| 摘要 |
The invention relates to the discovery that cancer cells that have no or low expression of the IL-13 receptor ("IL-13R") can bind IL-13R-targeted immunoconjugates, such as immunotoxins, by transfection with the IL-13R alpha 2 chain alone. Transfecting cells with just the IL-13R alpha 2 chain is easier than transfection with an intact receptor. For some cancers, transfection with the IL-13R alpha 2 chain alone inhibits tumor growth. Those cancers that are not inhibited by the presence of the IL-13R alpha 2 chain alone, and which do not express the IL-13R or express it only at low levels can be rendered sensitive to IL-13R-targeted immunoconjugates by transfection of the IL-13 alpha 2 chain and can be inhibited by the use of immunoconjugates, such as immunotoxins, targeted to the IL-13R. Nucleic acids encoding the IL-13R alpha 2 chain or vectors containing such nucleic acids can be used for the manufacture of medicaments to introduce the IL-13R alpha 2 chain into cancer cells and thereby either inhibit their growth (for cells inhibited by the presence of the IL-13R alpha 2 chain) or to sensitize them to IL-13R-targeted immunoconjugates, or both. |
