In the B16F10 melanoma model, SB-3CT alone significantly decreased tumor growth at day 9 post-treatment compared to the control group (mean tumor size 1482 vs 2570 mm3; p < 0.01), while a combination treatment of SB-3CT and anti-CTLA-4 reached better efficacy (mean tumor size310 vs 2570 mm3; p < 0.001; Fig. 6a and Additional file 1: Fig. S6C). This evidence concerns the gene CTLA4 and melanoma.