Effect of nucleic acid reactive antibodies on tumor cells grown in vivo.

Nucleic acid reactive antibodies have been reported to inhibit various nucleic acid mediated functions in cell free systems. These antibodies were also shown to inhibit the growth of transformed cells in culture due to the high rate of endocytosis in transformed cells as compared to normal cells. In this report, we have tested the possibility of nucleic acid reactive antibodies inhibiting the growth of tumor cells in vivo. The life span of mice bearing Dalton's lymphoma ascites tumor cells was increased, when they were immunized with conjugates of guanosine-BSA, GMP-BSA and tRNA-MBSA complex before transplanting the tumor cells. A similar effect was also observed when mice were injected intraperitoneally with antibodies to guanosine or GMP along with the tumor cells. The specificity was ascertained, as immunization with non-specific antigens did not show any significant effect on tumor bearing mice. The results shows that nucleic acid reactive antibodies inhibit the growth of tumor cells in vivo.