To what extent can knowledge of tumour associated antigens be useful Essay

To what extent can knowledge of tumour associated antigens be useful in the management of cancer patients Illustrate your answe - Essay Example This research paper is focused on basic attempts of TAAs identification and the role they play for different types of tumors. TAAS vs Cancer The important role of tumor associated antigens (TAAs) can be explained in the following way: they are present in cancer cells and can cause a powerful antitumor immune response among patients with lung carcinoma or any other type of cancer. There are the following types of identified TAAs: MAGE and BAGE families, gp 100, SART-1, tyrosinase, MUC-1 and others (Akimov, 2004). They are used by immunotherapy for treating cancer. Nevertheless, there is no satisfactorily level of this kind of treatment (Danussi, Coslovi, Campa, Mucignat, Spessotto, Uggeri, Paoletti, Colombatti, 2009). Therefore, there is a need to focus more on identification of TAAs and available TAAs to target. There is an option to identify TAAS with the help of â€Å"serological analysis of recombinant c DNA expression libraries (SEREX), using tumor mRNA and autologous serum from a patients with NSCLC. SEREX analysis of a range of different human tumor types has identified a number of tumor antigens with diagnostic and therapeutic potential† (Akimov, 2004). Different approaches are being currently developed and it is of high importance for the modern researchers and scientists to identify relevance of TAAs in dealing with different types of cancer. ... MAGE-3 is the most broadly known CT antigen, which is the first and foremost target for cancer vaccines (Slovin, Ragupathi, Fernandez, Diani, Jefferson, Wilton, Kelly, Morris, Solit, Clausen, Livingston, Scher, 2007). On the basis of different researchers and laboratory experiments, the scientists are looking for a correlation between TAAs identification and assessment of patient’s cell’s response to TAA’s. Strategies for vaccine development have been correlated with identification and management of TAAs. Highly attractive targets for cancer vaccines are cancer testis (CT) antigens. These antigens are applicable for different forms of various human cancers. In accordance with current data, â€Å"MAGE antigens are expressed in about 40% of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cases [8]. In summary, this analysis provided further insights in the immunogenicity of lung cancer with respect to antigen specific humoral and cellular immune responses† (Vonderheide, 2002). There is a clear tendency to find out universal antigens. The most serious preventive factor for a proper searching for TAAs is that different patients with different forms of cancer have not been treated by a so-called â€Å"universal† TAAs. Therefore, there is a need for universal tumor-associated antigens. Consequently, the modern scientists and researchers are focused on searching for a new type of TAAs dealing with different types of tumor. One of the most optimal methods is â€Å"epitope deduction†, which begins with a number of database analyses focused on appropriate gene products’ selection and further scanning of the deduced protein sequence for peptides, known as MHC binding motifs (Vonderheide, 2002). This method is independent from the existence of an innate anti-tumor T-cell