BACKGROUND We have previously reported that a DNA vaccine encoding prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) could elicit PAP-specific T cells in patients with early recurrent prostate cancer. In the current pilot trial we sought to evaluate whether prolonged immunization with regular booster immunizations, or “personalized” schedules of immunization determined using real-time immune monitoring, could elicit persistent, antigen-specific T cells, and whether treatment was associated with changes in PSA doubling time (PSA DT). METHODS 16 patients with castration-resistant, non-metastatic prostate cancer received six immunizations at two-week intervals, and then either quarterly (Arm 1) or as determined by multi-parameter immune monitoring (Arm 2). RESULTS Patients were on study a median of 16 months; four received 24 vaccinations. Only one event associated with treatment > grade 2 was observed. 6/16 (38%) remained metastasis-free at 2 years. PAP-specific T cells were elicited in 12/16 (75%), predominantly of a Th1 phenotype, which persisted in frequency and phenotype for at least one year. IFNγ-secreting T-cell responses measured by ELISPOT were detectable in 5/13 individuals at one year, and this was not statistically different between study arms. The overall median fold change in PSA DT from pre-treatment to post-treatment was 1.6 (range 0.6–7.0, p=0.036). CONCLUSIONS Repetitive immunization with a plasmid DNA vaccine was safe and elicited Th1-biased antigen-specific T cells that persisted over time. Modifications in the immunization schedule based on real-time immune monitoring did not increase the frequency of patients developing effector and memory T-cell responses with this DNA vaccine.

Background The androgen receptor (AR) is a key oncogenic driver of prostate cancer, and has been the primary focus of prostate cancer treatment for several decades. We have previously demonstrated that the AR is also an immunological target antigen, recognized in patients with prostate cancer, and targetable by means of vaccines in rodent models with delays in prostate tumor growth. The current study was performed to determine the safety and immunological efficacy of a GMP-grade plasmid DNA vaccine encoding the ligand-binding domain (LBD) of the AR, pTVG-AR. Methods Groups of male mice (n=6-10 per group) were evaluated after four or seven immunizations, using different schedules and inclusion of GM-CSF as a vaccine adjuvant. Animals were assessed for toxicity using gross observations, pathological analysis, and analysis of serum chemistries. Animals were analyzed for evidence of vaccine-augmented immunity by tetramer analysis. Survival studies using different immunization schedules and inclusion of GM-CSF were conducted in an autochthonous genetically-engineered mouse model. Results No significant toxicities were observed in terms of animal weights, histopathology, hematological changes, or changes in serum chemistries, although there was a trend to lower serum glucose in animals treated with the vaccine. There was specifically no evidence of toxicity in other tissues that express AR, including liver, muscle, hematopoietic and brain. Vaccination was found to elicit AR LBD-specific CD8+ T cells. In a subsequent study of tumor-bearing animals, animals treated with vaccine had prolonged survival compared with control-immunized mice. Conclusions These studies demonstrate that, in immunocompetent mice expressing the target antigen, immunization with the pTVG-AR vaccine was both safe and effective in eliciting AR-specific cellular immune responses, and prolonged the survival of prostate tumor-bearing mice. These findings support the clinical evaluation of pTVG-AR in patients with recurrent prostate cancer.

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