Surface Engineered Nanoparticles for Oral Immunization

A rationally designed oral vaccine should be successfully delivered to the intestinal mucosal immune cells, and induce both humoral and cellular counterparts of immunity along with the mucosal immune response. The aim of this study is to mimic these natural infections and excel the utility of a specific ligand for β1 integrin (RGD peptide) to target M cells which seems to be the only portal for any particulate matter in GIT. The in vivo studies have shown higher antibody titre for alginate coated chitosan nanoparticles compared to plain chitosan nanoparticles. RGD peptide conjugated alginate coated chitosan nanoparticles proved to be the suitable carrier system for antigen delivery to gut associated lymphoid tissue. Based upon the release kinetics and strong systemic as well as mucosal immune response we can conclude that this cost effective carrier construct can be utilized for oral vaccination.