Improved therapeutic efficacy of mammalian expressed-recombinant interferon gamma against ovarian cancer cells

Human interferon gamma (hIFNγ) affects tumour cells and modulates immune responses, showing promise as an anti-cancer biotherapeutic. This study investigated the effect of glycosylation and expression system of recombinant hIFNγ in ovarian carcinoma cell lines, PEO1 and SKOV3. The efficacy of E. coli- and mammalian-expressed hIFNγ (hIFNγ-CHO and HEK293, glycosylated/de-glycosylated) on cytostasis, cell death (MTT, and Guava-ViaCount® flow-cytometry) and apoptotic signalling (Western blot of Cdk2, histone H3, procaspase-3, FADD, cleaved PARP, and caspase-3) was examined. Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography determined the structure of N-linked glycans present in HEK293-expressed hIFNγ (hIFNγ-HEK). PEO1 was more sensitive to hIFNγ than SKOV3, but responses were dose-dependent and expression platform/glycosylation status-independent, whereas SKOV3 responded to mammalian-expressed hIFNγ in a dose-independent manner, only. Complex-type oligosaccharides dominated the N-glycosylation pattern of hIFNγ-HEK with some terminal sialylation and core fucosylation. Cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-3 were not detected in either cell line, but FADD was expressed in SKOV3 with levels increased following treatment. In conclusion, hIFNγ did not induce apoptosis in either cell line. Mammalian- expressed hIFNγ increased cell death in the drug-resistant SKOV3. The presence of FADD in SKOV3, which may inhibit apoptosis through activation of NF-κB, could serve as a novel therapeutic target.