Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Vaccine Design May Dramatically Improve Cancer Immunotherapies
Scientific Advances

Vaccine Design May Dramatically Improve Cancer Immunotherapies

By Amanda MorrisMay 6, 2019
Share
Facebook Twitter Email

Effectiveness depends on molecular architecture and 3D presentation of components

When it comes to the effectiveness of nanotherapeutic vaccines, shape matters.

Chad Mirkin, PhD, professor of Chemistry in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, co-led the study that found spherical nucleic acids may have the potential to improve the effectiveness of vaccines and cancer immunotherapy.

A Northwestern University study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) investigated a set of spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) for their potential to stimulate cancer-quelling immune responses. After comparing a series of compositionally identical yet structurally different vaccines by testing them on multiple animal models, the researchers found the structure of SNAs in one vaccine dramatically outperformed the others, which ranged from ineffective to nearly curative.

Vaccines with the superior structure completely eliminated tumors in 30% of animals and improved their overall survival from cancer. The vaccine also protected the animals from reemerging tumors.

“This observation shows the importance of chemical structure and three-dimensional presentation of active components in the design of vaccines,” said Chad Mirkin, PhD, the George B. Rathmann Prof. of Chemistry in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, who co-led the study. “This information will help us rationally design SNA vaccines that can raise the strongest possible anti-cancer immune responses. Having a clear design strategy also will accelerate the development of vaccines for many types of cancer and potentially other diseases.”

Mirkin led the study along with Bin Zhang, MD, PhD, professor of Microbiology-Immunology and of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, and Andrew Lee, PhD, research assistant professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering in Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering.

Cancer immunotherapies artificially stimulate the patient’s immune system to find and attack the disease. So far, new immunotherapies, called checkpoint inhibitors, act by unlocking immune responses that are suppressed by tumors. But they are effective only in certain types of cancer and in a fraction of patients.

“Another potentially more powerful approach is to raise and boost immune responses with therapeutic vaccines,” Lee said. “This approach, however, has needed breakthroughs in vaccine design to unlock its potential in treating cancer in the clinic.”

The development of SNAs could be the breakthrough for which people have been waiting. Invented by Mirkin, SNAs are synthetic globular — rather than linear — forms of DNA and RNA that surround a nanoparticle core. Roughly 50 nanometers in diameter, the tiny structures possess the ability to enter cells, including immune cells, for targeted treatment delivery.

In the study, the Northwestern team compared SNAs that have different structures but the same peptides, DNA and other general components. All vaccines included an antigen (a substance that is recognized and targeted by an immune response) and an adjuvant (a substance that enhances the body’s immune response to the antigen). In this case, the DNA is the adjuvant, and the peptide is the antigen.

The only thing that changed in each vaccine was the position of the peptide antigen, which was either housed in the core of the SNA, interspersed with the DNA or attached to the DNA. These changes led to major differences in how the immune system recognized and processed molecular cues, ultimately affecting the quality of the immune response generated by the vaccine. In the study, the peptide antigen interspersed with the DNA performed best.

“The study shows that SNAs and our ability to refine SNA structures can dramatically improve the anti-tumor immune responses,” Zhang said. “This shows promise in our ability to improve the performance of vaccines and eventually use them in patient care.”

Mirkin and Zhang are members of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University, and Mirkin has an appointment in the McCormick School of Engineering.

The study was supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (award number U54CA199091), the Office of Naval Research (award number N00014-15-0043), the Prostate Cancer Foundation, the Movember Foundation (award number 17CHAL08), the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University and the Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship program.

Allergy and Immunology Cancer Nanotechnology Research
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Epigenetic Biomarkers Predict CVD Risk

Jun 28, 2022

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Epigenetic Biomarkers Predict CVD Risk

Jun 28, 2022

Student Spearheads Ukraine Aid Efforts

Jun 27, 2022

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Combination Treatment May Improve Quality of Life in Kidney Cancer

Jun 23, 2022
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20220617_NM_0434
20220617_NM_0858
20220617_NM_0643
20220617_NM_0835
20220617_NM_0544
20220617_NM_0450
20220617_NM_0790
20220617_NM_0811
20220617_NM_0851
20220617_NM_0696
20220617_NM_0779
20220617_NM_0838

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2022 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.