Freeze-drying of ovalbumin loaded mesoporous silica nanoparticle vaccine formulation increases antigen stability under ambient conditions

Amino functionalised mesoporous silica nanoparticles (AM-41) have been identified as a promising vaccine delivery material. The capacity of AM-41 to stabilise vaccine components at ambient temperature (23–27 °C) was determined by adsorbing the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) to AM-41 particles (OVA-41). The OVA-41 was successfully freeze-dried using the excipients 5% trehalose and 1% PEG8000. Both the immunological activity of OVA and the nanoparticle structure were maintained following two months storage at ambient temperature. The results of immunisation studies in mice with reconstituted OVA-41 demonstrated the induction of humoral and cell-meditated immune responses. The capacity of AM-41 particles to facilitate ambient storage of vaccine components without loss of immunological potency will underpin the further development of this promising vaccine delivery platform.

Polarized immune responses modulated by layered double hydroxides nanoparticle conjugated with CpG

Modulation of the immune response is an important step in the induction of protective humoral and cellular immunity against pathogens. In this study, we investigated the possibility of using a nanomaterial conjugated with the toll-like receptor (TLR) ligand CpG to modulate the immune response towards the preferred polarity. MgAl-layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanomaterial has a very similar chemical composition to Alum, an FDA approved adjuvant for human vaccination. We used a model antigen, ovalbumin (OVA) to demonstrate that MgAl-LDH had comparable adjuvant activity to Alum, but much weaker inflammation. Conjugation of TLR9 ligand CpG to LDH nanoparticles significantly enhanced the antibody response and promoted a switch from Th2 toward Th1 response, demonstrated by a change in the IgG2a:IgG1 ratio. Moreover, immunization of mice with CpG-OVA-conjugated LDH before challenge with OVA-expressing B16/F10 tumor cells retarded tumor growth. Together, these data indicate that LDH nanomaterial can be used as an immune adjuvant to promote Th1 or Th2 dominant immune responses suitable for vaccination purposes.