Application of inorganic nanoparticles in hiv vaccines

Saideh Yoosefi,1,* Hamideh gharamaleki ,2 Robabe mohammadi,3

1. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Arak University
2. Department of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz-Iran
3. Shahed University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Introduction

Vaccination has considerably improved human health and it has played a key role in eradicating the diseases. despite this successful history of vaccines, having an effective vaccine against aids still remains elusive. aids is now considered as a global pandemic which is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (hiv). in 2017 an estimated 36.9 million people globally were living with hiv and 940 000 people died of hiv-related illnesses. therefore, there is an urgent need for a safe and effective preventive hiv vaccine in order to save millions of lives. in recent years, inorganic nanoparticles (npcs)-based formulations have offered the promise of vaccine development. the unique properties of inorganic nps such as small size, high surface area to volume, simple synthesis methodology, biocompatibility, surface functionality, stability in biological fluids, make them promising adjuvants and delivery systems for hiv vaccines.

Methods

Here, the general overview of the field is provided and the recent advances in the use of inorganic npcs in hiv vaccines along with related challenges and prospects are described. we reviewed all the literature between 2013 and 2018 related to three categories of inorganic nps including aluminum-based nanoparticles, gold nanoparticles and silver nanoparticles. also, related challenges and prospects are discussed.

Results

There are some reports showed that inorganic nps can inhibit the hiv virus from binding to host cells. on the other hands, the surface modification of inorganic nps by different functional groups to achieve targeted antigen delivery has opened new avenues for vaccination against hiv. since the characteristics of inorganic nps extremely depend on their size, shape and structure, the control of the parameters is vital to achieve the desired immunological responses.

Conclusion

Developing a safe and effective hiv vaccine still is so challenging, due to the complicated nature of hiv and the potential toxicity of inorganic nps to biological organisms. hence, the extensive research efforts to improve our understanding of hiv and the performance of nps are highly required.

Keywords

Inorganic nanoparticles, hiv, vaccine, aids