Skin Patches: More Stable Option Than Traditional COVID-19 Vaccines

QUEENSLAND: University of Queensland researchers created a skin patch that could administer vaccines without requiring injections or cold storage, which could also be utilized for covid-19 vaccines.

The tiny skin patch is covered with 5000 microneedles that are dusted with dried vaccine, a more stable form than liquid. The patch is then applied to the upper layer of the skin where it presses the vaccine in, administering it painlessly.

The researchers tried the skin patch using a covid-19 vaccine contender named HexaPro, which is still in the clinical trials phase but is heat stable and cheap to formulate. HexaPro was created at the University of Texas at Austin.

Mice administered with the patch created more COVID-19 antibodies compared to those injected with the vaccine. They were completely immunised from infection, just with a single dose. The vaccine in the skin patch also stayed viable for up to 30 days when kept at 25°C, and for one week at 40°C.

The COVID-19 skin patch trials will commence from next year. If approved, it could also be utilized for booster shots and possibly even help in protection against new strains, since HexaPro is easily adaptable to diverse variants, says David Muller, one of the researchers involved in the study.