Recent advances of emerging spleen-targeting nanovaccines for immunotherapy

• Published in: Advanced healthcare materials 2023-09, Vol.12 (23), p.e2300351-e2300351
• Main Authors: He, Xuanyi, Wang, Jing, Tang, Yuqing, Chiang, Seok Theng, Han, Tianzhen, Chen, Qi, Qian, Chunxi, Shen, Xiaoshuai, Li, Rongxiu, Ai, Xiangzhao
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antigen presentation; Antigen-presenting cells; Antigens; Humoral immunity; Immune system; Immunotherapy; Intravenous administration; Lymph nodes; Lymphocytes; Lymphocytes B; Spleen; Vaccines
• ISSN: 2192-2640; 2192-2659
• DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202300351

Vaccines provide a powerful tool to modulate the immune system for human disease prevention and treatment. Classical vaccines mainly initiate immune responses in the lymph nodes (LNs) after subcutaneous injection. However, some vaccines suffer from inefficient delivery of antigens to LNs, undesired inflammation, and slow immune induction when encountering the rapid proliferation of tumors. Alternatively, the spleen, as the largest secondary lymphoid organ with a high density of antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and lymphocytes, acts as an emerging target organ for vaccinations in the body. Upon intravenous administration, the rationally designed spleen-targeting nanovaccines could be internalized by the APCs in the spleen to induce selective antigen presentation to T and B cells in their specific sub-regions, thereby rapidly boosting durable cellular and humoral immunity. Herein, we systematically summarize the recent advances of spleen-targeting nanovaccines for immunotherapy based on the anatomical architectures and functional zones of the spleen, as well as their limitations and perspectives for clinical applications. We aim to emphasize the design of innovative nanovaccines for enhanced immunotherapy of intractable diseases in the future. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.