Cells are the smallest operational units of living systems. Through synthesis of various biomolecules and exchange of signals with the environment, cells tightly regulate their composition to realize a specific functional state. The transformation of a cel ...
Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) are synthetic, transmembrane proteins that trigger immune cell signaling following their engagement. They have been first utilized in T cells and later in natural killer (NK) cells to redirect their cytotoxicity toward a s ...
Cell-cell communication is fundamental for immune balance. Multivalent interactions of surface receptors at immune interfaces drive specific communication, with stimulatory and inhibitory signals guiding the immune outcome. Notably, the valency, affinity, ...
Lymphomas are a group of heterogeneous blood cancers that arise from lymphocytes. The two primary clinical classifications of lymphomas are Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL), and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). In particular, B-cell lymphoma refers to the malignancies ...
CD4+T cells orchestrate the adaptive immune response against pathogens and cancer by recognizing epitopes presented on class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC-II) molecules. The high polymorphism of MHC-II genes represents an important hurdle toward ...
The use of CAR technologies has revolutionized cancer treatment. Their unprecedented efficacy against B cell malignancies has opened the doors for a lot of excitement and research in the field. These synthetic receptors are composed of an antigen recogniti ...
Vaccine technology is still facing challenges regarding some infectious diseases, which can be addressed by innovative drug delivery systems. In particular, nanoparticle-based vaccines combined with new types of adjuvants are actively explored as a platfor ...
Hepatitis B virus remains a major medical burden with more than 250 million chronically infected patients worldwide and 900,000 deaths each year, due to the disease progression towards severe complications (cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma). Despite the ...
Recent breakthroughs in cancer immunotherapy, exemplified by immune checkpoint blockade and CAR T cell therapy, have achieved remarkable clinical success. However, the majority of cancer patients fail to respond to immunotherapy or suffer from relapse. Nan ...
Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Early-stage disease can be detected with preventative medical screening and is treatable with surgical resection. Sixty-percent of patients, however, are diagnosed with advanced-stage ...
Adoptive T cell therapyhas successfully been implementedfor thetreatment of cancer. Nevertheless, ex vivo expansion of T cells byartificial antigen-presenting cells (aAPCs) remains cumbersome andcan compromise T cell functionality, thereby limiting their t ...