Nanoscale Adjuvants and Related Pharmaceutical Compositions and Methods
Described herein are nanoscale adjuvants for use in pharmaceutical compositions. In one embodiment, a pharmaceutical composition includes: (a) a vaccine; and (b) a nanoscale adjuvant including an aluminum compound in the form of clusters having a peak size in the sub-micron range.
1 . A pharmaceutical composition, comprising: (a) a vaccine; and (b) a nanoscale adjuvant including an aluminum compound in the form of clusters having a peak size in the sub-micron range.
2 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the aluminum compound corresponds to one of aluminum hydroxide, aluminum phosphate, and alum.
3 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the peak size of the clusters is less than 800 nm.
4 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the peak size of the clusters is less than 600 nm.
5 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the peak size of the clusters is less than 400 nm.
6 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the peak size of the clusters is less than 200 nm.
7 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the clusters have a distribution of sizes with a standard deviation that is less than 70% relative to the peak size of the clusters.
8 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 7 , wherein the standard deviation is less than 50% relative to the peak size of the clusters.
9 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the clusters includes constituent crystallites of the aluminum compound.
10 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the vaccine includes antigens that are coupled to the clusters.
11 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 10 , wherein the antigens are adsorbed onto exposed surfaces of the clusters.
12 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the vaccine is derived from at least one of a bacterium, a virus, and a cancer cell.
13 . The pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 , wherein the vaccine corresponds to a cancer vaccine.
14 . A method of stimulating an immune response in a patient, comprising: administering to the patient the pharmaceutical composition of claim 1 .
15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the patient is a human patient.
16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein a weight of aluminum per dose of the pharmaceutical composition is in the range of 1 μg/dose to 1.5 mg/dose.
17 . A method of preparing a pharmaceutical composition, comprising:
providing an adjuvant including clusters having a peak size in the sub-micron range, wherein at least one of the clusters corresponds to an aggregate of grains of a compound; and
combining the adjuvant with a vaccine to form the pharmaceutical composition.
18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the compound corresponds to an aluminum compound.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein providing the adjuvant includes ball milling the aluminum compound to form the clusters.
20 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the peak size of the clusters is in the range of 10 nm to 500 nm.