A Covid-19 vaccine in patch form will soon be available.
From the very beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, researchers have doubled their efforts to create patches that deliver life-saving drugs into the body without causing pain.
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| Expert Muller and members of the research team. Photo: CNA |
According to Channelnewsasia, this technique could help reduce the crying of infants in doctor's offices, alleviate the fear of needle users, and revolutionize medicine.
Additionally, transporting skin patches would be easier because they don't require refrigeration, and this could even enhance the vaccine's effectiveness.
New research applied to mice has shown promising results, according to an article published in the journal Science Advances. A team of American and Australian researchers used a 1-square-centimeter patch containing more than 5,000 tiny spikes.
"It's so small you can't see it," said David Muller, a virologist at the University of Queensland and co-author of the paper.
These spikes are coated with an experimental vaccine, and the patch is pressed onto the body using a device similar to a hockey puck. "It's like you're lightly touching the skin," Mueller said.
Researchers used a type of vaccine called a "subunit," which creates spikes on the surface of the coronavirus. Mice were injected with the vaccine via syringe or patch within 2 minutes.
The immune system of those who receive the vaccine patch will produce neutralizing antibodies after two doses. This is a crucial factor in preventing infection.Covid-19And the patch works better than the syringe.
According to Muller, researchers also found that a small group of mice that received only one dose of a vaccine containing an adjuvant to boost the immune response did not get sick. The expert explained that vaccines are typically injected into muscles, but muscle tissue does not contain enough antibody cells to react to the drug. Additionally, the small spikes cause localized skin death, which signals a problem in the body and triggers a stronger immune response.
For scientists, transporting the vaccine patch is also more convenient than other types of vaccines. First, once dried on the patch, the vaccine remains stable for at least 30 days at 25°C and for a week at 40°C. Meanwhile, vaccines produced by Moderna and Pfizer only last a few hours at room temperature. The vaccine patch offers a significant advantage, especially for developing countries.
Secondly, the vaccine patch is very easy to use and does not require trained healthcare workers to administer it, Muller said.
The patch used in the study is manufactured by the Australian company Vaxxas. Human trials are planned to begin in April. Two other US companies, Micron Biomedical and Vaxess, are also in the race to create the vaccine patch.
