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REVIEW article

Front. Cell Dev. Biol.
Sec. Cancer Cell Biology
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1514595

Hydrogel Systems for Spatiotemporal Controlled Delivery of Immunomodulators: Engineering the Tumor Immune Microenvironment for Enhanced Cancer Immunotherapy

Provisionally accepted
Wenyong Yang Wenyong Yang 1,2*Yanting Liu Yanting Liu 1Fang Liu Fang Liu 2Yan Zeng Yan Zeng 3Liangbin Lin Liangbin Lin 2Yu Hui Yu Hui 2Sunfu Zhang Sunfu Zhang 2
  • 1 Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Weihui, China
  • 2 Chengdu Third People's Hospital, Chengdu, China
  • 3 Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Tumor immunotherapy, modulating innate and adaptive immunity, has become an important therapeutic strategy. However, the tumor immune microenvironment's (TIME) complexity and heterogeneity challenge tumor immunotherapy. Hydrogel is a hydrophilic three-dimensional (3D) mesh structure with good biocompatibility and drug release control, which is widely used in drug delivery, agriculture, industry, etc.Hydrogels loaded with immune cells, cytokines, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and anti-tumor drugs can achieve targeted delivery and ultimately activate the immune response in the TIME. In this review, we will summarize the components of the TIME and their immune effects, the emerging immunomodulatory agents, the characteristics and functions of hydrogels, and how hydrogels regulate innate and adaptive immune cells in the TIME.

    Keywords: Hydrogel, immunomodulator, Tumor immune microenvironment, innate immunity, Adaptive Immunity

    Received: 21 Oct 2024; Accepted: 28 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Yang, Liu, Liu, Zeng, Lin, Hui and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Wenyong Yang, Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Weihui, 453,100, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.