A potential coronavirus vaccine that is administered using a fingertip-sized patch with dissolvable microneedles produces antibodies that could fight the virus, a study in mice showed.
“The microneedle array is simply applied to the skin topically, pressed into place very shortly, and then taken off and thrown away,” said Dr. Louis Falo, professor and chair of dermatology at University of Pittsburgh’s School of Medicine.
Falo co-senior-authored the study on the vaccine candidate along with Dr. Andrea Gambotto, associate professor of surgery at UPSM.
It was published on Thursday, marking the first peer-reviewed research publication about a promising COVID-19 vaccine.
The vaccine works using lab-made pieces of viral coronavirus spike protein to build immunity in the same way that current flu shots work.
The microneedle model is a small pat