Nanoparticle-based immunotherapy: state of the art and future perspectives.

INTRODUCTION: For several years now, medicine has been benefiting from the contribution of nanoparticles (NPs) technology for both diagnosis and therapy. They can be used as adjuvants, being capable per se of immune-modulating activity, or as carriers for molecules to be transported to a specific target, eventually loaded with specific ligands favoring specific uptake. AREAS COVERED: The review focuses on experimental use of NPs as adjuvants/carriers for allergen immunotherapy (AIT). Human clinical trials conducted so far are discussed. EXPERT OPINION: Results of experimental studies and recent clinical trials support the use of NPs as carrier/adjuvant in AIT. Comparisons between NP-based and classical AIT are needed, to show the usefulness of the NP-based approach. However, there are still unsolved problems: the persistence of non-degradable NPs with possible toxicological consequences, and the formation of the protein corona around the NPs, which could alter their activity and fate. Virus-like particles seem the most promising NPs for allergy treatment, as for other vaccines. Over the next decade, NP-based AIT will be largely used to treat allergic disorders.