Materials for Immunotherapy

Abstract

Breakthroughs in materials engineering have accelerated the progress of immunotherapy in preclinical studies. The interplay of chemistry and materials has resulted in improved loading, targeting, and release of immunomodulatory agents. An overview of the materials that are used to enable or improve the success of immunotherapies in preclinical studies is presented, from immunosuppressive to proinflammatory strategies, with particular emphasis on technologies poised for clinical translation. The materials are organized based on their characteristic length scale, whereby the enabling feature of each technology is organized by the structure of that material. For example, the mechanisms by which i) nanoscale materials can improve targeting and infiltration of immunomodulatory payloads into tissues and cells, ii) microscale materials can facilitate cell‐mediated transport and serve as artificial antigen‐presenting cells, and iii) macroscale materials can form the basis of artificial microenvironments to promote cell infiltration and reprogramming are discussed. As a step toward establishing a set of design rules for future immunotherapies, materials that intrinsically activate or suppress the immune system are reviewed. Finally, a brief outlook on the trajectory of these systems and how they may be improved to address unsolved challenges in cancer, infectious diseases, and autoimmunity is presented.

Macrophage‐Mediated Delivery of Hypoxia‐Activated Prodrug Nanoparticles

“…To remedy this, PLGA was blended into the particles. This biodegradable and FDA‐approved polymer has demonstrated superior uptake by macrophage phagocytosis compared to other polymeric materials . The addition of PLGA led to a marked improvement of particle uptake compared to those without PLGA (Figure 3A).…”

Supramolecular Prodrug Nanovectors for Active Tumor Targeting and Combination Immunotherapy of Colorectal Cancer

“…The small molecular compounds generally lack tumor specificity, which could induce severe side effects because of nonspecific drug distribution in the normal tissues. [ 24–26 ] Therefore, it is highly desirable to spatiotemporally codeliver multiple immune modulators to the tumor site for combination immunotherapy. Among the various nanovectors exploited for codelivery of multiple therapeutic regimens, supramolecular nanocomplexes have shown considerable potential for targeted drug delivery and cancer therapy.…”

Chlorophyll-Inspired Tunable Metamaterials With Multi-Negative Refractive Index Bands: The Porphyrin Ring and Hydrophobic Tail Effect

“…Nature is undoubtedly the most astonishing creator in regard to both beauty and functionality. Numerous bio-inspired designs [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9], also called biomimetics or biomimicry, e.g., arts, structures, architectures, and materials, have been introduced as an innovative strategy translating complexity and diversity principles of function, performance, and aesthetics from biology to human technology and creativity for centuries. Mechanically active dressings to accelerate wound healing were inspired by embryonic wound closure [5].…”

“…An overview of the materials used to improve immunotherapies based on artificial cells and artificial microenvironments was presented. The materials were organized based on their characteristic length scale, whereby the enabling feature of each technology was organized by the structure of that material [7]. Endothelial cells representing the first biological barrier for compounds, including nanoparticles, administered via the intravascular route has been reported [8].…”