Indian trial for inhalable measles vaccine offers hope for other diseases

WASHINGTON - A dry powder, inhalable vaccine developed for measles prevention and slated for human clinical trials later this year in India, could also help pave the way for the inexpensive treatment of a range of other illnesses, say researchers.

The vaccine, developed by a team led by Professor Robert Sievers, from University of Colorado at Boulder, involves mixing ’supercritical’ carbon dioxide with a weakened form of the measles virus.

The process produces microscopic bubbles and droplets that are dried to make the inhalable powder, which is dispensed into the mouths of patients using a small, cylindrical plastic sack with an opening like the neck of a plastic water bottle.

“One of our primary goals of this project is to get rid of needles and syringes, because they frighten some people, they hurt, they can transmit diseases and there are issues with needle disposal,” Sievers said.

With the new technology, the inhaled powder is sent directly into the lungs, a good target since measles attacks through the respiratory tract, said Sievers.

Phase One of the clinical trials to test the safety and efficacy of the measles inhalant product are slated to start this summer in Pune, India, and will involve about 180 people, said Sievers.

Phase Two of the India clinical trials are expected to involve a larger number of patients.

Sievers will give a presentation on the subject at the Eighth European Conference on Supercritical Fluid Applications to be held May 9-12 in Graz, Austria. (ANI)