Whole cell vaccination using immunogenic cell death by an oncolytic adenovirus is effective against a colorectal cancer model.

Cancer vaccine application is limited to specific cancer types because few cancer-associated antigens are known to induce tumor rejection. Accordingly, we assessed the utility of Ad881, an oncolytic adenovirus in which viral replication was strictly regulated by the cancer-specific midkine promoter, as a cancer vaccine in a murine colorectal cancer model lacking specific cancer-associated antigens. In CT26 and CMT93 cells, Ad881 (multiplicity of infection: 100 or 1,000) showed stronger cytotoxicity and oncolysis than its equivalent replication-defective adenovirus, Ad884.