Wednesday 16:00 pm - 17:15 pm FIT seminar room

livMatS Colloquium | Prof. Christoph Rademacher (Universität Wien) | Glycomimetics for the delivery of mRNA therapeutics to immune cells

Abstract
C-type lectin receptors (CLRs) are a diverse family of mammalian carbohydrate-binding proteins with defined cell-specific expression patterns, making them attractive targets for immunomodulatory therapeutics. Among them, langerin (CD207), expressed on epidermal Langerhans cells (LCs), plays a pivotal role in antigen presentation and immune response initiation. I will present the discovery and development of a glycomimetic small molecule targeting langerin's carbohydrate-binding site. Using biophysical methods such as NMR and GCI, the ligand's interactions were characterized, followed by its integration into lipid-based nanoparticle (LNP) formulations via microfluidics. These formulations were evaluated for antigen presentation using in vitro cell assays and in vivo transdermal delivery models. The glycomimetic ligand enables targeted uptake into langerin-expressing cells, facilitating payload delivery, antigen presentation, and T cell activation. This approach demonstrates significant potential for the development of transdermal vaccines and targeted immunotherapeutic strategies.

Brief Bio
Dr. Rademacher holds a full professorship at the Department for Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Department for Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics at the University of Vienna and the Max F. Perutz Labs, Austria. His research is focused on the development and application of novel molecular probes to understand the role of carbohydrates in immune cell regulation with a strong emphasis on molecular drug targeting.