Analogue peptides for the immunotherapy of human acute myeloid leukemia

• Published in: Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy Vol. 64; no. 11; pp. 1357 - 1367
• Main Authors: Hofmann, Susanne, Mead, Andrew, Malinovskis, Aleksandrs, Hardwick, Nicola R., Guinn, Barbara-ann
• Format: Journal Article Book Review
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.11.2015; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Antigens, Neoplasm - classification; Antigens, Neoplasm - immunology; Cancer Research; Cancer Vaccines - therapeutic use; Clinical Trials as Topic; Histocompatibility Antigens Class II - immunology; Humans; Immunology; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute - immunology; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute - therapy; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Nuclear Proteins - immunology; Nucleophosmin; Oncology; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell - physiology; Review; T-Lymphocytes - immunology; Vaccination; Vaccines, Subunit - therapeutic use; Clinical trials; PASD1; NPM1; Adult acute myeloid leukemia; Heteroclitic peptides; Analogue peptides
• ISSN: 0340-7004; 1432-0851
• DOI: 10.1007/s00262-015-1762-9

The use of peptide vaccines, enhanced by adjuvants, has shown some efficacy in clinical trials. However, responses are often short-lived and rarely induce notable memory responses. The reason is that self-antigens have already been presented to the immune system as the tumor develops, leading to tolerance or some degree of host tumor cell destruction. To try to break tolerance against self-antigens, one of the methods employed has been to modify peptides at the anchor residues to enhance their ability to bind major histocompatibility complex molecules, extending their exposure to the T-cell receptor. These modified or analogue peptides have been investigated as stimulators of the immune system in patients with different cancers with variable but sometimes notable success. In this review we describe the background and recent developments in the use of analogue peptides for the immunotherapy of acute myeloid leukemia describing knowledge useful for the application of analogue peptide treatments for other malignancies.