Dendritic Cell Exosome Vaccines Research Progress in Oncotherapy

Dendritic Cell-derived Exosomes (DEX) are nanoscale (30-140 nm) extracellular vesicles secreted by dendritic cells (DC), carrying key immune-active components such as MHC-I/II class molecules, costimulatory molecules, and tumor antigens. It has the ability to present natural antigens. Its lipid bilayer structure not only protects the stability of the contents but also enhances the efficiency of penetrating biological membranes and promotes the uptake of antigens by dendritic cells or T cells. Traditional anti-tumor vaccines, such as tumor cell lysate vaccines and peptide vaccines, have drawbacks like immunosuppression and targeting a single antigenic epitope. However, DEX vaccines can make up for these deficiencies through engineering modifications and other means. Other new types of vaccines, such as mRNA vaccines, have their delivery efficiency limited by vectors, while DEX vaccines have a natural membrane structure and possess the advantages of both efficient delivery and low toxicity. Compared with DC cell vaccines, DEX has no cellular structure, avoiding the problem of live cell preservation, is not affected by immunosuppression, and can further enhance its immune activation ability through genetic engineering modification.