A preparation of allogeneic neural stem cells (NSC), derived from a human fetal cell line, that are adenovirally-transduced to express a modified form of the human enzyme carboxylesterase (CE) hCE1m6, with potential adjuvant activity. Upon intracranial administration, NSCs localize to tumor sites, due to their tumor-trophic nature, and transiently express hCE1m6. Intravenous co-administration of the prodrug irinotecan allows for the selective conversion by hCE1m6 to its active metabolite and topoisomerase I inhibitor, SN-38, in the vicinity of tumor sites. This leads to a local anti-neoplastic effect and causes reduced toxicity and increased therapeutic efficacy of irinotecan. Since NSCs freely cross the blood-brain barrier, these cells can also be intravenously administered to target brain tumor cells. hCE1m6 shows increased activity as compared to unmodified human CE. Check for active clinical trials using this agent. (NCI Thesaurus)
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