Definition

An off-the-shelf (OTS) peptide-based cancer vaccine consisting of sixteen heat shock protein (Hsp) neo-epitopes that are found in the majority of diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and diffuse midline glioma (DMG) tumors, with potential immunomodulating and antineoplastic activities. Upon administration of the neoantigen Hsp vaccine rHSC-DIPGVax, the peptides stimulate the host immune system to mount a specific cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) response against tumor cells expressing the Hsp neo-epitopes, which results in tumor cell lysis. Hsps are overexpressed in a variety of tumor cell types.