In search of Equine Oncologist w/ knowledge in DNA coding for human interleukin 12

[Traveller11]

I am looking to talk with a equine oncologist about the possibilities of melanoma regression induced by intratumoral injection of DNA coding for human interleukin 12 into the melanoma metastases. I have read some very promising studies. However, so far it looks like every trial I have found is over seas.

Here are some links for those of you with horses with melanomas may find educational or hopeful with the potential outcome of this treatment.

Original study I found http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s001090000165

link explaining how interleukin 12 works with melanomas
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interleukin_12

[J-Lu]

Unfortunately, this is a 2001 article and I’m not sure how reproducible it has been. It has only 39 citations, at least one is a human clinical trial with modest results.

I can’t see the whole article, but what I don’t understand is how injecting plasmid DNA can get into the cells without something like electroporation, and it has to get into the cells so the cellular machinery can make the interleukin 12. Why not just inject IL12 protein? The wiki page you link to even states that although there was promise, clinical trials haven’t panned out well.

One thing you can do is contact the first and/or last author of the article you link to. The “corresponding author” will have their email listed and you can email either or both with questions. You can ask them about any subsequent studies or if they know of veterinarians who perfomed additional studies.