A General Strategy toward Self‐assembled Nanovaccine Based on Cationic Lentinan to Induce Potent Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses

Abstract

AbstractAdjuvants play a critical role in the induction of effective immune responses by vaccines. Here, a self‐assembling nanovaccine platform that integrates adjuvant functions into the delivery vehicle is prepared. Cationic Lentinan (CLNT) is mixed with ovalbumin (OVA) to obtain a self‐assembling nanovaccine (CLNTO nanovaccine), which induces the uptake and maturation of bone marrow dendritic cells (BMDCs) via the toll‐like receptors 2/4 (TLR2/4) to produce effective antigen cross‐presentation. CLNTO nanovaccines target lymph nodes (LNs) and induce a robust OVA‐specific immune response via TLR and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathways, retinoic acid‐inducible gene I (RIG‐I) receptor, and cytokine‐cytokine receptor interactions. In addition, CLNTO nanovaccines are found that promote the activation of follicular helper T (Tfh) cells and induce the differentiation of germinal center (GC) B cells into memory B cells and plasma cells, thereby enhancing the immune response. Vaccination with CLNTO nanovaccine significantly inhibits the growth of ovalbumin (OVA)‐expressing B16 melanoma cell (B16‐OVA) tumors, indicating its great potential for cancer immunotherapy. Therefore, this study presents a simple, safe, and effective self‐assembling nanovaccine that induces helper T cell 1 (Th1) and helper T cell (Th2) immune responses, making it an effective vaccine delivery system.