Development of a delayed release osmotically triggered polymeric vaccine delivery device

Vaccinations prevents 2-3 million deaths every year, and many millions more lives are protected from illness. Vaccines offer prophylactic protection from at least 31 human diseases, eradicating or suppressing many common killer illnesses of the pre-vaccine era, such as smallpox and polio. Current delivery methods of vaccines are inefficient in terms of cost and use of healthcare professional’s time. We propose to develop a biodegradable polymeric vaccine delivery implant capable of replacing a booster injection bolus dose by release of payload at a desired time after implantation. The system will use a novel osmosis-dependant release mechanism where the capsule will burst to release the vaccine.
I will recap the general concept of the device that featured in my previous seminar, and go on to show some progress since then, as well as ongoing work and future plans for the project.