Tavo

Tavo - a dna plasmid that encodes genes for both the p35 and p40 subunits of the heterodimeric human interleukin 12 (hil-12) protein that are separated by an internal ribosome entry site (ires) and under the control of a single cytomegalovirus (cmv) promoter, with potential immunomodulatory and antineoplastic activities. Upon administration via intratumoral injection and electroporation, the plasmid is introduced into human cells resulting in expression and highly-localized secretion of a functional il-12 p70 protein into the tumor microenvironment (tme). Il-12 is a pro-inflammatory cytokine that plays a significant role in priming and maintaining t-helper (th) cells, activating natural killer (nk) cells, and regulating the reactivation and survival of memory t-cells (tm). Increased levels of il-12 in the tme may augment host immune response against tumor cells by inhibiting regulatory t-cells (tregs), t-helper 2 (th2) responses, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (mdscs). See tavokinogene telseplasmid