General Characteristics of Adjuvants and Their Mechanism of Action (Part 1)

Abstract

One of priority issues of the present-day healthcare system is development of new vaccines and improvement of existing ones due to decreasing immunocompetence of the population, emergence of new infections and reemergence of old ones which were previously thought to be under control. Adjuvants have proven to be integral and important components of modern vaccines, as they enhance immune response to the vaccine antigen. However, despite a lot of effort put into their development, only a small number of adjuvants are currently used in clinical practice.The aim of the study was to systematise literature data on the adjuvants’ mechanisms of action, their specific structure, composition, and stimulation effects that mediate their immunoadjuvant properties. The paper summarises data on adjuvants used as components in licensed vaccines, describes their characteristics, analyses molecular mechanisms of their action in order to establish correlation between their structure and activity, which is important for the development of more efficacious and safe adjuvants. The paper cites advanced developments aimed at enhancing stimulation effects of existing adjuvants. It concludes by stating that the key research area aimed at improving vaccination efficacy is the study of mechanisms that contribute to the development of effective protection against infectious agents, as well as analysis of how to use adjuvants to stimulate the body’s defensive mechanisms, primarily by impacting the innate immunity.

Evaluation of approaches to increase the effectiveness of various disinfectants against biofilm communities of different ages

“…Such additional substances are called adju-0,00 vants (enhancers). This term was originally used in medicine for enhancers of the immune response [41]. Some substances that enhance the effect of a disinfectant on biofilms are also adjuvants (hydrolases).…”

Licensed liposomal vaccines and adjuvants in the antigen delivery system

“…MPL (3-O-desacyl-4 -monophosphoryl lipid A) is a detoxified synthetic derivative of the lipopolysaccharide of the gram-negative bacteria Salmonella minnesota that retains the adjuvant activity of the lipopolysaccharide with minimal toxicity. Over the past 20 years, numerous studies have demonstrated the high adjuvant activity of MPL (Alpatova et al, 2020;Alving and Rao, 2008). However, the high pyrogenic activity of MPL hinders its use as an adjuvant in VACs.…”

“…Based on the results of a study of the mechanism of action of QS-21, it can be concluded that the stimulating effect of QS-21 on the development of the humoral and cellular immune response is mediated by the following mechanisms (Alpatova et al, 2020):…”

New Approach to Improving the Efficiency of Disinfectants against Biofilms

“…Such additional substances can be considered as adjuvants (enhancers, boosters). This term, which was originally used only in medicine for immune response enhancers [26], then came to be used in agronomy [27][28][29]. Agronomic adjuvants aim to enhance the effect of the main component of the drug on a particular crop, e.g., by improving its penetration and assimilation.…”