Comparison of antitumor activity of Lactobacillus casei with other bacterial immunopotentiators.

Antitumor activity of Lactobacillus casei YIT 9018 (LC9018) was demonstrated by intralesional (i.l.) or intravenous (i.v.) administration into tumor-bearing mice which were inoculated with methylcholanthrene-induced fibrosarcoma (Meth A) or Kirsten murine sarcoma virus-transformed tumor (K234) cells. Its activity was significantly superior to the activity of two other species of lactobacilli but was nearly the same as that of Corynebacterium parvum or Mycobacterium bovis Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG). I.l. or i.v. administration of LC9018 into the tumor bearers caused local transient swelling or hepatosplenomegaly but did not cause other pronounced lesions. There was no significant difference in the degree of hepatosplenomegaly in LC9018 and that in other immunopotentiators. In mice whose tumors had regressed as a result of administration of LC9018 or the other immunopotentiators, the phytohemagglutinin P (PHA-P) response of the spleen cells was less than that of mice whose tumors progressed, and approached the normal level. The PHA-P response of popliteal lymph node cells proximal to the tumor lesion was fairly low compared with the splenic PHA-P response and there was no difference between the lymphocytes from mice whose tumors had regressed or progressed. Adjuvant activity of LC9018 in inducing tumor immunity was demonstrated by administering a mixture of LC9018 and Meth A cells to mice. This adjuvant activity was of the same efficiency as that of C. parvum and BCG. The presence of the antitumor activity of LC9018 in cell wall components was deduced from fact that removal of its cell wall by endo-N-acetylmuramidase (M-1 enzyme) abolished the activity. The possible availability of LC9018 for immunotherapy of tumors is discussed.