For some Ontarians, needles can cause discomfort.
To offer an alternative to needle-based vaccines, researchers at McMaster University, in collaboration with Rapid Dose Therapeutics, are developing a made-in-Canada dissolvable oral strip that can be infused with a COVID-19 vaccine.
Once approved for public use, this new method of vaccine delivery could be game changing. Researchers have stabilized the active SARS-CoV-2 proteins at 40 degrees Celsius, which makes it easier for the strips to be stored at moderate temperatures and in warmer climates. The light-weight and portable format of the strips would make it easier to transport vaccines nationally and internationally and research shows it has the same efficacy as existing vaccines.
In addition to storage and transportation advantages, this new method of delivery could decrease vaccine hesitancy, making the COVID-19 vaccine more accessible to all Ontarians.
For more information, visit McMaster University.
Read more about how Ontario’s universities are supporting the provincial vaccine roll-out.
