Mucin-like peptides from Echinococcus granulosus induce antitumor activity

Verónica Noya (1) , Sylvie Bay (2) , María Florencia Festari (3, 1) , Enrique P. García (1) , Ernesto Rodriguez (1) , Carolina Chiale (1) , Christelle Ganneau (2) , Françoise Baleux (2) , Soledad Astrada (3) , Mariela Bollati-Fogolín (3) , Eduardo Osinaga (1, 3) , Teresa Freire (1, 3)

1 UDELAR - UDELAR, Facultad de Ingenieria [Montevideo]
2 Chimie des Biomolécules - Chemistry of Biomolecules
3 Institut Pasteur de Montevideo

There is substantial evidence suggesting that certain parasites can have antitumor properties. We evaluated mucin peptides derived from the helminth Echinococcus granulosus (denominated Egmuc) as potential inducers of antitumor activity. We present data showing that Egmuc peptides were capable of inducing an increase of activated NK cells in the spleen of immunized mice, a fact that was correlated with the capacity of splenocytes to mediate killing of tumor cells. We demonstrated that Egmuc peptides enhance LPS-induced maturation of dendritic cells in vitro by increasing the production of IL-12p40p70 and IL-6 and that Egmuc-treated DCs may activate NK cells, as judged by an increased expression of CD69. This evidence may contribute to the design of tumor vaccines and open new horizons in the use of parasite-derived molecules in the fight against cancer.

Domains: Medicinal Chemistry; Cancer

Verónica Noya, Sylvie Bay, María Florencia Festari, Enrique P. García, Ernesto Rodriguez, et al.. Mucin-like peptides from Echinococcus granulosus induce antitumor activity. International Journal of Oncology, 2013, ⟨10.3892/ijo.2013.2000⟩. ⟨pasteur-01423099⟩