SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- U.S. bioengineers and public-health researchers have developed a spraying method for delivering the most common tuberculosis vaccine.
It could provide a new low-cost technique that offers needle-free delivery and greater stability at room temperature than existing methods, according to David Edwards, an expert in aerosol drug and vaccine delivery at Harvard University.
The process could one day provide a better approach for vaccination against TB and help prevent the related spread of HIV/AIDS in the developing world, says Edwards.
"With the increasing incidence of tuberculosis and drug-resistant disease in developing countries due to HIV/AIDS, there is a need for vaccines that are more effective than the present Bacillus Calmette-Gurrin vaccine," says Edwards. "An optimal new vaccine would provide a safe and more consistent degree of protection by eliminating needle injection and refrigerated storage."
The findings are being presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Francisco.
