Intracellular Carrier Against Resistant microOrganisms (ICARO)

Intracellular pathogens and viruses elicit immune responses by presenting their antigens to T cells. At the same time, they have evolved immune evasion mechanisms which essentially reduce the antigenic repertoire that is presented to the immune system. To overcome this problem, the EIC-funded ICARO project proposes to use silicon-based microchips that carry pathogen antigens and can be internalised by immune cells to aid antigen presentation. These biochips are retained within cells for a long time and will provide the foundation for a novel vaccination strategy that can boost specific and long-lasting T cell responses. The consortium aims to develop standardized methods for ICARO manufacturing and functionalisation to be easily applicable to different pathogens, thus accelerating the generation of new vaccines in the future