Tuberculosis is a major global health problem caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, claiming more than a million lives annually. This is partly because the only currently registered vaccine against tuberculosis, BCG, is inadequate. In addition to high variable efficiency, BCG fails to prevent open lung tuberculosis in adults and can cause severe side effects in immunocompromised individuals. A new and improved vaccine is therefore urgently needed. Such a vaccine should be more potent, safer, and possibly self-administerable. A promising and safer approach is to combine an antigen derived from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, which will show the body what it should fight, together with nanoparticles, which will boost the immune system and carry the antigen.
Our research focused on three types of nanoparticles: cationic liposomes, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) particles, and PLGA-lipid hybrids. When tested in mice, all...
Show moreTuberculosis is a major global health problem caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, claiming more than a million lives annually. This is partly because the only currently registered vaccine against tuberculosis, BCG, is inadequate. In addition to high variable efficiency, BCG fails to prevent open lung tuberculosis in adults and can cause severe side effects in immunocompromised individuals. A new and improved vaccine is therefore urgently needed. Such a vaccine should be more potent, safer, and possibly self-administerable. A promising and safer approach is to combine an antigen derived from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, which will show the body what it should fight, together with nanoparticles, which will boost the immune system and carry the antigen.
Our research focused on three types of nanoparticles: cationic liposomes, poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) particles, and PLGA-lipid hybrids. When tested in mice, all three formulations matched the BCG vaccine's effectiveness, with the PLGA particles showing even greater promise. We also successfully created a dissolving microneedle array using the PLGA particles. This is a significant step forward, as it could lead to a vaccine that is easy for people to administer. Beyond the vaccine, we developed a new, low-cost microfluidic system for producing these nanoparticles. This technology makes it easier to create both PLGA particles and PLGA-lipid hybrids, paving the way for more accessible and affordable vaccine development in the future.
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