Effective targeting of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) by CD70 directed immunotherapy

Introduction: Despite good overall outcome of children with ALL, relapse is associated with poor prognosis emphasizing the need for novel therapies. Previously, we observed high CD70 transcript levels in high risk ALL. Here, we address CD70 as target for immunotherapy. Methods: Analysis of CD70 surface expression on ALL cells, evaluation of CD70-directed immunotherapy in different xenograft mouse modes. Results: High CD70 surface expression was found on ALL cells compared to healthy controls and on high-risk ALL. A marked reduction of leukemia load was detected upon anti-CD70 immunotherapy in NOD/SCID recipient…