Antitumor effects of NK cells expanded by activation pre‑processing of autologous feeder cells before irradiation in colorectal cancer

Natural killer (NK) cells play a crucial role in early immune defenses against transformed cells and are used in the therapeutic management of cancer. However, it is difficult to sufficiently obtain high purity activated NK cells for clinical application. The function of NK cells is dependent on the balance of activating and inhibitory signals. Strong and diverse stimuli are required to increase the function of NK cells. Radiotherapy modulates the expression of various immunomodulatory molecules that recruit and activate NK cells. NK cell-mediated antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity is one of the most potent cytotoxic effects of NK cells against target cancer cells. To generate activated and irradiated autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), cytokine and monoclonal antibody stimulation followed by ionizing radiation was performed in the present study. The expanded NK cells were cultured for 21 days using activated/irradiated autologous PBMCs. Colorectal cancer cells (SW480 and HT-29) were used to analyze the expression of NK group 2D ligands and EGFR by radiation. The cytotoxicity of radiation plus NK cell-based targeted therapy against colorectal cancer cell lines was analyzed using flow cytometry. Activated and irradiated PBMCs exhibited significantly increased expression of various activating ligands that stimulated NK cells. In total, >10,000-fold high-purity activated NK cells were obtained, with negligible T-cell contamination. To confirm the antitumor activity of the NK cells expanded by this method, the expanded NK cells were treated with cetuximab, radiotherapy, or a combination of cetuximab and radiotherapy in the presence of human colorectal cancer cells. Expanded NK cells were effective at targeting human colorectal cancer cells, particularly when combined with cetuximab and radiotherapy. Thus, in the present study, a novel method for high-purity activated NK cell expansion was developed using activated and irradiated PBMCs. In addition, combined radiotherapy and antibody-based immunotherapy with expanded NK cells may be an effective strategy to enhance the efficiency of treatment against colorectal cancer.