1 research outputs found
Controlling T‑Cell Activation with Synthetic Dendritic Cells Using the Multivalency Effect
Artificial
antigen-presenting cells (aAPCs) have recently gained
a lot of attention. They efficiently activate T cells and serve as
powerful replacements for dendritic cells in cancer immunotherapy.
Focusing on a specific class of polymer-based aAPCs, so-called synthetic
dendritic cells (sDCs), we have investigated the importance of multivalent
binding on T-cell activation. Using antibody-functionalized sDCs,
we have tested the influence of polymer length and antibody density.
Increasing the multivalent character of the antibody-functionalized
polymer lowered the effective concentration required for T-cell activation.
This was evidenced for both early and late stages of activation. The
most important effect observed was the significantly prolonged activation
of the stimulated T cells, indicating that multivalent sDCs sustain
T-cell signaling. Our results highlight the importance of multivalency
for the design of aAPCs and will ultimately allow for better mimics
of natural dendritic cells that can be used as vaccines in cancer
treatment