Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Zika Virus Injection Safe and Reduced Brain Tumors in Dogs
By Kaid, Carolini et al.·Published in Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy·2020·Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center (HUG-CEL) Institute of Biosciences, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Safety, Tumor Reduction, and Clinical Impact of Zika Virus Injection in Dogs with Advanced-Stage Brain Tumors.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Three dogs with advanced brain tumors received injections of the Zika virus directly into their spinal fluid as a new treatment option. Remarkably, there were no negative side effects from the injections, and the dogs showed a significant reduction in tumor size. Additionally, their neurological symptoms improved, and they lived longer as the treatment specifically targeted the tumor cells while leaving healthy brain cells unharmed. This promising approach could lead to new therapies for dogs suffering from aggressive brain tumors where current treatments are ineffective.
People also search for: dog brain tumor treatment · Zika virus for dogs · canine cancer survival rates
Abstract
Malignant brain tumors are among the most aggressive cancers with poor prognosis and no effective treatment. Recently, we reported the oncolytic potential of Zika virus infecting and destroying the human central nervous system (CNS) tumors in vitro and in immunodeficient mice model. However, translating this approach to humans requires pre-clinical trials in another immunocompetent animal model. Here, we analyzed the safety of Brazilian Zika virus (ZIKV) intrathecal injections in three dogs bearing spontaneous CNS tumors aiming an anti-tumoral therapy. We further assessed some aspects of the innate immune and inflammatory response that triggers the anti-tumoral response observed during the ZIKVadministration in vivo and in vitro. For the first time, we showed that there were no negative clinical side effects following ZIKVCNS injections in dogs, confirming the safety of the procedure. Furthermore, the intrathecal ZIKVinjections reduced tumor size in immunocompetent dogs bearing spontaneous intracranial tumors, improved their neurological clinical symptoms significantly, and extended their survival by inducing the destruction specifically of tumor cells, sparing normal neurons, and activating an immune response. These results open new perspectives for upcoming virotherapy using ZIKV to destroy and induce an anti-tumoral immune response in CNS tumors for which there are currently no effective treatments.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32220305/