Alpha-fetoprotein Epitope Peptide Promoted the Proliferation of Primary Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells

Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) is an oncofetal protein during hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development which could promote tumor growth and inhibit active immunity, and it may serve as a target for immunotherapy. To further confirm the immunogenicity of AFP, we constructed a AFP eitope peptide vaccine which contained the specific antigen epitope. Our results demonstrated that although AFP epitope peptide induced a distinct level of antibody, it still inhibited dendritic cells, CD8(+) T cells, natural killer cells responses and promoted the growth of AFP-expressing tumors. Our study suggests that AFP epitope peptide promoted the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma by inhibiting the effects of immune cells, which may be a better basis for further study on HCC immunotherapy.