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Biotechnology

Universal cancer vaccine? First results give hope

Study published in Cell Reports Medicine shows record survival rates in mice and raises hopes for a new era of immunotherapy

by Francesca Cerati

3' min read

Translated by AI

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Key points

3' min read

Translated by AI

For feedback, please contact
english@ilsole24ore.com

Versione italiana

One vaccine, three cancers nipped in the bud. This is the result obtained by researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, who have developed an experimental vaccine based on lipid nanoparticles capable of preventing the occurrence of melanoma, pancreatic cancer and triple-negative breast cancer in pre-clinical tests on mice.

The study, published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine, shows that up to 88% of the vaccinated animals did not develop the disease, and that in many cases the treatment also blocked metastases, the main cause of cancer mortality.

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The challenge of active immunity

The idea of an anti-cancer vaccine is not new, but remains one of the most complex challenges in modern immunology. Unlike vaccines against viruses or bacteria, cancer cells are not 'foreign' to the body: they derive from their own tissues which, through mutation, escape immune control.

To activate their recognition, specific tumour antigens - molecular fragments that act as targets - and adjuvants capable of enhancing the immune response are needed.

The group led by Prabhani Atukorale, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, solved both problems by combining tumour antigens and a 'super-adjuvant' consisting of multifunctional lipid nanoparticles in a single platform.

Nanoparticles that 'teach' the immune system to recognise the tumour

In the first set of experiments, the researchers combined the nanoparticles with melanoma-derived peptides: the formulation stimulated a robust cytotoxic T-cell response, capable of recognising and destroying tumour cells.

Three weeks after vaccination, the animals were exposed to melanoma cells: 80% of the vaccinated mice survived without developing tumours for the entire duration of the study (250 days), while all unvaccinated controls died within 35 days.

In a second experiment, the team replaced the peptides with tumour lysates - fragments of cancer cells derived directly from neoplastic masses - and obtained similar results: 88% of mice exposed to pancreatic cancer, 75% to breast cancer and 69% to melanoma remained healthy.

The key: a 'super-adjuvant'

The most remarkable novelty lies in the design of the super-adjuvant. The Atukorale team's lipid nanoparticles co-encapsulate two immunostimulatory molecules that act on distinct pathways: the Toll-like receptor 4 (Tlr4) and the interferon gene stimulator (Sting).

This dual activation induces a synergetic immune response, generating high levels of type I interferons and proinflammatory cytokines, enhancing the ability of dendritic cells and macrophages to 'present' the antigen to T cells.

'The tumour-specific T-cell responses we manage to generate are the real key to the survival advantage,' explains Griffin Kane, first author of the study. 'The immune activation achieved with our formulation is intense and long-lasting, and stimulates systemic immune memory.

Memory and metastasis block

In addition to preventing the appearance of primary tumours, the vaccine showed the ability to block metastatic spread. In tests in which mice were exposed to melanoma cells systemically, none of the vaccinated animals developed lung metastases, whereas all controls did.

'Metastasis is still the leading cause of cancer mortality,' Atukorale notes. 'Our platform induces memory immunity that extends throughout the body, providing a lasting systemic defence.

From research to clinic

In the wake of these results, the Amherst group founded the start-up NanoVax Therapeutics, with the aim of moving the technology towards clinical trials. The approach is designed as a modular platform, adaptable to different tumour types for both preventive and therapeutic purposes.

'Our ambition is to develop a new generation of customisable cancer vaccines,' Kane concludes, 'A system that teaches the immune system to recognise and neutralise cancer cells before the disease manifests itself.

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