Comb-structured mRNA vaccine tethered with short double-stranded RNA adjuvants maximizes cellular immunity for cancer treatment.

ABSTRACT: Integrating antigen-encoding mRNA (Messenger RNA) and immunostimulatory adjuvant into a single formulation is a promising approach to potentiating the efficacy of mRNA vaccines. Here, we developed a scheme based on RNA engineering to integrate adjuvancy directly into antigen-encoding mRNA strands without hampering the ability to express antigen proteins. Short double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) was designed to target retinoic acid-inducible gene-I (RIG-I), an innate immune receptor, for effective cancer vaccination and then tethered onto the mRNA strand via hybridization. Tuning the dsRNA structure and microenvironment by changing its length and sequence enabled the determination of the structure of dsRNA-tethered mRNA efficiently stimulating RIG-I. Eventually, the formulation loaded with dsRNA-t

SUBMITTER: Tockary TA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10629565 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature