Clinical Applications and Immunological Aspects of Electroporation-Based Therapies.

Maria Alejandra Clavijo-Salomon,Nayara Gusmão Tessarollo,Jean Carlos Dos Santos Da Luz,Emanuela Signori,Fernanda Antunes,Bryan E Strauss

doi:10.3390/vaccines9070727

Abstract

Reversible electropermeabilization (RE) is an ultrastructural phenomenon that transiently increases the permeability of the cell membrane upon application of electrical pulses. The technique was described in 1972 by Neumann and Rosenheck and is currently used in a variety of applications, from medicine to food processing. In oncology, RE is applied for the intracellular transport of chemotherapeutic drugs as well as the delivery of genetic material in gene therapies and vaccinations. This review summarizes the physical changes of the membrane, the particularities of bleomycin, and the immunological aspects involved in electrochemotherapy and gene electrotransfer, two important EP-based cancer therapies in human and veterinary oncology.

Highlights

The permeabilization of the cell membrane by the application of external electric pulses was first described in 1972 by Neumann and Rosenheck [1,2]
Electroporation (EP) and electropermeabilization are frequently used as synonyms, electroporation is related strictly to the aqueous pores formed in the lipid membranes of the cells, while electropermeabilization is related to all the events involved with the membrane permeabilization process, including modulation of membrane channels, and cellular biophysical and biochemical changes [5,29,30,31]
FOXP3+ cells was not associated with ECT local response, it was significantly associated to the development of visceral metastasis [178], corroborating similar results obtained by Ursic and colleagues (2021) in three different tumor models treated by ECT, where the more immunogenic CT26 tumors had better outcomes when compared with less immunogenic 4T1 and B16F10 tumors [179]

Summary

Introduction

The permeabilization of the cell membrane by the application of external electric pulses was first described in 1972 by Neumann and Rosenheck [1,2] This physical process was coined as “electroporation” in 1982 by the same group [3]. Such permeabilization is characterized by the uptake of external nonpermeant molecules in the cell cytoplasm and leakage of internal substances from the electropermeabilized cells [4,5,6]. The irreparable disruption of plasma membrane and, subsequently, the influx and efflux of soluble molecules leads to loss of cell homeostasis [23,32,33] This technique was introduced as cancer therapy by Dr Rubinsky’s group in 2005 [34]. This review focuses on the physical changes of the membrane, the particularities of bleomycin, and the immunological aspects involved in EP-based therapies and their application for the treatment of cancer both in humans and animals

Plasma Membrane Electroporation

Electrochemotherapy

Variability of Responses in EP-Related Therapies

Findings

Conclusions