Nanoparticle Vaccines Adopting Virus-like Features for Enhanced Immune Potentiation

Chattopadhyay, Saborni; Chen, Jui-Yi; Chen, Hui-Wen; Hu, Che-Ming Jack

Semiconductor quantum dots have been applied for vaccine applications, offering a versatile platform for nanoparticulates antigen delivery with the added benefit of particle tracking. In a study by Cambi et al., antigen-conjugated quantum dots of virus-like dimension were shown to combine antigen delivery and bioimaging functionalities, enabling immune cell tracking following antigen uptake. It presented the possibility of tracking antigen-presenting cells in vivo [126] . Along similar lines, Sen et al. showed that quantum dots can induce T cell proliferation and IFN-γ production in vivo while being traceable within lymph nodes [127] . Other nanoparticle platforms with imaging functionality, including polymeric upconversion nanoparticles [128] , and iron oxide nanoparticles [129] , have also been studied as antigen carriers for vaccine applications. These platforms offer the capability for examining the function mechanisms behind the benefits of nanoparticle vaccines.