine programs were based on the false premise of tumor homogeneity," said Michael G. Hanna, Jr., Ph.D., guest editor and contributor in the Special Focus series. "With all that we have learned at both the tumor genomic and immunotherapeutic levels, it is essential to reevaluate the antigen discovery process. The use of the patient's own tumor is the purest means to obtain a robust tumor-specific immune response."
The promise of triggering the immune system to engage a perpetual defense against resilient and hard-to-find cancer cells continues to prompt research. There are approximately 150 therapeutic cancer vaccines in clinical development. Despite past failures of cancer vaccines, new science continues to validate and support cancer vaccine technologies. In this Special Focus, authors outline weak clinical trial design, manufacturing issues relating to short shelf life and sterility of product, and failure to identify proper dose, schedule and route of administration among the key reasons why more cancer vaccines are not on the market today.
Ronald Ellis, Ph.D., Editor-in-Chief of Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, said: "Despite the accumulation of sound science that continues to support cancer immunotherapy approaches, there are serious gaps in the cancer vaccine R&D pipeline. Some new cancer vaccine technologies that apply the lessons learned from many years of trials and tribulations are in late stages of clinical development and could lead to realization of the promise of cancer immunotherapy."
The Special Focus appearing in the August 2012 issue includes an introduction, five original papers and a guest editorial. Selected experts include: David Berd, M.D. (DB Consultants; Wyncote, PA, USA), Mike Cusnir, M.D. (Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center; Miami Beach, FL, USA), Isaiah Fidler, Ph.D. (University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA), Michael G. Hanna, Jr., Ph.D. (Vaccinogen Inc, Frederick, MD, USA), and Dirk Reitsma, M.D., and Austin Combest, Pharm.D. (PPD, Wilmington, NC, USA). Guest Editors include: Alex Kudrin, M.D., Ph.D. (Consultant in Pharmaceuticals Medicine, London, UK) and Michael G. Hanna, Jr., Ph.D. (Vaccinogen Inc, Frederick, MD, USA). This is the first of two special sections in the Cancer Commentary Series, the second will appear in the September 2012 issue.
INFORMATION:
About Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
Vaccine research and development is extending its reach beyond the prevention of bacterial or viral diseases. There are experimental vaccines for immunotherapeutic purposes and for applications outside of infectious diseases, in diverse fields such as cancer, autoimmunity, allergy, Alzheimer's and addiction. Many of these vaccines should become available in the next two decades, with consequent benefit for human health. Continued advancement in this field will benefit from a forum that can (A) help to promote interest by keeping investigators updated, and (B) enable an exchange of ideas regarding the latest progress in the many topics pertaining to vaccines.
Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics provides such a forum. It is published in a format that is accessible to a wide international audience in the academic, industrial and public sectors.
http://www.landesbioscience.com/journals/vaccines/
SOURCE: Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
Media Contact:
Betsy Granger
Managing Editor
Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics
hv@landesbioscience.com
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Munich, Germany – August 27 2012: Renal denervation leads to better outcomes than standard drug treatment in patients with advanced heart failure, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2012. The results of the Olomouc I pilot study were presented by Dr Miloš Táborský from the University Hospital Olomouc.
Renal denervation does not involve any pharmacological treatment. It is a multiple application of radiofrequency energy using a thin catheter via the femoral artery and a long-term "denervation" of the sympathetic nerves around the renal arteries. "This is done ...
Some of the body's own genetic material, known as small interfering RNA (siRNA), can be packaged then unleashed as a precise and persistent technology to guide cell behavior, researchers at Case Western Reserve University report in the current issue of the journal, Acta Biomaterialia.
The research group, led by Eben Alsberg, associate professor in the departments of Biomedical Engineering and Orthopedic Surgery, have been pursuing experiments that seek to catalyze stem cells to grow into, for example, bone and cartilage cells, instead of fat, smooth muscle and other cell ...
Aug. 27, 2012 – Professional athletic field managers maintain trimmed turfgrass with great precision, carefully painting crisp lines and colorful logos on their grass before each game. While these fields appear to be in perfect health, some field managers have noted deteriorating turfgrass beneath repeated paint applications.
New research now suggests why. In a study that appears in the September-October issue of Crop Science, three North Carolina State University researchers found that grasses coated with latex paints show a notable reduction in photosynthesis.
In ...
Leuven scientists (VIB/KU Leuven) are using zebrafish as a model in their search for genes that play a role in the mechanism of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). As a result, they have identified a molecule that could be the target for a future ALS treatment. ALS is a progressive degenerative motor neuron disease for which there currently is no treatment. Their study has been published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS
ALS is a progressive paralyzing disease caused by the destruction of the neurons connecting to the muscles. ...
Methane is an organic carbon compound containing the fundamental building block of nearly all living material: carbon. It provides an important source of energy and nutrients for bacteria. Methane is produced in oxygen-free environments and is found in abundance at the bottom of lakes.
The Brazilian post-doctoral researcher in biology and ecology, Angela Sanseverino, has presented a study that shows methane from lakebeds to be present in fish tissue. The study was carried out in cooperation with, inter alia, David Bastviken, Water and Environmental Studies (WES), Linköping ...
Alexandria, VA – Technology is creating a new breed of scientist. I'm talking about citizen scientists – ordinary people and volunteers from all walks of life coming together to help monitor, and possibly mitigate, the next big earthquake through an innovative program called NetQuakes.
A play off the popular company Netflix – a movie company that allows users to rent movies through the mail – NetQuakes allows ordinary people to volunteer as a kind of host "family" for one of the program's many blue seismometers. This grassroots movement, an innovative effort between ...
VIDEO:
This is a 3-D pattern produced by photografting (180 µm wide). Fluorescent molecules are attached to the hydrogel, resulting in a microscopic 3-D pattern.
Click here for more information.
There are many ways to create three dimensional objects on a micrometer scale. But how can the chemical properties of a material be tuned at micrometer precision? Scientists at the Vienna University of Technology developed a method to attach molecules at exactly the right place. ...
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A new study from Rhode Island Hospital reports that nearly seven percent of urologic multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) scans for hematuria result in incidental findings that may be clinically important for the patient. The study is published in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
It is known that urologic CT scans can sometimes show incidental findings. To date, however, there has been limited information about the prevalence and characteristics of those findings. Julie Song, M.D., a radiologist with Rhode Island Hospital's department of ...
Stockholm, August 27, 2012 - Research into water is growing faster than the average 4% annual growth rate for all research disciplines, claims a new report presented by Elsevier and Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) during the 2012 World Water Week in Stockholm. The report, "The Water and Food Nexus: Trends and Development of the Research Landscape" analysed the major trends in water and food-related article output at international, national and institutional levels. Elsevier and SIWI worked closely together on creating the report, which is based on the analysis ...
This release is available in German.
Vitamin B12 is vital for cell division, the synthesis of red blood cells and the functioning of the nervous system. Unable to produce the vitamin itself, the human body has to obtain it via animal proteins. So far it has been known that on its way into the cell vitamin B12 is absorbed by little organelles, so-called lysosomes. From there, the vitamin enters the cell interior with the aid of the transport protein CblF, which was discovered by the same research team three years ago. The researchers now show that a second transport ...
