Soluble human LAG-3 molecule amplifies the in vitro generation of type 1 tumor-specific immunity

The adjuvant activities of the human lymphocyte activation gene-3 (LAG-3) molecule have been evaluated in a human setting by investigating the ability of a soluble recombinant human LAG-3 protein (hLAG-3Ig) to enhance the in vitro induction of viral- and tumor-specific CTLs. We found that soluble human LAG-3 significantly sustained the generation and expansion of influenza matrix protein Melan-A/MART-1 and survivin-specific CD8(+) T lymphocytes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of both cancer patients and healthy donors, showing its ability to boost CD8(+) T-cell memory response or to prime naive T cells in vitro. The peptide-specific T cells generated in the presence of hLAG-3Ig were endowed with cytotoxic activity and enhanced release of type I cytotoxic T (Tcl) cytokines and were able to recognize tumor cells expressing their nominal antigen. Phenotype and cytokine/chemokines produced by antigen-presenting cells (APC) of PBMCs exposed in vitro for 2 days to peptide and hLAG-3Ig indicate that the LAG-3-mediated adjuvant effect may depend on a direct activation of circulating APCs. Our data revealed the activity of hLAG-3Ig in inducing tumor-associated, antigen-specific CD8(+) T-cell responses in a human setting and strongly support the conclusion that this recombinant protein is a potential candidate adjuvant for cancer vaccines.