An immune adjuvant activity of mycolic acid-containing glycolipid, trehalose-2, 3, 6'-trimycolate, derived from Gordona aurantiaca

Abstract

A mycolic acid-containing glycolipid, trehalose-2, 3, 6'-trimycolate (GaGM), derived from Gordona aurantiaca, an acid-fast bacterium closely related taxonomically to Mycobacterium, was investigated for its immune adjuvant activity on cell-mediated responses in the mouse. I.V. injection of liposomes containing GaGM enhanced the generation of cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) against syngeneic and allogeneic tumor cells. In addition, the injection of GaGM augmented the natural killer (NK) activity and the antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC).
These results suggest that the injection of GaGM induces the production of interleukin-2 (IL-2), since such effector cells as CTL, NK and K cells have been shown to require IL-2 for their development.