Needle-free delivery devices to shape the future of vaccines

The nanopatch is a micro-needle patch comprising of little, densely packed micro-projections with a defined geometry. Drug delivery technologies that improve access and overall efficacy are becoming an essential part of the entire drug development process, with pharmaceutical companies investing billions of dollars in new vaccine delivery technologies in a bid to move away from needles and syringes to skin delivery procedures, according to a Frost & Sullivan report. The report found that though the needle-free delivery sector currently makes up a small fraction of the total drug delivery market, the next five to 10 years will see transdermal and intradermal systems (patches and degradable implants), fast-dissolving tablet vaccines, inhalers, and pulmonary delivery methods change the vaccine industry. The nanopatch is a micro-needle patch comprising of little, densely packed micro-projections with a defined geometry. Smaller than a postage stamp–and getting smaller–nanopatches are capable of directly depositing vaccine to thousands of skin immune cells without...