title: Recent advances in mucosal immunization using virus-like particles.
abstract: Mucosal immunization offers the promises of eliciting a systemic and mucosal immune response, as well as enhanced patient compliance. Mucosal vaccination using defined antigens such as proteins and peptides requires delivery systems that combine good safety profiles with strong immunogenicity, which may be provided by virus-like particles (VLP). VLP are assembled from viral structural proteins and thus are devoid of any genetic material. They excel by mimicking natural pathogens, therefore providing antigen-protecting particulate nature, inherent immune-cell stimulatory mechanisms, and tissue-specific targeting depending on their parental virus. Nevertheless, despite of promising preclinical results, VLP remain rarely investigated in clinical studies. This review is intended to give an overview of obstacles and promises of VLP-based mucosal immunization as well as to identify strategies to further improve VLP while maintaining a good safety and tolerability profile.
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Geneva, University of Lausanne, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Gaëlle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vacher
authors.forename: Matthias D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Kaeser
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gurny
authors.forename: Gerrit
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Borchard
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000818:Animals; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D018928:Immunity, Mucosal; D014611:Vaccination / Q000379:methods*; D058425:Vaccines, Virus-Like Particle / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000276:immunology*; D022701:Virosomes
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D058425:Vaccines, Virus-Like Particle; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins; D022701:Virosomes