Mesoporous silica nanoparticles as a potential vaccine adjuvant against Schistosoma mansoni

Abstract

The Schistosoma mansoni is a parasite that is associated with several pathologies of great relevance to humans. Prophylactic and epidemiological strategies have been proposed in order to reduce the number of cases of infection. However, although chemotherapeutic drugs currently available may treat the disease, they are inefficient in preventing this illness. Thus, the development of vaccines against Schistosoma mansoni has great importance for diminishing the number of cases. To reach this goal, the search for new adjuvants is important to optimize the immunological response. In this scenario, nanostructured materials including mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN) have attracted much attention due to their high biocompatibility, chemical stability, biodegradability, and high payloads, thereby making them a promising candidate as a vaccine adjuvant. Therefore, the present work aimed to study the immune response generated by Soluble Worm Antigenic Preparation obtained from adult Schitosoma mansoni loaded in MSN as a potential vaccine against S. mansoni. MSN were characterized according to their size, zeta potential, and porosity, showing suitable characteristics for in vivo applications. SWAP was successfully incorporated into MSN and immune assays indicate that MSN are capable of stimulating high immune response, in comparison to conventional adjuvants. In conclusion, data presented in this work indicate the feasibility of SWAP-loaded MSN in stimulating the immune system of mice. The SWAP-loaded MSN might be considered a strategy to produce vaccines against S. mansoni.