Liposome-based synthetic long peptide vaccines for cancer immunotherapy

Synthetic long peptides (SLP) derived from cancer-associated antigens hold great promise as well-defined antigens for cancer immunotherapy. Clinical studies showed that SLP vaccines have functional potency when applied to pre-malignant stage patients, but need to be improved for use as a therapeutic intervention against tumours. So far, SLPs have been administered in Montanide ISA-51, a water-in-oil formulation with reported important drawbacks and induced local side effects. Therefore, there is an urgent need for replacement of Montanide by more potent and safe alternatives. In this thesis, the concept of cationic liposome-based formulations was introduced, as the backbone for improved delivery of SLPs for cancer therapeutic vaccination. The developed formulation’s ability to induce efficient immune responses able to control tumour outgrowth in aggressive independent tumour models, makes cationic liposomes a very promising platform for SLP-based cancer immunotherapy. Their flexibility regarding the properties of loaded SLPs, their relative inexpensive production and the possibility to administer them via different delivery routes are all in favour for liposomal SLP-based cancer immunotherapy to become reality soon.