Dawn of lipid nanoparticles in lymph node targeting: Potential in cancer immunotherapy

Takashi Nakamura1, Hideyoshi Harashima1

  • 1Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, Kita-12, Nishi-6, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0812, Japan.

It is generally known that the lymph nodes (LNs) are important tissues in cancer immunotherapy. Therefore, delivering immune functional compounds to LNs is a useful strategy for enhancing cancer immunotherapy. Lipid-based nanocarriers have been widely used as delivery systems that target LNs, but lipid nanoparticle (LNP) technology has recently attracted increased interest. High levels of nucleic acids can be efficiently loaded in LNPs, they can be used to actively deliver nucleic acids into the cytoplasm, and they can be produced on an industrial scale. The use of microfluidic devices has been particularly valuable for producing small-sized LNPs, thus paving the way for successful LN targeting. In the review, we focus on the potential of LNP technology for targeting LNs.

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