Effect of the VP3 gene of chicken anemia virus on canine mammary tumor cells

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the antitumor effect of the chicken anemia virus (CAV) VP3 gene in canine mammary tumor (CMT) cells. SAMPLE POPULATIONS: Established primary canine cell lines that originated from epithelial cells of resected CMTs and nonneoplastic mammary gland epithelial (MGE) cells. PROCEDURES: Expression vectors and lentiviral vectors encoding the VP3 gene from a Taiwan-Ilan isolate of CAV were used to deliver the VP3 gene into CMT cells and nonneoplastic MGE cells. Ectopic gene expression and the pro-apoptotic effect of the VP3 gene on CMT and nonneoplastic MGE cells by either transfection or viral infection were evaluated via immunofluorescence microscopy, western blot analysis, and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling analysis. RESULTS: Overexpression of the enhanced green fluorescent protein-VP3 fusion protein was detected predominantly in the nuclei of CMT cells. In contrast, the VP3 protein was localized to the cytoplasm of nonneoplastic MGE cells. Among the fusion protein-expressing CMT cells, most underwent characteristic changes of apoptosis, whereas apoptosis was not detected in fusion protein-expressing, nonneoplastic MGE cells. Induction of apoptosis by VP3 gene overexpression in CMT cells was associated with the caspase-9-, but not the caspase-8-, mediated apoptosis pathway. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: These data indicate that the VP3 gene of the CAV induces apoptosis in malignant CMT cells, but not in nonneoplastic canine MGE cells. On the basis of such tumor cell-specific killing, the VP3 gene may be a promising agent for the treatment of malignant mammary gland tumors in dogs.