No need for needles or adjuvants for the vaccination? According to Inserm researchers, a vaccine can be administered via micropores formed in the skin using a laser. This experiment was successful in mice. They have been protected from melanoma and according to scientists this methodology could be easily applied to men. An interesting discovery for those suffering from needles and all those opposed to adjuvants.
“Currently, a vaccine is injected with a needle that passes through the dermis and releases the vaccine solution into the hypodermis or into the muscle. We therefore bypass the dermis and its very dense network of dendritic cells. These cells are extremely powerful sentinels of the immune system: they present antigens to immature T lymphocytes with a view to their differentiation into effector T lymphocytes, capable of eliminating the pathogen. We therefore wanted to specifically target these dendritic cells in the dermis in order to stimulate the immune response, ”explains Bernard Malissen, immunologist and researcher at Inserm.
The laser to administer the vaccine
The researchers used a dermatological laser that generates micropores in the skin, then applied the vaccine locally to the skin. The results of the study showed that this way of vaccinating was effective and protected the mice.
“The vaccine was therefore effective in prevention and therapy, despite the absence of an adjuvant usually essential to stimulate the immune response in the event of vaccination against cancer. Perhaps the application of the laser causes a slight local inflammation which attracts immune cells (such as monocytes and granulocytes), potentiating the response generated by the vaccine. We are in the process of verifying that, ”concludes the researcher.
This new process could be applied to human vaccination. Laboratories have already expressed their interest and willingness to conduct clinical trials.
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