Effect of intratumoral OK-432 administration of thymidine phosphorylase expression in human gastric carcinoma

• Published in: Anticancer research Vol. 21; no. 2B; p. 1257
• Main Authors: Ogawa, K, Konno, S, Takebayashi, Y, Murayama, M, Shimakawa, T, Katsube, T, Naritaka, Y, Kajiwara, T, Aiba, M, Akiyama, S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Greece 01.03.2001
• Subjects: Antineoplastic Agents - administration & dosage; Antineoplastic Agents - therapeutic use; Capillaries; Female; Humans; Interferon-alpha - biosynthesis; Interferon-gamma - biosynthesis; Interleukin-1 - biosynthesis; Male; Middle Aged; Picibanil - administration & dosage; Picibanil - therapeutic use; Stomach Neoplasms - drug therapy; Stomach Neoplasms - enzymology; Stomach Neoplasms - pathology; Thymidine Phosphorylase - biosynthesis
• ISSN: 0250-7005

It is known that thymidine phosphorylase (dThdPase) is increased in various types of malignant tumors and is induced by cytokines. In this study, we have investigated the effects of OK-432, which induces multiple cytokines, on dTHdPase expression and angiogenesis in human gastric carcinomas. We examined 25 patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric carcinoma. OK-432 was directly injected in tumors in 16 (OK group) of 25 patients via endoscopy before operation and the other 9 patients were not treated (control group). The dThdPase activity in carcinoma tissues of the OK group was significantly higher than that of the control group (P < 0.05). The amounts of IL-1 alpha, IFN-alpha, and IFN-gamma in carcinomas in the OK group were significantly higher than in the controls (P < 0.05), and these were significantly correlated with the dThdPase activity. Intratumoral OK-432 administration enhances the expression of dThdPase in gastric carcinoma cells by inducing various cytokines.