Spontaneous high-titered IgG antibody responses against BCL-2 in patients with aggressive lymphomas

• Published in: Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology Vol. 135; no. 9; pp. 1207 - 1213
• Main Authors: Zwick, Carsten, Held, Gerhard, Hammermeister, Vera, AlAhmad, Adnan, Kubuschok, Boris, Bittenbring, Joerg, Ahlgrimm, Manfred, Neumann, Frank, Preuss, Klaus-Dieter, Pfreundschuh, Michael
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Berlin/Heidelberg : Springer-Verlag 01.09.2009; Springer-Verlag; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Actinin; Adult; Antigens, Neoplasm - drug effects; Antigens, Neoplasm - immunology; Antineoplastic agents; Autoantibodies - blood; Autoantibodies - immunology; B-cell lymphoma; Bcl-2 protein; Bcl-6 protein; Bcl-x protein; Biological and medical sciences; Cancer Research; Cancer Vaccines - immunology; CD20 antigen; Hematologic and hematopoietic diseases; Hematology; Humans; Immunogenicity; Immunoglobulin G; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Immunoglobulin G - immunology; Immunotherapy; Internal Medicine; Leukemias. Malignant lymphomas. Malignant reticulosis. Myelofibrosis; Lymphocytes B; Lymphoma; Lymphoma, B-Cell - blood; Lymphoma, B-Cell - immunology; Mcl-1 protein; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Oncology; Original Paper; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 - drug effects; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 - immunology; Remission; Survivin; BCL-2; Immunogenicity; Aggressive lymphomas; Antibody response; Human; Immunoglobulins; Immune response; Antibody; Spontaneous; IgG; Patient; Malignant hemopathy; Lymphoid neoplasm; Lymphoma; Lymphoproliferative syndrome; C-Onc gene; Humoral immunity; Protooncogene; Cancer; High malignancy
• ISSN: 0171-5216; 1432-1335
• DOI: 10.1007/s00432-009-0561-0

Purpose Molecules which are exclusively or preferentially expressed by malignant cells are potential targets for immunotherapeutic approaches to the treatment of cancer. Methods We therefore tested serum samples of 95 patients with aggressive B-cell lymphomas for antibodies against lymphoma-associated molecules using SEREX for antibodies against BCL-2, BCL-XL, MCL-1, survivin, BCL-6, CD20, LM02, PDE4B, cyclin-D2, actinin-α1, SCYA3, PKCβ2, E2IG3, and HGAL. Results One patient had low-titered (1:100) antibodies against PKCβ2. Antibodies against BCL-2 were detected in the sera of five patients (5.3%), with responses found more frequently in follicular lymphoma grade 3 (3/26 or 11.5%) than in diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (2/67 or 3%). Anti-BCL-2 antibodies were of the IgG class and titers ranged from 1:1,000 to 1:100,000 with highest titers before treatment and decreasing slowly during remission. Conclusion The spontaneous immunogenicity of BCL-2 makes this molecule a prime candidate for vaccine approaches in BCL-2 positive B-cell lymphomas.