A microscopic vaccine delivery platform developed by researchers at the University of Queensland has proven a more effective way to deliver a polio virus vaccine compared to needles and syringes in an animal model.
“Polio was one of the most dreaded childhood diseases of the 20th century, resulting in limb disfigurement and irreversible paralysis in tens of millions of cases,” Paul Young, head of UQ’s school of chemistry & molecular biosciences, said in prepared remarks.
“This most recent study showed the Nanopatch enhanced responses to all three types of inactivated poliovirus vaccines (IPV) – a necessary advancement from using the current live oral vaccine.”
Researchers compared the nanopatch device with intramuscular injections in rats, using monovalent and trivalent formulations of IPV. The team reported that nanopatch delivery triggered faster antibody response kinetics after just one or two immunizations. Intramuscular injection required two or three immunizations to achieve a similar immune response.
The inventor of the patch, Mark Kendall, explained that the device targets immune cell populations in the skin’s outer layers, rather than muscle.
“The ease of administration, coupled with dose reduction observed in this study suggests that the Nanopatch could facilitate inexpensive vaccination of inactivated poliovirus vaccines,” he said.
“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,” David Muller, a researcher at the UQ Australian Institute for Biotechnology and Nanotechnology, added.
“As recently as 1988, more than 350,000 cases occurred every year in more than 125 endemic countries. Concerted efforts to eradicate the disease have reduced incidence by more than 99%. Efforts are being intensified to eradicate the remaining strains of transmission once and for all.”
“The research we are undertaking in conjunction with UQ and WHO can improve the reach of life-saving vaccines to children everywhere,” Vaxxas CEO David Hoey said.
