Laser adjuvants: key features and specificity

Increasing the vaccine effectiveness and the search for new adjuvants that directly influence immunocompetent cells and stimulate the development of a pronounced adaptive immune response remain significant problems for modern medicine. Currently, aluminum salts and other chemicals with certain side effects are used as adjuvants. Therefore, it is relevant to search for other methods to increase vaccine effectiveness while reducing its toxic effect on the patients. One of such methods is laser irradiation of the injection sites, which, among other things, makes it possible to reduce vaccine amount. The purpose of this review is to analyze publications on the use of laser to stimulate the immune response. Four different classes of lasers are known to systemically enhance the immune response to intradermal vaccination: pulsed lasers, continuous mode lasers, non-ablative fractional lasers, and ablative fractional lasers. Each laser vaccine adjuvant is characterized by radiation parameters, modes of action, and immunological adjuvant effects that differ significantly. The authors consider main classes of lasers used as immunological adjuvants. The specificity of each laser will help to choose the most effective option to achieve the clinical goal when using a particular vaccine.