Publications

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Publications since 2023 (* co-responding author; # equal contribution)

Williams LM and Cao S*. Harnessing and delivering microbial metabolites as therapeutics via advanced pharmaceutical approaches. Pharmacology & Therapeutics. 2024. 256, 108605.

Cao S*#, Budina E#, Raczy MM, Solanki A, Nguyen M, Beckman TN, Reda JW, Hultgren K, Ang P, Slezak AJ, Hesser LA, Alpar AT, Refvik KC, Shores LS, Pillai I, Wallace RP, Dhar A, Watkins E, Hubbell JA*. A serine-conjugated butyrate prodrug with high oral bioavailability suppresses autoimmune arthritis and neuroinflammation in mice. Nature Biomedical Engineering, 2024. 

Cao S*, Budina E, Wang R, Sabados M, Mukherjee A, Solanki A, Nguyen M, Hultgren K, Dhar A, Hubbell JA*. Injectable butyrate-prodrug micelles induce long-acting immune modulation and suppress autoimmune arthritis in mice. Journal of Controlled Release, 2024 (372): 281-294.

Cao S*, Maulloo CD, Raczy MM, Sabados M, Slezak AJ, Nguyen M, Solanki A, Wallace RP, Shim HN, Wilson DS, Hubbell JA*. Glycosylation-modified antigens as a tolerance-inducing vaccine platform prevent anaphylaxis in a pre-clinical model of food allergy. Cell Reports Medicine. 2023. 5, 101346.

Wallace RP, Refvik KC, Antane JT, Brünggel K, Tremain AC, Raczy MM, Alpar AT, Nguyen M, Solanki A, Slecak AJ, Watkins EA, Lauterbach AL, Cao S, Wilson DS*, Hubbell JA*. Synthetically mannosylated antigens induce antigen-specific humoral tolerance and reduce anti-drug antibody responses to immunogenic biologics. Cell Reports Medicine. 2023. 5, 101345.

Lauterbach A#, Slezak A#, Wang R, Cao S, Raczy MM, Watkins EA, Jimenez CJM, Hubbell JA*. Mannose-Decorated Co-Polymer Facilitates Controlled Release of Butyrate to Accelerate Chronic Wound Healing. Advanced Healthcare Materials. 2023 (7). 

Wang R#, Cao S#, Bashir MEH#, Hesser LA, Su Y, Hong SMC, Thompson A, Culleen E, Sabados M, Dylla NP, Campbell E, Bao R, Nonnecke EB, Bevins CL, Wilson DS, Hubbell JA, Nagler CR. Treatment of peanut allergy and colitis in mice via the intestinal release of butyrate from polymeric micelles. Nature Biomedical Engineering. 2023 (7):38-55. 

Commentary: Nature Biomedical Engineering. 2023.

News Report: UChicago News

Selected publications before 2023

Mansurov A, Hosseinchi P, Chang K, Lauterbach A, Gray L, Alpar A, Budina E, Slezak A, Kang S, Cao S, Solanki A, Gomes S, Williford J-M, Swartz MA, Mendoza J, Ishihara J, Hubbell JA*. Engineering Protease-sensitive Interleukin-12 for Cancer Immunotherapy. Nature Biomedical Engineering. 2022. 6(7):819-829. 

Cao S, Nagler CR*. Interpreting success or failure of peanut oral immunotherapy. The Journal of Clinical Investigation. 2022; 132(2);e155255. 


Gray LT#, Raczy MM#, Briquez PS#, Marchell TM#, Alpar AR, Wallace RP, Volpatti LR, Sasso MS, Cao S, Nguyen M, Mansurov A, Budina E, Watkins EA, Solanki A, Mitrousis N, Reda JW, Yu SS, Tremain AC, Wang R, Nicolaescu V, Furlong K, Dvorkin S, Manicassamy B, Randall G, Wilson DS, Kwissa M, Swartz MA*, Hubbell JA*. Generation of potent cellular and humoral immunity against SARS-CoV-2 antigens via conjugation to a polymeric glycol-adjuvant. Biomaterials. 2021; 278:121159. 


Maulloo CD, Cao S, Watkins EA, Raczy MM, MacNabb BW, Solanki AS, Nguyen M, Reda JW, Shim HN, Kline JP, Wilson DS, Swartz MA*, Hubbell JA*. Lymph node-targeted synthetically glycosylated antigen leads to antigen-specific immunological tolerance. Frontiers in Immunology. 2021; 3920 (12).



Volpatti LR#, Wallace RP#, Cao S#, Raczy MM#, Wang R#, Gray LT, Alpar AR, Briquez PS, Mitrousis N, Marchell TM, Sasso MS, Nguyen M, Schnorenberg MR, Mansurov A, Budina E, Solanki A, Watkins EA, Tremain AC, Reda JW, Nicolaescu V, Furlong K, Dvorkin S, Randall G, Yu SS, Kwissa M, Swartz MA*, Hubbell JA*. Polymersomes decorated with SARS-CoV-2 spike protein receptor binding domain elicit robust humoral and cellular immunity. ACS Central Science. 2021; 7(8); 1368-1380.


Cao S, Slack SD, Levy CN, Hughes SM, Jiang Y, Yogodzinski C, Roychoudhury P, Jerome KR, Schiffer JT, Hladik F, and Woodrow KA*. Hybrid nanocarriers incorporating mechanistically distinct drugs for lymphatic CD4+ T cell activation and HIV latency reversal. Science Advances. 2019; 5 (3), eaav6322. 


Cao S, Woodrow KA*. Nanotechnology approaches to eradicating HIV reservoirs. European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. 2019;138:46-63. 



Cao S, Jiang Y, Zhang H, Kondza N, Woodrow KA*. Core-shell nanoparticles for targeted and combination antiretroviral activity in gut-homing T cells. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine. 2018;14(7):2143-2153. 


Cao S, Jiang Y, Levy CN, Hughes SM, Zhang H, Hladik F, and Woodrow KA*. Optimization and comparison of CD4-targeting lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles using different binding ligands. Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part A. 2018;106(5):1177-1188.  


Selected presentations at national and international conferences (Cao as the presenter from 2015-2023)

1.      “Seryl-butyrate: a prodrug that enhances butyrate's oral bioavailability and suppresses autoimmune arthritis and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis” Biomedical Engineering Society Annual Meeting. October 11-25. 2023. Seattle, WA. Oral presentation.

2.      “Suppression of autoimmune arthritis and neuroinflammation via a seryl-butyrate prodrug with enhanced bioavailability” Keystone Conference: Mechanisms of Microbiota-Immune Interactions-Towards the Next Decade. October 8-11. 2023. Snowbird, UT. Poster presentation.

3.     “Immune-modulating therapy via the delivery of butyrate using polymeric micelles.” April 19-22, 2023. The Society for Biomaterials Annual Meeting. San Diego, CA. Oral presentation.

4.      “A serine-butyrate prodrug with enhanced oral bioavailability ameliorates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.” Autumn Immunology Conference. November 18-21. 2022. Chicago, IL. Oral presentation. (National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) Travel Award)

5.    “Microbial metabolite butyrate-prodrug polymeric micelles promote gut health and treat food allergies.” American Chemical Society Fall Meeting. August 21-25, 2022. Chicago, IL. Invited oral presentation at the PMSE Future Faculty Symposium. (PMSE Future Faculty Award)

6.      “Microbial metabolite butyrate-prodrug polymeric micelles treat food allergies.” Immunoengineering Gordon Research Conference. July 10-15, 2022. Ventura, CA. Poster presentation.

7.      “Lymph node-targeted long-acting butyrate micelles induce regulatory immune modulation.” Immunology2022, The American Association of Immunologists Annual Meeting. May 6-10, 2022. Portland, OR. Oral and poster presentations. (AAI Trainee Abstract Award)

8.      “Synthetically glycosylated antigens as an inverse vaccine platform to prevent and treat food allergies.” Immunology2022, The American Association of Immunologists Annual Meeting. May 6-10, 2022. Portland, OR. Poster presentation.

9.      “Glyco-Polymerization of Dietary Allergens to Prevent Food Allergy.” American Association of Pharmaceutical Science 2020 PharmSci360. October 26-November 5, 2020. Virtual. Oral presentation.

10.     “In vivo regulatory T cell induction by lymphatic-delivery of long-acting butyrate micelles.” American Association of Pharmaceutical Science 2020 PharmSci360. October 26-November 5, 2020. Virtual. Poster presentation. (AAPS Best Abstract Award)

11.      “Optimization and comparison of CD4-targeting lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles using different binding ligands” Society for Biomaterials Annual Meeting & Exposition. April 11-14, 2018. Atlanta, GA. Oral presentation. (UW GSFEI Graduate Student Travel Award)

12.   “Lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles incorporating mechanistically distinct drugs for HIV cure” 2nd Bioengineering and Translational Medicine Conference. October 28-29, 2017, Minneapolis, MN. Oral presentation.

13.   “In vivo targeting of gut-homing T cells with a dual-functional conjugated to lipid-polymer hybrid nanocarriers for HIV treatment” 7th International Conference on Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. March 19-22, 2017, Chicago, IL. Oral presentation.

14.   “Targeted co-delivery of dual-function monoclonal antibody and tipranavir to gut-homing T cells using lipid-coated PLGA nanoparticles” 43rd Annual Meeting & Exposition of the Controlled Release Society. July 17-20, 2016, Seattle, Washington. Poster presentation.

15.  “Lipid-coated PLGA nanoparticles conjugated with a dual-function antibody for targeted delivery of ARVs to α4β7 expressing T cells” 13th International Nanomedicine and Drug Delivery Symposium. September 16-18, 2015, Seattle, Washington. Poster presentation.

Intellectual Property

1.     JA Hubbell, R Wang, S Cao, CR Nagler, DS Wilson, MH Bashir. Prodrug copolymers and polymeric micelles thereof for the delivery of short-chain fatty acids, the promotion of gut health, and the treatment of immune and/or inflammatory conditions and food allergy. US Patent App. 18/052,449.

2. JA Hubbell, CR Nagler, S Cao, MH Bashir. Butyrate micelles alter the fecal microbiome and promote recovery of Clostridium Cluster XIVa after antibiotic exposure. Filed by University of Chicago (2022).

3.     JA Hubbell, S Cao, MM Raczy, E Watkins, E Budina. Oral systemically-bioavailable butyrate through conjugation to hydroxy-amino acids. Filed by University of Chicago (2021).