A tetravalent nanovaccine that inhibits growth of HPV-associated head and neck carcinoma via dendritic and T cell activation

Romano Josi; Daniel E. Speiser; Simone de Brot; Anne-Cathrine Vogt; Eva M. Sevick-Muraca; Genrich V. Tolstonog; Martin F. Bachmann; Mona O. Mohsen

iScience (Apr 2024)

A tetravalent nanovaccine that inhibits growth of HPV-associated head and neck carcinoma via dendritic and T cell activation

Romano Josi,
Daniel E. Speiser,
Simone de Brot,
Anne-Cathrine Vogt,
Eva M. Sevick-Muraca,
Genrich V. Tolstonog,
Martin F. Bachmann,
Mona O. Mohsen

Affiliations

Romano Josi: Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences (GCB), Bern, Switzerland
Daniel E. Speiser: Department of Oncology, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
Simone de Brot: COMPATH, Institute of Animal Pathology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Anne-Cathrine Vogt: Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Graduate School for Cellular and Biomedical Sciences (GCB), Bern, Switzerland
Eva M. Sevick-Muraca: Center for Molecular Imaging, Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA
Genrich V. Tolstonog: Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Agora Cancer Research Centre, Lausanne, Switzerland
Martin F. Bachmann: Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Nuffield Department of Medicine, The Henry Welcome Building for Molecular Physiology, The Jenner Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
Mona O. Mohsen: Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, University Hospital of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Department of BioMedical Research, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland; Tajarub Research & Development, Doha, State of Qatar; Corresponding author

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 27, no. 4
p. 109439

Abstract

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Summary: The global incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV) associated head and neck carcinoma is on the rise, in response to this a tetravalent therapeutic vaccine named Qβ-HPVag was developed. This vaccine, utilizing virus-like particles (VLPs) loaded with toll-like receptor ligands and chemically coupled to four HPV16-derived peptides, demonstrated strong anti-tumor effects in a murine head and neck cancer model. Qβ-HPVag impeded tumor progression, increased infiltration of HPV-specific T cells, and significantly improved survival. The vaccine`s efficacy was associated with immune repolarization in the tumor microenvironment, characterized by expanded activated dendritic cell subsets (cDC1, cDC2, DC3). Notably, mice responding to treatment exhibited a higher percentage of migratory DC3 cells expressing CCR7. These findings suggest promising prospects for optimized VLP-based vaccines in treating HPV-associated head and neck cancer.

Published in iScience

ISSN: 2589-0042 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Science
Website: http://www.cell.com/iscience/home

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