AsianScientist (Oct. 12, 2017) – An alternative method for delivering the polio vaccine has been developed by a group of researchers at the University of Queensland (UQ). Their work is published in the journal Scientific Reports.
Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by the highly infectious poliovirus and is characterized by severe muscle weakness and paralysis. There is no cure for poliomyelitis, although six vaccines have been developed that effectively protect against all three strains of poliovirus.
In this study, scientists in Australia have developed Nanopatch, a microscopic vaccine delivery platform that more effectively combats poliovirus than needle-and-syringe-based vaccination.
Professor Mark Kendall at UQ who developed the patch said that it targets the abundant immune cell populations in the skin’s outer layers rather than muscle, resulting in a more efficient vaccine delivery system.
“A simple, easy-to-administer polio Nanopatch vaccine could increase the availability of the IPV vaccine and facilitate its administration in door-to-door and mass vaccination campaigns,” said Dr. David Muller at UQ who is an author of the study.
Data from the study has encouraged Vaxxas—established by UQ’s commercialization company UniQuest—to bring the technology to the clinic for use in humans.
“The research we are undertaking in conjunction with UQ and the World Health Organization (WHO) can improve the reach of life-saving vaccines to children everywhere,” said Vaxxas chief executive officer Mr. David Hoey.
The article can be found at: Muller et al. (2017) High-density Microprojection Array Delivery to Rat Skin of Low Doses of Trivalent Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine Elicits Potent Neutralising Antibody Responses.
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Source: University of Queensland; Photo: Vaxxas Pty. Ltd.
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