Micelles

There are still many infectious diseases for which effective vaccines have not been developed. In many cases, the failure to design a vaccine is due to the vaccine's inability to elicit the appropriate immune response, especially when the protective immunity requires cellular immunity. Materials of nanometer size (<1000 nm) such as virus-like particles (VLPs), liposomes, ISCOMs, polymers, and micelles have received increasing attention as potential delivery vehicles for vaccine antigens as they can both stabilize vaccine antigens and act as adjuvants. More importantly, some of these nanoparticles can enter antigen-presenting cells through different pathways and thus modulate the immune response to the antigen. This may be crucial for inducing a protective Th1-type immune response to intracellular pathogens. Their properties also make them suitable for delivery of antigens on mucosal surfaces and intradermal administration.