PLGA-PEG-Mal and PLGA-CY5 from PolySciTech used in development of nanoparticles with targeted delivery to white blood cells

 

Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell (leukocytes) that act as your immune system's first line of defense. The ability to modify their behavior can be a powerful tool for controlling both immune diseases and potentially immunotherapy against cancer or other targets. Recently, researchers at Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, and Immunyx Pharma PLGA-CY5 (cat# AV034) and PLGA-PEG-Maleimide (cat# AI110) from PolySciTech Division of Akina, Inc. (www.polyscitech.com) to create targeted nanoparticles with ligands to target and attach to neutrophils. This research holds promise to provide for mechanisms to modify and modulate the behavior of neutrophils as therapeutic strategy. Read More: Granot, Z., Völs, S., Kaisar-Iluz, N., Shaul, M.E., Ryvkin, A., Ashkenazy, H., Yehuda, A., Atamneh, R., Meital, B.D.N., Nadav, M. and Hirsch, S., Targeted Nanoparticles Modify Neutrophil Function In Vivo. Frontiers in Immunology, p.5679. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2022.1003871/full

“Abstract: Neutrophils play critical roles in a broad spectrum of clinical conditions. Accordingly, manipulation of neutrophil function may provide a powerful immunotherapeutic approach. However, due to neutrophils characteristic short half-life and their large population number, this possibility was considered impractical. Here we describe the identification of peptides which specifically bind either murine or human neutrophils. Although the murine and human neutrophil-specific peptides are not cross-reactive, we identified CD177 as the neutrophil-expressed binding partner in both species. Decorating nanoparticles with a neutrophil-specific peptide confers neutrophil specificity and these neutrophil-specific nanoparticles accumulate in sites of inflammation. Significantly, we demonstrate that encapsulating neutrophil modifying small molecules within these nanoparticles yields specific modulation of neutrophil function (ROS production, degranulation, polarization), intracellular signaling and longevity both in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that neutrophil specific targeting may serve as a novel mode of immunotherapy in disease.”