Antitumor Effects of Interferon-Alpha on Cell Growth and Metastasis in Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Title:Antitumor Effects of Interferon-Alpha on Cell Growth and Metastasis in Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Volume: 12 Issue: 5

Author(s): X. Liu, J. Lu, M.-L. He, Z. Li, B. Zhang, L.-H. Zhou, Q. Li, G. Li, L. Wang, W.-D. Tian, Y. Peng and X.-P. Li

Affiliation:

Keywords: Cell growth, cytokine, immunotherapy, interferon-α1b, metastasis, nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Abstract: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a highly malignant and frequently metastasized tumor, and the prognosis is very poor when distant metastases occur. Recently, immunotherapy is becoming a promising therapeutic approach. Interferon-α (IFN-α) represents the cytokines exhibiting the longest record of use in clinical oncology. In this study, we examined the antitumor effects of IFN-α1b on NPC. The results showed that recombinant human IFN-α1b (hIFN-α1b) suppressed cell growth, induced a G1-phase cell cycle arrest in vitro, increased the expression of p16 and pRb, and decreased the expression of CCND1 and CDK6. In vivo analyses showed that either recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV)-IFN-α1b or hIFN-α1b treatment inhibited tumor growth and metastasis, reduced intratumoral microvessel density, increased cell apoptosis and necrosis, and induced prolonged survival. Notably, rAAV-IFN-α1b or hIFN-α1b treatment led to significantly higher serum levels of IL-12 and GM-CSF in mice compared to respective controls. Our findings suggest that IFN-α1b acts as a multifunctional antitumor agent in NPC, which may have important therapeutic implications.

Cite this article as:

Liu X., Lu J., He M.-L., Li Z., Zhang B., Zhou L.-H., Li Q., Li G., Wang L., Tian W.-D., Peng Y. and Li X.-P., Antitumor Effects of Interferon-Alpha on Cell Growth and Metastasis in Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, Current Cancer Drug Targets 2012; 12 (5) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/156800912800673293