Zinc ion framework improves immunotherapy drug delivery

Research from a collaborative project led by scientists from the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST; Thuwal, Saudi Arabia), published in Science Advances, has revealed a potential novel drug delivery system for the treatment of leukemia and solid tumors. Cancer immunotherapy modulates the immune system to encourage it to attack cancer cells. Immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as nivolumab, disrupt cancer cells’ immune evasion strategies that deactivate T cells. Removing the cancer’s defense against the immune system and activating T cells is an effective method of killing cancer cells. However, these therapies can have intense and debilitating adverse effects...