The Georgia Institute of Technology and Micron Biomedical
have been awarded $2.5 million in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
to advance the development of dissolvable microneedle patches for polio
immunization. The patches will be studied to evaluate their potential role as
part of the worldwide efforts to eradicate polio.
The funds will support research and development of
vaccine-filled microneedles that are designed to dissolve in the skin to
provide protection against the poliovirus in humans. Studies with animal models
have shown that microneedle patches containing polio vaccine effectively
stimulate the immunological responses necessary for immunization.
