Helena Florindo

In a study just published in Nature Nanotechnology led by Prof. Helena F. Florindo, from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lisbon, and Prof. Ronit Satchi-Fainaro, from the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, describe that the combination of these nanovaccines with therapies available in the clinic. These nanovaccines re-educated host immune system, enabling the identification of protein markers expressed at the surface of tumors, specifically melanoma, which resulted in a remarkable tumor inhibition and prolonged survival in preclinical models of this disease.

Um estudo publicado na revista britânica Nature Nanotechnology, liderado pela investigadora Helena Florindo, da Faculdade de Farmácia da Universidade de Lisboa, e pela investigadora Ronit Satchi-Fainaro da Universidade de Tel Aviv, apresenta os resultados da combinação de uma vacina anti-tumoral com outros tratamentos já utilizados em células que bloqueiam a resposta imunológica do nosso corpo contra células cancerígenas.

Combination of α-galactosylceramide (GalCer), a Natural Killer T (NKT) cell agonist, with melanoma-associated antigens presented by MHC class I (Melan-A:26) and MHC class II (gp100:44) molecules, and Toll-like Receptor (TLR) ligands (MPLA and CpG), within nanoparticle matrix induced a prominent anti-tumor immune response able to restrict melanoma growth. An enhanced infiltration of NKT and NK cells into tumor site was only achieved when the combination GalCer, antigens and TLR ligands were co-delivered by the nanovaccine.