ABSTRACT
To study the treatment of metastasis of experimental lung cancer with a recombinant adenovirus carrying IL 2 gene, concentrations of IL 2 and associated cytokines in murine lung lavage and blood were determined by ELISA at different times after intratracheal injection of the recombinant adenovirus. The lung metastasis nodes, survival time, survival rate were investigated in a C57BL/6 mouse model by intratracheal administration, and the NK activity and CTL activity were also determined by 51 Cr 4 hour release method. The results showed that IL 2 could be detected in lung tissue as early as 6 hours after administration of IL 2 gene, its concentration was higher in lung lavage than in peripheral blood, and was higher in experimental group than that in the control group; intratracheal use of the IL 2 carring recombinant adenovirus had significant therapeutic effect on metastasis of experimental lung cancer. Increased CTL and NK activities, longer survival time, and higher survival rate were observed in the experimental group compared with the control group. It is suggested that intratracheal usage of adenovirus vector carrying IL 2 gene might play therapeutic role on the lung cancer metastasis, indicating that gene therapy of lung tumors could be done through airway directly with recombinant adenovirus.