Bioconjugate Materials in Vaccines and Immunotherapies

Abstract

The immune system relies on bioconjugates to generate and regulate processes that underpin immunity. For example, self-assembling immune complexes create pores that can lyse extracellular bacteria, while lymphocytes engage fragments of pathogens—“antigens”—loaded in proteins during generation of potent, specific immune responses. Not surprisingly then, engineered bioconjugates are creating exciting possibilities in the immunology arena, spanning infectious diseases, cancer, transplantation, and autoimmune diseases. These constructs are enabling new technologies for vaccine design and immunotherapy, as well as diagnostics. This special issue describes the state-of-the-art in this area, beginn..