Bright side of the dark genome: antigens for next-gen cancer vaccines

<p>The discovery of cancer&rsquo;s hidden antigen landscape&mdash;comprising non-canonical &lsquo;dark matter&rsquo; antigens&mdash;has unveiled a vast, untapped reservoir of immune targets for next-generation cancer immunotherapy. While most cancer vaccine strategies of the past decade have focused on mutation-derived neoantigens, studies applying sensitive mass spectrometry methods fail to identify the majority of predicted neoepitopes being presented by tumor human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecules,…