Structure-based discovery of glycolipids for CD1d-mediated NKT cell activation: Tuning the adjuvant versus immunosuppression activity

A variety of fatty acyl chain analogues of alpha-galactosylceramide (alpha-GalCer) based on the available CD1d/glycolipid structures are designed and synthesized and natural killer T (NKT) cell activation is evaluated by measuring cytokine release profiles. The analysis has provided a new direction for the development of novel glycolipid-based immunotherapeutic agents that are more potent than alpha-GalCer and are able to display greater T helper 1 (Th1)-type cytokine profiles.