When Dr. Ana Maria Hern谩ndez Vazquez discusses the years of work she has pursued with the research group she leads at the Center for Molecular Immunology in Havana, Cuba, she talks about how a scientist鈥檚 work is a 鈥渘ever-ending story,鈥 how finding one answer can so often lead to more questions and, in turn, more inquiry.
Such is the case with a vaccine Dr. Hern谩ndez and her team have developed in Cuba that is designed to induce production of antibodies against a glycolated ganglioside, which is uniquely found in tumor cells, especially lung cancer tumor cells. In published clinical trials, the Cuban vaccine, Vaxira, has extended the lives of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer with a median survival rate for vaccinated patients of 10.9 months compared to 6.9 months for patients who were given a placebo.听
Even more promising is that the survival rate of vaccinated patients two years after treatment was 22 percent compared to 8 percent of patients in the placebo group.
鈥淭he vaccine extends the life of the patients, but as with all the other cancer treatments, it doesn鈥檛 do it as much as we would wish and it doesn鈥檛 do that in as many patients as we want,鈥 she said.
In hopes of changing that, Dr. Hern谩ndez reached out to Dr. Thomas L. Rothstein, professor of Biomedical Sciences, assistant dean for Investigative Medicine and director of the Center for Immunobiology at 汤头条app, in 2008. At the time, Dr. Rothstein, an internationally recognized researcher in the field of immunology, was at the Feinstein Institute where he was the head of the Center for Oncology and Cell Biology and an investigator and professor in the Elmezzi Graduate School of Molecular Medicine.
Dr. Hern谩ndez invited Dr. Rothstein to a biennial meeting on the immunotherapy of cancer in Havana with the hope of laying the groundwork for a collaboration to improve the cancer vaccine her team had produced.
鈥淚t was just because of the science,鈥 Dr. Hern谩ndez said. 鈥淎ll of those who are working in B cells have read Dr. Rothstein鈥檚 work forever 鈥 he was super famous. I was trying to start to understand the relationship between B cells and our vaccinations in Cuba.鈥
Dr. Hern谩ndez said she knew that learning more about B cells could help her team to better understand the mechanisms of the cancer vaccine and more specifically which cells were producing the antibodies the vaccine triggered. That knowledge, she said, can lead to improving the vaccine to make it work better for more patients.
鈥淚t was just a fascinating, intriguing area of study and clinical treatment,鈥 Dr. Rothstein said. 鈥淭he vaccine was there, now the question was which cells was it activating and how to make it better. I thought, 鈥楾his is cool, this is really, really cool.鈥欌
The collaboration between Dr. Hern谩ndez鈥檚 team and Dr. Rothstein鈥檚 lab has proven beneficial. To identify which cells were making the antibodies triggered by the vaccine, Dr. Rothstein said Dr. Hern谩ndez and her team needed to be able to isolate different populations of B cells with the kind of cell sorter technology that exists in the U.S. but is not available in Cuba.
Given that reality, Dr. Hern谩ndez and a member of her team, Dr. Nely Rodr铆guez Zhurbenko, have visited the U.S. seven times and five times, respectively, to work in Dr. Rothstein鈥檚 labs 鈥 first at the Feinstein Institute and now at 汤头条app.
Dr. Rothstein said Dr. Hern谩ndez and Dr. Rodr铆guez have been able to show that healthy individuals naturally express antibodies that recognize lung cancer tumor cells by binding glycolated ganglioside, and that these antibodies are missing in lung cancer patients. Together the two groups have worked to identify which cells are responsible for producing these natural antibodies that are capable of binding to and destroying lung cancer tumor cells in healthy individuals.
Additionally, as part of the collaboration, Dr. Rodr铆guez has conducted important research that has shown that there is an age-related decline in beneficial natural antibodies. That decline may have the effect of reducing protection against many diseases associated with aging beyond lung cancer, such as heart disease, atherosclerosis and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer鈥檚 and Parkinson鈥檚 disease.
鈥淚 think we鈥檝e made a lot of progress,鈥 Dr. Rothstein said. 鈥淚 think we鈥檝e done a lot to identify the B cells that normally make anti-lung cancer natural antibodies and now we are focusing on how (the B cells) are activated by vaccination. It鈥檚 really thrilling to be involved in this.鈥
As their collaboration continues, Dr. Hern谩ndez and Dr. Rothstein said one of their most important next steps is to begin figuring out how to put the technology in Dr. Rothstein鈥檚 lab to use to analyze the blood of vaccinated patients in Cuba. The vaccine, as of right now, cannot be administered to patients in the U.S. and the task of obtaining samples from vaccinated patients is difficult, if not impossible, because of the U.S. embargo against Cuba.
The ability to analyze samples from vaccinated patients is important, Dr. Hern谩ndez and Dr. Rothstein said, because the analysis will shed light on which specific B cells are responding to the vaccine which will, in turn, allow their teams to begin looking at adjusting the adjuvant in the vaccine to elicit a better and more intense therapeutic response for more patients.
Additionally, Dr. Rothstein said the teams will continue to collaborate on the work done by Dr. Rodr铆guez, as well, which could prove beneficial for older adults. Dr. Rothstein said he could envision that someday aging patients may get an infusion of the beneficial antibodies that decline with age to help protect them against several diseases, including cancer.
Dr. Hern谩ndez said she is proud of the work her team has done and is looking forward to continued work with Dr. Rothstein鈥檚 lab at 汤头条app.
鈥淎t the end, you鈥檙e extending people鈥檚 lives 鈥 and the quality of life,鈥 she said. You鈥檝e giving a longer life with a better quality of life.鈥
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