First Human Trial: Vitamin B Enhances Natural Killer Cells
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First Human Trial: Vitamin B Enhances Natural Killer Cells and Promotes Anti-Cancer Effects
Vitamin B3, also known as niacin, is a water-soluble vitamin with multiple crucial physiological functions in the human body. Early research has shown that vitamin B3 plays a role in energy metabolism, promotes the metabolism of skin cells, and possesses some antioxidant properties. Additionally, niacin is a key component of coenzymes NAD+ and NADH, which are vital for the body’s overall redox reactions.
Natural killer cells (NK cells) are a specialized group of immune cells responsible for identifying and destroying pathogens or abnormal cells such as viruses and tumor cells. They serve as the body’s first line of defense, rapidly identifying and eliminating abnormal cells, playing a crucial role in protecting the body from diseases.
Recently, researchers from the University of Minnesota in the United States published a study titled “Nicotinamide enhances natural killer cell function and yields remissions in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma” in the journal “Science Translational Medicine.”
The study revealed that vitamin B3 can enhance the activity and longevity of natural killer cells cultured in vitro, promoting their targeting of cancer cells. Among 19 non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients, 13 experienced complete remission, 1 had partial remission, resulting in an overall effective rate of 74%.
Previously, researchers from other teams attempted to use NK cell transfusions to treat leukemia, lymphoma, and other hematologic malignancies, but the outcomes were not consistently successful. This suggests that allogeneic NK cell transfer has the potential to treat refractory leukemia and lymphoma, but strategies to enhance NK cell survival and function are needed to improve clinical efficacy.
In this phase I clinical trial, the first of its kind in humans, researchers analyzed the efficacy of adoptive transfer therapy using NK cells expanded ex vivo with IL-15 and niacin in patients with relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma and multiple myeloma.
Among 19 advanced non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients, 13 experienced complete remission, 1 had partial remission, resulting in an overall effective rate of 74%.
NK cells transplanted after ex vivo expansion were detected in blood, bone marrow, and tumor tissue for up to 14 days and maintained favorable metabolic characteristics.
Researchers also found that niacin appeared to protect NK cells from oxidative stress while enhancing their ability to target tumors.
Further investigation revealed that natural killer cells cultured with niacin exhibited stable induction of CD62L, a lymphocyte adhesion molecule crucial for lymph node homing. Importantly, high levels of CD62L were associated with elevated transcription factor FOXO1, which in cancer cells can act as an inhibitor, promoting cell apoptosis and inhibiting cell cycle progression, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Niacin promoted FOXO1 stability by preventing proteasomal degradation, guiding natural killer cells to target tumors.
Moreover, niacin-cultured natural killer cells showed metabolic changes associated with increased glucose flux and protection against oxidative stress, as well as enhanced ability to produce inflammatory cytokines and toxic responses against cancer cells.
The results indicate that niacin not only enhances the activity of natural killer cells but also prolongs their persistence in the bloodstream, improving their ability to target cancer cells. However, further research is needed in larger-scale clinical trials.
Paper Link:
DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.ade3341
First Human Trial: Vitamin B Enhances Natural Killer Cells and Promotes Anti-Cancer Effects
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