Targeting gamma interferon to tumor cells by a genetically engineered fusion protein secreted from myeloma cells.

The construction, synthesis and expression of a genetically engineered bifunctional antibody/cytokine fusion protein is described. To target IFN-tau to tumor cells, recombinant antibody techniques were used to construct a RM4/IFN-tau fusion protein containing the chimeric anti-tumor F(ab')2 (RM4) and the IFN-tau moiety. The recombinant cDNA of IFN-tau was linked to 3 prime end of the chimeric heavy-chain gene fragment (M4) containing the VH, the CH1 and the hinge region to form the fused heavy-chain gene fragment M4-IFN-tau. Transfection of the M4-IFN-tau gene fragment into a myeloma derived cell line VKCK which produced the chimeric light-chain of the same antibody, allowed the transfectant secreting the bifunctional fusion protein RM4/IFN-tau. The RM4/IFN-tau was purified by the affinity chromatography. Our data showed that the RM4/IFN-tau retained the TAG72 antigen-binding reactivity as well as the IFN-tau activity as measured in ELISA, FACS analysis of cell-surface TAG72 expression, immunohistochemical study, and up-regulation of cell-surface expression of CEA, HLA class I and class II antigens. Therefore, the bifunctional fusion protein RM4/IFN-tau may prove to be useful in targeting biological effects of the IFN-tau to tumor cells and in this way to stimulate the immune destruction of tumor cells.