An anti-tumor proteinic antibiotic, Neocarzinostatin (NCS), was found to significantly increase macrophages when administered into the cerebrospinal fluid.
An experiment was performed on guinea-pigs, in which NCS was administered intraperitoneally, and the cellular reaction in the peritoneal fluid was studied. NCS caused significant accumulation of macrophages in the peritoneal cells in comparison with other immunopotentiators such as OK-432. An in vitro study demonstrated that the increase of macrophages in the peritoneal exsudate was not due to the chemotactic effect of NCS but to active infiltration.
It was concluded that NCS showed immunopotentiating effects by means of macrophagic infiltration, and acted synergistically with the inherent immunosurveillance system by induction of activated T-lymphocytes. Intrathecal or intracystic instillation of NCS will be particularly useful in the treatment of malignant brain tumor patients because of its immunopotentiating effects.