New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) The first dry powder inhalable vaccine for measles will be tested next year in India. Millions of infants and children suffer from the disease which kills almost 200,000 annually.
Robert Sievers, University of Colorado-Boulder (UC-B), who led the team that developed the dry-powder vaccine, said it is a perfect fit for use in developing countries.

Those areas often lack the electricity for refrigeration, clean water and sterile needles needed to administer traditional liquid vaccines.

“Human clinical trials are expected to begin next year in India, after animal safety studies are completed this year” he said.

If the inhaler passes final safety and effectiveness tests, the Serum Institute of India Ltd. expects a demand growing to 400 million doses of measles vaccine a year.

“Childhood vaccines that can be inhaled and delivered directly to mucosal surfaces have the potential to offer significant advantages over injection,” Sievers said.

“Not only might they reduce the risk of infection from HIV, hepatitis, and other serious diseases due to unsterilised needles, they may prove more effective against disease.”

Many serious infections, such as the measles virus, can enter the body through inhalation.

“Measles vaccine dry powders have the potential to effectively vaccinate infants, children and adults by inhalation, avoiding the problems associated with liquid vaccines delivered by injection,” he added.

Although made for developing countries, the technology eventually could become the basis for a new generation of inhalable — and pain free vaccines — in the US and elsewhere. So far, an inhalable vaccine is available for only one disease. It is a wet mist vaccine for influenza.

These findings were presented at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS).