release levels of IL-1β, TNF, and IL-6 (all contributors to cDC activation) and Th1/Th2 cytokines. In an effort to identify a more effective DC-activating therapy for women, we compared the in-vitro effects of CPG7909 with those of the TLR7/8 agonist resiquimod/R848 on SLN single cells from female patients. R848 induced superior cDC subset activation and TNF, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IFNγ, and CXCL10 release. Correlation analyses suggested that IFNα, TNF, and IL-6 were key for CPG7909-induced LNR-cDC activation, whereas R848's effect appeared more cytokine-independent. We conclude that combining locally delivered CPG7909 and R848 in early-stage melanoma will ensure full-range DC subset activation and robust pro-inflammatory T-cell responses in melanoma SLN, independent of sex.
Notohardjo et al. (Thu,) studied this question.