Engineering biological interactions on the nanoscale

Nanoparticulate platforms have contributed significantly to the field of biomedical research, demonstrating advantages over traditional modalities in areas such as drug delivery, detoxification, and vaccination. When it comes to the design of nanoparticles, biomimetic strategies have become increasingly popular as a means of promoting effective interactions with biological systems. A recently developed cell membrane-coated nanoparticle platform can leverage the natural interactions that cells engage in with other cells, the extracellular matrix, and biomolecules in order to reduce undesirable nonspecific interactions, while increasing target-specific interactions. Here, we discuss the current state of these biomimetic nanoparticles and highlight how they can be used for various biomedical applications

Engineered Cell‐Membrane‐Coated Nanoparticles Directly Present Tumor Antigens to Promote Anticancer Immunity

The recent success of immunotherapies has highlighted the power of leveraging the immune system in the fight against cancer. In order for most immune-based therapies to succeed, T cell subsets with the correct tumor-targeting specificities must be mobilized. When such specificities are lacking, providing the immune system with tumor antigen material for processing and presentation is a common strategy for stimulating antigen-specific T cell populations. While straightforward in principle, experience has shown that manipulation of the antigen presentation process can be incredibly complex, necessitating sophisticated strategies that are difficult to translate. Herein, we report on the design of a biomimetic nanoparticle platform that can be used to directly stimulate T cells without the need for professional antigen-presenting cells. The nanoparticles are fabricated using a cell membrane coating derived from cancer cells engineered to express a costimulatory marker. Combined with the peptide epitopes naturally presented on the membrane surface, the final formulation contains the necessary signals to promote tumor antigen-specific immune responses, priming T cells that can be used to control tumor growth. The reported approach represents an emerging strategy that can be used to develop multi-antigenic, personalized cancer immunotherapies