Intratumoral IL-7 delivery by mesenchymal stromal cells potentiates IFNgamma-transduced tumor cell immunotherapy of experimental glioma.

The present study reports regression of pre-established experimental rat gliomas as a result of combining peripheral immunization using interferon gamma (IFNgamma) transduced autologous tumor cells with local intratumoral delivery of interleukin 7 (IL-7) by mesenchymal stromal cells. IL-7 alone significantly decreased the tumor area and this effect was enhanced with IFNgamma immunization. A higher density of intratumoral T-cells was observed in animals receiving combined therapies compared to rats receiving either cytokine alone suggesting that the therapeutic effect is dependent on a T-cell response. Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.