Smac mimetics combined with innate immune stimuli create the perfect cytokine storm to kill tumor cells

Shawn T Beug; Eric C LaCasse; Robert G Korneluk

doi:10.4161/onci.28541

Smac mimetics combined with innate immune stimuli create the perfect cytokine storm to kill tumor cells

Oncoimmunology. 2014 Apr 29:3:e28541. doi: 10.4161/onci.28541. eCollection 2014.

Authors

Shawn T Beug¹, Eric C LaCasse¹, Robert G Korneluk²

Affiliations

¹ Solange Gauthier Karsh Molecular Genetics Laboratory; Apoptosis Research Centre; Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute; Ottawa, Canada.
² Solange Gauthier Karsh Molecular Genetics Laboratory; Apoptosis Research Centre; Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute; Ottawa, Canada ; Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology; University of Ottawa; Ottawa, Canada.

Abstract

A dual immunotherapy approach employing small-molecule inhibitors of apoptosis (IAP) protein antagonists in combination with innate immune stimuli has proven to be highly synergistic and effective in animal tumor models. This strategy overcomes many of the limitations of either single agent therapy and our results suggest that the combination could be easily and effectively translated to the clinic.

Keywords: CpG; Smac mimetic; TNFα; XIAP; bystander effect; cIAP1; cIAP2; immunotherapy; interferon (IFN); oncolytic virus; poly(I:C).