Scientists at Tel Aviv University are working on a nanovaccine against melanoma, one of the most aggressive skin cancers. Studies in mouse models show that the vaccine is effective in preventing disease development and in treating primary tumors and melanoma metastases.
Nanoparticles in the fight against melanoma
The study, led by Professor Ronita Satchi-Fainaro of the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at Tel Aviv University, focused on nanoparticles to help fight skin cancer.
Melanoma develops in skin cells that produce melanin. As Professor Satchi-Fainaro admits, the study succeeded in showing that it is possible to produce an effective vaccine against melanoma and sensitize the immune system to the therapy.
The researchers used nanovaccines that contained two short chains of amino acids that are present in melanoma cells. They tested them in three different variants.
The first group consisted of healthy mice. In their case, vaccination had a preventive effect. When the scientists injected the mice with melanoma cells, the animals’ immune system reacted, and as a result the mice did not get sick.
In the second group, researchers studied the effects of vaccination on treating the primary tumor. The vaccination and immunotherapy combinations were tested in mice with melanoma. Research has shown that it is the therapy significantly delayed the progression of the disease and prolonged the life of all treated mice.
A recent study looked at the effect of the vaccine on metastasis. Here, too, the results turned out to be promising and suggest that the vaccine may even help with advanced forms of melanomawhen cancer cells spread to other organs.
As Professor Satchi-Fainaro admits, research shows completely new methods of successfully treating melanoma, even in the advanced stage of the disease. Doctors hope the vaccine will also prove effective for other cancers. Now scientists are looking for funding to conduct clinical trials.
Cancer vaccine
This is not the first research to focus on inventing the melanoma vaccine. Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute and the University of Texas are also working on a similar vaccine, but using different substances. They analyzed 100 chemicals to find the one that would be most effective against melanoma.
One of them caught their attention – the diprovocim. They used it to test mice with malignant melanoma. They divided them into three groups. All groups were given anti-pd-L1 medication to stop the tumor from attacking the immune system. The first group of mice also received albumin, the second additionally received diprovocim, and the third group of mice received aluminum sulfate (which also induces defense reactions).
Each animal received two injections seven days apart. They were not administered directly to the tumor. After 54 days of the experiment, the mice in the first group were dead. In the group of mice that got diprovocim, 100% survived. individuals. In the third, only 25 percent.
According to researchers, the right vaccine causes the immune system to form special leukocytes that can attack and destroy the tumor. Moreover, the researchers observed that the vaccine also blocked the possibility of the cancer coming back. The inoculated mice did not get sick again.
The results of the scientists’ research are very promising, but there are still clinical trials ahead of them. Their findings, however, offer hope for an effective fight not only against skin cancer, but also against other types of cancer.