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RETRACTED ARTICLE: Immunotherapy of metastatic colorectal cancer with vitamin D-binding protein-derived macrophage-activating factor, GcMAF

Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy volume 57, pages 1007–1016 (2008)Cite this article

This article was retracted on 09 October 2014

A Letter to the Editors to this article was published on 24 July 2014

Abstract

Serum vitamin D binding protein (Gc protein) is the precursor for the principal macrophage-activating factor (MAF). The MAF precursor activity of serum Gc protein of colorectal cancer patients was lost or reduced because Gc protein is deglycosylated by serum α-N-acetylgalactosaminidase (Nagalase) secreted from cancerous cells. Deglycosylated Gc protein cannot be converted to MAF, leading to immunosuppression. Stepwise treatment of purified Gc protein with immobilized β-galactosidase and sialidase generated the most potent macrophage-activating factor (GcMAF) ever discovered, but it produces no side effect in humans. Macrophages treated with GcMAF (100 pg/ml) develop an enormous variation of receptors and are highly tumoricidal to a variety of cancers indiscriminately. Administration of 100 nanogram (ng)/human maximally activates systemic macrophages that can kill cancerous cells. Since the half-life of the activated macrophages is approximately 6 days, 100 ng GcMAF was administered weekly to eight nonanemic colorectal cancer patients who had previously received tumor-resection but still carried significant amounts of metastatic tumor cells. As GcMAF therapy progressed, the MAF precursor activities of all patients increased and conversely their serum Nagalase activities decreased. Since serum Nagalase is proportional to tumor burden, serum Nagalase activity was used as a prognostic index for time course analysis of GcMAF therapy. After 32–50 weekly administrations of 100 ng GcMAF, all colorectal cancer patients exhibited healthy control levels of the serum Nagalase activity, indicating eradication of metastatic tumor cells. During 7 years after the completion of GcMAF therapy, their serum Nagalase activity did not increase, indicating no recurrence of cancer, which was also supported by the annual CT scans of these patients.

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Abbreviations

Gc:

Human vitamin D3 binding protein

GcMAF:

Enzymatically generated Gc-derived macrophage-activating factor

Nagalase:

α-N-acetylgalactosaminidase

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Acknowledgment

This investigation was supported in part by US Public Health Service Grant AI-32140 and Elsa U. Pardee Foundation Grant to N. Y.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Cancer Immunology and Molecular Immunology, Socrates Institute for Therapeutic Immunology, Philadelphia, PA, 19126, USA

    Nobuto Yamamoto & Nobuyuki Yamamoto

  2. Nagasaki Immunotherapy Research Group, Yokoh, Nagasaki, Japan

    Hirofumi Suyama

  3. Yokoyama Gastroenterology Hospital, Nagoya, Japan

    Hiroaki Nakazato

  4. Nakagawa Hospital, Fukuoka City, 811-1345, Japan

    Yoshihiko Koga

  5. Division of Cancer Immunology and Molecular Biology, Socrates Institute for Therapeutic Immunology, 1040, 66th Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19126-3305, USA

    Nobuto Yamamoto

Authors
  1. Nobuto Yamamoto
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  2. Hirofumi Suyama
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  3. Hiroaki Nakazato
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  4. Nobuyuki Yamamoto
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  5. Yoshihiko Koga
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Correspondence to Nobuto Yamamoto.

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This article has been retracted by the journal's co-Editors-in-Chief in conjunction with the publisher (Springer) due to irregularities in the Institutional Review Board documentation.

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Yamamoto, N., Suyama, H., Nakazato, H. et al. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Immunotherapy of metastatic colorectal cancer with vitamin D-binding protein-derived macrophage-activating factor, GcMAF. Cancer Immunol Immunother 57, 1007–1016 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00262-007-0431-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00262-007-0431-z

Keywords

  • Colorectal cancer
  • Macrophages
  • Macrophage-activating factor
  • Immunotherapy
  • Deglycosylation
  • α-N-acetylgalactosaminidase
  • Immunosuppression