Home > Press > 'Stealth' nanoparticles could improve cancer vaccines
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| Getting immune cells (blue) to kill cancer cells (yellow) could require a stealthy approach. Credit: selvanegra/iStock/Thinkstock |
Abstract:
Cancer vaccines have recently emerged as a promising approach for killing tumor cells before they spread. But so far, most clinical candidates haven't worked that well. Now, scientists have developed a new way to deliver vaccines that successfully stifled tumor growth when tested in laboratory mice. And the key, they report in the journal ACS Nano, is in the vaccine's unique stealthy nanoparticles.
'Stealth' nanoparticles could improve cancer vaccines
Washington, DC | Posted on October 1st, 2014Hiroshi Shiku, Naozumi Harada and colleagues explain that most cancer vaccine candidates are designed to flag down immune cells, called macrophages and dendritic cells, that signal "killer" T cells to attack tumors. The problem is that approaches based on targeting these generally circulating immune cells have not been very successful. But recent research has suggested that a subset of macrophages only found deep inside lymph nodes could play a major role in slowing cancer. But how could one get a vaccine to these special immune cells without first being gobbled up by the macrophages and dendritic cells circulating in the body? Shiku's team wanted to see if stealthy nanoparticles they had developed and clinically tested in patients might hold the answer.
The researchers injected the nanoparticles into mice. They found that the particles, which have no electric charge or surface molecules that would attract the attention of circulating immune cells, were able to enter the mice's lymph nodes. But once inside the lymph nodes' core, the special kind of macrophage engulfed the particles. When molecules for signaling killer T cells were put inside the nanoparticles, they hindered tumor growth far better than existing vaccines.
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The authors acknowledge funding from a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) and the Exploratory Research for Advanced Technology (ERATO).
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About American Chemical Society
The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 161,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.
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Contacts:
Michael Bernstein
202-872-6042
Naozumi Harada, Ph.D.
Mie University Graduate School of Medicine
Mie 514-8507
and ImmunoFrontier, Inc.
Tokyo 101-0021
Japan
or
Hiroshi Shiku, M.D.
Department of Immuno-Gene Therapy
Mie University Graduate School of Medicine
Mie 514-8507
Japan
Email:
Copyright © American Chemical Society
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