Treatment of Dutch rat models of glioma using EphrinA1-PE38/GM-CSF chitosan nanoparticles by in situ activation of dendritic cells.

Although dendritic cells (DCs) used in DC-based immunotherapy are loaded with tumor-associated antigens, the antitumor immune response is effectively stimulated in cytotoxic specific T lymphocytes (CTLs), thereby achieving targeted killing of tumor cells without harming surrounding normal cells. This makes it a highly promising new form of therapy. In this study, we successfully created chitosan-coated EphrinA1-PE38/GM-CSF nanoparticles and transplanted them into tumor-bearing rats, resulting in the effective killing of glioma tissue and a prolonged life span. Further immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry studies revealed that the treatment was effective in increasing the number of dendritic cell activations under an immunomodulatory response. These results suggest that chitosan-coated EphrinA1-PE38/GM-CSF nanoparticles may be effective in inducing in situ activation of DCs in glioma-bearing rats, thereby generating DC vaccines in vivo.