Needle-free, heat-stable vaccine for developing nations

A group of researchers think they have found a solution to both vaccine delivery problems.

Vaccines have a delivery problem when it comes to developing nations. It can be technically challenging and expensive in large part because vaccines need to be stored in refrigerators or freezers. A so-called "cold chain" cannot be broken until vaccines are administered. Lack of refrigeration combined with the lack of trained personnel, make it impossible for many to be vaccinated against standard infections, such as tetanus, rotavirus, diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and other diseases. So, a number of companies have been working on better ways of vaccine "delivery," in two senses of the word--actual delivery of the drug from factory to patient, and then a method of delivering the vaccine into the body that does not require a great deal of training.

A group of researchers think they have found a solution to both delivery problems: Nasal drops. A vaccine delivered as nasal drops effectively induced an immune response in mice and protected them from rotavirus infection