@article {Birmpilis2019,
	title = {{Antitumor Reactive T-Cell Responses Are Enhanced In Vivo by DAMP Prothymosin Alpha and Its C-Terminal Decapeptide}},
	journal = {Cancers},
	volume = {11},
	number = {11},
	year = {2019},
	month = {nov},
	pages = {1764},
	abstract = {Prothymosin $\alpha$ (proT$\alpha$) and its C-terminal decapeptide proT$\alpha$(100{\textendash}109) were shown to pleiotropically enhance innate and adaptive immune responses. Their activities have been broadly studied in vitro, focusing primarily on the restoration of the deficient immunoreactivity of cancer patients{\textquoteright} leukocytes. Previously, we showed that proT$\alpha$ and proT$\alpha$(100{\textendash}109) act as danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), ligate Toll-like receptor-4, signal through TRIF- and MyD88-dependent pathways, promote the maturation of dendritic cells and elicit T-helper type 1 (Th1) immune responses in vitro, leading to the optimal priming of tumor antigen-reactive T-cell functions. Herein, we assessed their activity in a preclinical melanoma model. Immunocompetent mice bearing B16.F1 tumors were treated with two cycles of proT$\alpha$ or proT$\alpha$(100{\textendash}109) together with a B16.F1-derived peptide vaccine. Coadministration of proT$\alpha$ or proT$\alpha$(100{\textendash}109) and the peptide vaccine suppressed melanoma-cell proliferation, as evidenced by reduced tumor-growth rates. Higher melanoma infiltration by CD3+ T cells was observed, whereas ex vivo analysis of mouse total spleen cells verified the in vivo induction of melanoma-reactive cytotoxic responses. Additionally, increased levels of proinflammatory and Th1-type cytokines were detected in mouse serum. We propose that, in the presence of tumor antigens, DAMPs proT$\alpha$ and proT$\alpha$(100{\textendash}109) induce Th1-biased immune responses in vivo. Their adjuvant ability to orchestrate antitumor immunoreactivities can eventually be exploited therapeutically in humans.},
	keywords = {Adjuvant, Antitumor peptide vaccine, Biologic response modifier, Danger-associated molecular pattern{\textemdash}DAMP, Immunoreactive decapeptide, In vivo melanoma model, Proinflammatory cytokine, Prothymosin $\alpha$, Th1-type cytokine},
	issn = {2072-6694},
	doi = {10.3390/cancers11111764},
	url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/11/11/1764},
	author = {Birmpilis, Anastasios I. and Karachaliou, Chrysoula-Evangelia and Samara, Pinelopi and Ioannou, Kyriaki and Selemenakis, Platon and Kostopoulos, Ioannis V. and Kavrochorianou, Nadia and Kalbacher, Hubert and Livaniou, Evangelia and Haralambous, Sylva and Kotsinas, Athanasios and Farzaneh, Farzin and Trougakos, Ioannis P. and Voelter, Wolfgang and Dimopoulos, Meletios-Athanasios and Bamias, Aristotelis and Tsitsilonis, Ourania}
}
