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Comparison of oncolytic adenoviruses for selective eradication of oral cancer and pre-cancerous lesions

Gene Therapy volume 17, pages 1517–1524 (2010)Cite this article

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Abstract

Oncolytic adenoviruses are being investigated as potential anti-cancer agents. Selective lytic replication in cancer cells is essential for an effective and safe treatment. In this study, we compared 11 oncolytic adenoviruses in relevant cell cultures to assess their use for treating oral cancer and pre-cancerous lesions. We determined the cytotoxicity of oncolytic adenovirus infection and calculated selectivity indices for cytotoxicity to cancer cells compared with normal oral keratinocytes and fibroblasts. Keratinocytes were very sensitive to wild-type adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5); 1- to 3-log more than head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cells. The potencies of oncolytic adenoviruses to kill HNSCC cells within 7 days after infection ranged from approximately 10 times less potent to approximately 10 times more potent than Ad5. The selectivity indices determined on fibroblasts and keratinocytes differed markedly. Two oncolytic adenoviruses were more selective than Ad5 for HNSCC cells compared with fibroblasts; and five viruses showed selective replication on HNSCC cells compared with keratinocytes. Overall, CRAd-S.RGD with E1A driven by the survivin promoter and an infectivity-enhancing capsid modification showed the most favourable cytotoxicity pattern; being very potent in killing HNSCC cells, only slightly less effective than Ad5 in killing pre-neoplastic keratinocytes and the least toxic to normal keratinocytes.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by Dutch Cancer Society Grant VU 2004-3045.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Otolaryngology/Head-Neck Surgery, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    H J T van Zeeburg, A Huizenga, A Brink & R H Brakenhoff

  2. Department of Medical Oncology, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    P B van den Doel & V W van Beusechem

  3. Division of Human Gene Therapy, Departments of Medicine, Surgery, Pathology, and The Gene Therapy Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA

    Z B Zhu

  4. UCSF Cancer Center, San Francisco, CA, USA

    F McCormick

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  1. H J T van Zeeburg
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Correspondence to V W van Beusechem.

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van Zeeburg, H., Huizenga, A., Brink, A. et al. Comparison of oncolytic adenoviruses for selective eradication of oral cancer and pre-cancerous lesions. Gene Ther 17, 1517–1524 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/gt.2010.99

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