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Merck

Tailored Polymers with Complement Activation Ability To Improve Antitumor Immunity.

Molecular pharmaceutics (2019-05-03)
Chenxi Li, Yue Lu, Qing Chen, Haiyang Hu, Xiuli Zhao, Mingxi Qiao, Dawei Chen
RÉSUMÉ

The complement system plays an important role in host innate immunity, and its activation can be exploited as a potential strategy for vaccine adjuvants. Herein, a pH-responsive micellar vaccine platform (COOH-NPs) was developed using a carboxyl-modified diblock copolymer of poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline)-poly(d,l-lactide) (COOH-PEOz-PLA). The copolymer self-assembled into micelles with hydroxyl groups shielding on the surface, which activated the complement system for the enhanced immune responses. Compared with the control nanoparticles (OCH3-NPs), COOH-NPs significantly enhanced lymph node-resident dendritic cell maturation, antigen-specific IgG production, antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell activation, and the amount of memory T-cell generation in vivo. Furthermore, immunization with COOH-NPs/OVA in E.G7-OVA tumor-bearing mice not only remarkably inhibited tumor growth but also prolonged the survival of tumor-bearing mice. These results indicated that COOH-NPs with the capability of complement activation efficiently boosted the immune responses for the antitumor effect. The study demonstrated the significance of taking advantage of a complement-activating vaccine platform for cancer immunotherapy.