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 T cell responses. The consortium will 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.