| First Author | Morgado-C??ceres P | Year | 2026 |
| Journal | Oncoimmunology | Volume | 15 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 2606497 |
| PubMed ID | 41521424 | Mgi Jnum | J:392143 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:8409704 | Doi | 10.1080/2162402X.2025.2606497 |
| Citation | Morgado-Caceres P, et al. (2026) DNA prime and peptide boost immunization elicits robust neoantigen-specific CD8 (+) T cell responses and therapeutic protection in mouse tumor models. Oncoimmunology 15(1):2606497 |
| abstractText | Therapeutic immunization against tumor neoantigens has the potential to induce potent and highly selective CD8(+) T-cell-mediated antitumor immunity. Consequently, immunization strategies that generate robust neoantigen-specific T-cell responses are needed. Here, we tested homologous and heterologous DNA- and peptide-based immunization strategies using a neoantigen model. We observed that priming with DNA followed by peptide boost immunization elicited the strongest CD8(+) T-cell responses, which exhibited effector and memory precursor phenotypes and led to the formation of circulating and skin-resident memory T cells. In prophylactic settings, this immunization regimen delayed the growth of B16F10 melanoma and rejected EL4 lymphoma cells expressing a self-antigen. In a therapeutic setting, a DNA prime-peptide boost eliminated EL4 tumors expressing the neo-epitope model in most mice. Consistently, DNA prime-peptide boost targeting two bona fide neoepitopes of MC38 tumor model elicited neoepitope-specific CD8(+) T-cell responses and a marked therapeutic effect, which may be enhanced by combining with anti-PD-1 antibody. These results highlight the potential of DNA prime-peptide boost as a promising strategy for therapeutic neoantigen immunization that elicits strong CD8(+) T-cell responses and potent antitumor effects. |
