Sustained delivery and molecular targeting of a therapeutic monoclonal antibody to metastases in the central nervous system of mice.

Approximately 15-40% of all cancers develop metastases in the central nervous system (CNS), yet few therapeutic options exist to treat them. Cancer therapies based on monoclonal antibodies are widely successful, yet have limited efficacy against CNS metastases, owing to the low levels of the drug reaching the tumour site. Here, we show that the encapsulation of rituximab within a crosslinked zwitterionic polymer layer leads to the sustained release of rituximab as the crosslinkers are gradually hydrolysed, enhancing the CNS levels of the antibody by approximately tenfold with respect to the administration of naked rituximab. When the nanocapsules were functionalized with CXCL13-the ligand for the chemokine receptor CXCR5, which is frequently found on B-cell lymphoma-a single dose led to improved control of CXCR5-expressing metastases in a murine xenograft model of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and eliminated lymphoma in a xenografted humanized bone marrow-liver-thymus mouse model. Encapsulation and molecular targeting of therapeutic antibodies could become an option for the treatment of cancers with CNS metastases

Serum Levels of Cytokines and Biomarkers for Inflammation and Immune Activation, and HIV-Associated Non-Hodgkin B-Cell Lymphoma Risk

BACKGROUND: HIV infection is associated with a marked increase in risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (AIDS-NHL). However, the mechanisms that promote the development of AIDS-NHL are not fully understood. METHODS: In this study serum levels of several cytokines and other molecules associated with immune activation were measured in specimens collected longitudinally during 1-to-5 years preceding AIDS-NHL diagnosis, in 176 AIDS-NHL cases and 176 HIV+ controls from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS). RESULTS: Multivariate analyses revealed that serum levels of immunoglobulin free light chains (FLC), IL-6, IL-10, IP-10/CXCL10, neopterin, and TNFα were elevated in those HIV+ individuals who went on to develop AIDS-NHL. Additionally, the fraction of specimens with detectable IL-2 was increased, and the fraction with detectable IL-4 was decreased, in these subjects. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that long term, chronic immune activation, possibly driven by macrophage-produced cytokines, precedes development of NHL in HIV+ individuals. IMPACT: FLC, IL-6, IL-10, IP-10/CXCL10, neopterin, and TNFα may serve as biomarkers for AIDS-NHL