“[I]t’s much more user-friendly than a needle,” explained Dr David Muller of the University of Queensland School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences. “You simply ‘click’ an applicator on the skin, and 5000 microscopic projections almost-imperceptibly deliver vaccine into the skin.”

In a paper published today in the journal Science Advances, Muller and team described how the patch vaccine successfully protected mice against exposure to SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19. Even better, the immune response triggered by the patch was stronger than the same vaccine delivered by needle.

“When the … vaccine is delivered via HD-MAP applicator [patch] – rather than a needle – it produces better and faster immune responses,” Muller said. “It also neutralises multiple variants, including the UK and South Africa variants.”