Effect Of Bl-8040, High-Affinity Cxcr4 Antagonist, On 1-Cell Infiltration, Tumor Growth, And Synergy With Immunomodulatory Agents.

e14544Background: Cancer cells affect their micro-environment by recruiting immune cells that support tumor growth, metastasis and inhibition of anti-tumor effector T and NK cell recruitment. In this study, we investigated the role of BL-8040, a CXCR4 antagonist in cancer immunotherapy and its ability to modulate the immunosuppressive tumor micro-environment. Methods: The effect of BL8040 on tumor micro-environment was tested in 3 different cancer mouse models: lung cancer, pancreatic cancer and melanoma. The mobilization of immune cells to the periphery in response to BL8040 was tested, as well as the accumulation of immune cells both within and surrounding the tumor in the pancreatic cancer mouse model. Results: BL8040 was found to be a potent and robust mobilizer of immune cells. Immunophenotyping of the mobilized cells revealed that the mobilization of CD4 and CD8 T lymphocytes, as well as of dendritic cells (DC), was significantly increased in the cancer-bearing mice compared to their naive counterpa...