Almonte, A. (2014, November 21). Needleless Vaccination Developed at Stony Brook Takes 1st Place at Inventors Competition – Stony Brook University Newsroom. Retrieved from http://sb.cc.stonybrook.edu/news/general/2014-11-21-kasia-sawicka.php
“ImmunoMatrix is easy to transport and stable at room temperature. The skin patch has successfully tested and used to combat the flu, pertussis (whooping cough), anthrax, and with other antigens and macro molecules. Sawicka plans on exploring the commercialization of the Immuno-Matrix technology and hopes to see it brought to practical use in clinics and hospitals worldwide.”
Brennan, Z. (2014, August 19). US FDA approves first needle-free flu vaccine delivery system. Retrieved from http://www.in-pharmatechnologist.com/Drug-Delivery/US-FDA-approves-first-needle-free-flu-vaccine-delivery-system
“For the first time ever, the US FDA has approved a needle-free injection system to deliver the seasonal flu vaccine. The approval allows for the administration of bioCSL’s flu vaccine Afluria with a needle-free injection device, known as the PharmaJet Stratis needle-free injection system…”
Cashin-Garbutt, A. (2013, July 11). Immunization in developing countries: An interview with Dr. Jos Vandelaer, Chief of Immunization for UNICEF. Retrieved from http://www.news-medical.net/news/20130711/Immunization-in-developing-countries-an-interview-with-Dr-Jos-Vandelaer-Chief-of-Immunization-for-UNICEF.aspx
“The same kids who don’t get immunized are the ones who don’t go to school; who don’t have access to clean water; who don’t have access to healthcare when they fall sick and so on.
I think we do have an equity issue in immunization, in the sense that the figure of 80% overall coverage hides that the fact if you drill down to specific countries, that among the poor, coverage rates are universally lower than among the rich. And that is true I think for basically every country. We clearly need to work on redressing these inequities in order to bridge the immunization gap and bring immunization also to the underserved who actually need it most.”
Kraan, H., Vrieling, H., Czerkinsky, C., Jiskoot, W., Kersten, G., & Amorj, J. (2014, September). Buccal and sublingual vaccine delivery. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24911355
“However, mucosal surfaces are endowed with potent and sophisticated tolerance mechanisms to prevent the immune system from overreacting to the many environmental antigens. Hence, mucosal vaccination may suppress the immune system instead of induce a protective immune response. Therefore, mucosal adjuvants and/or special antigen delivery systems as well as appropriate dosage forms are required in order to develop potent mucosal vaccines.”
Kwan, N. (2015, May 07). Needleless vaccine patch offers pain-free way to protect against disease | Fox News. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/health/2015/05/07/needleless-vaccine-patch-offers-pain-free-way-to-protect-against-disease.html
“Kasia Sawicka, 34, of Long Island, New York, has invented a needleless vaccination patch that has been successfully tested and used to combat the flu, whooping cough, anthrax and other antigens. The patch, called the ImmunoMatrix, is a non-invasive device that uses nanofibers to hold and effectively deliver a vaccine through the skin.”
Microneedle Patch for Measles Vaccination Could Be a Game Changer. (2015, April 27). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2015/p0427-microneedle-patch.html
The new microneedle patch that is currently being developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is specifically designed to be able to be administered by non-health care professionals in efforts to prevent the spread of measles or other vaccine preventable illnesses.
Nanopatch benefits. (2012-2015). Retrieved from http://www.vaxxas.com/nanopatch-technology/benefits
The benefits of the Nanopatch vaccine includes: improved immunogenicity which allows an efficient response from the body once the body has been introduced with the pathogens in this manner. Another is that there is no need for cold chains because these vaccines can be stored on room temperature. Finally, the nanopatch are needle free, pain free, and cost effective.
Ossola, A. (2015, May 14). A Patch That Delivers Vaccines, No Needles Necessary. Retrieved from http://www.popsci.com/patch-delivers-vaccines-no-needles
When Sawicka was trying to develop the product further more, she came across a stock of extremely water-absorbent material called poly-vinylpyrrolidone while she was still an undergraduate working at the lab. The skin cannot absorb large molecules easily that’s why she utilized polymer to be applied on the skin with the vaccine and as it pulled the water out of the skin, the moisture returned allowing the larger molecules to penetrate the skin.
Shim, B., Choi, Y., Cheon, I. S., & Song, M. K. (2013). Sublingual Delivery of Vaccines for the Induction of Mucosal Immunity. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3718922/
Vaccination that is delivered via the sublingual route is an ideal place to introduce the vaccine. Studies have shown that vaccination with this route has been very efficient with stimulating the immunity on the mucosal lining, this study showed that this delivery method is just as effective as the parenteral route.
Vaccine Given with Microneedle Patches Proves Effective. (2009, April 27). Retrieved from http://www.newswise.com/articles/vaccine-given-with-microneedle-patches-proves-effective
“‘Our findings show that microneedle patches are just as effective at protecting against influenza as conventional hypodermic immunizations,’ says Richard Compans, PhD, Emory professor of microbiology and immunology and one of the paper’s senior authors. ‘In addition, vaccine delivery into the skin is desirable because of the skin’s rich immune network.’”
