LEAPS Peptide Constructs for Targeted Dendritic Cell Maturation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for autoimmune conditions and cancer lack specificity, often leading to undesirable immune responses and safety concerns due to non-targeted immune suppression or stimulation, and existing peptide-based therapies face challenges in generating predictable and safe immune responses.
Innovation Solution
The development of Ligand Epitope Antigen Presentation System (LEAPS) peptide constructs that mature dendritic cells to specifically target autoimmune antigens or cancer cells, promoting a directed immune response by upregulating CD11c, CD86, and MHC II, and increasing IL-12 production, allowing for precise modulation of the immune response.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If general immune suppression therapies are used to treat autoimmune conditions, then the inappropriate immune response against self is down regulated, but the specificity to target only the autoimmune response is lost and normal immune defenses are affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the immune modulation approach by using distinct peptide constructs with specific functions: one peptide targets dendritic cells to induce maturation and antigen presentation, while another peptide specifically targets the autoimmune antigen. This segmentation allows selective modulation of the autoimmune response without suppressing overall immune function.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces dendritic cells as intermediary elements that bridge the antigen-specific peptide and the immune system. The dendritic cells process and present the autoimmune antigen in a controlled manner, enabling specific immune modulation without directly suppressing the entire immune system, thus reducing side effects on normal immune defenses.
2Reliability
If monoclonal antibodies are used to down regulate activated T cells, then the immune response is suppressed, but the disease specificity is insufficient and normal cellular constituents are affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by designing peptides with specific local functions: one peptide region binds to dendritic cell surface markers (CD11c, CD86) to induce local maturation, while another region binds to the autoimmune antigen. This localized functionality ensures that immune suppression occurs only at the specific site of autoimmune pathology, leaving normal cellular constituents unaffected.
3Reliability
If peptide-based immunomodulators are used to induce tolerance, then antigen specific suppression is achieved, but the ability to generate predictable and safe immune responses is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite peptide constructs that combine multiple functional elements: a dendritic cell-targeting peptide sequence combined with an antigen-specific peptide sequence. This composite structure integrates both the ability to specifically target dendritic cells and to induce antigen-specific tolerance, thereby achieving predictable and safe immune responses with enhanced adaptability to different autoimmune conditions.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention is related to peptide constructs, i.e., polypeptides obtained by linking together two or more peptides based on or derived from different molecules, which are useful in the treatment or prevention of cancer or the treatment of autoimmune diseases and compositions containing same, methods for producing same, and methods for using same; wherein the peptide constructs have the formula P1-x-P2 where P2 is a peptide associated with forms of cancer or an autoimmune condition and P1 is a peptide which will bind to a class of immune cells such as dendritic cells. The peptide construct can cause the maturation of immature dendritic cells to a more mature state. The peptide construct or the more mature dendritic cells can be administered to a subject to a modulate or to initiate an immune response against cancer cells, and can be used with dyes, radioisotopes, or therapeutic agents for detection of the immune target and/or treatment of cancer and autoimmune conditions.