"No vaccine or specific therapy is currently available for ricin poisoning," says Gary Matyas of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, a presenter on the study which also included scientists from the United States Army Research Medical Institute of Infectious Diseases and Iomai Corporation.
In the study, the researchers incorporated a harmless fragment of the ricin molecule (RTA 1-33/44-198) into a transcutaneous immunization (TCI) formulation. TCI is a needle-free alternative for vaccination in which the antigen is mixed with adjuvant and applied directly to the skin or on a patch that is applied to the skin. The vaccine was then applied either directly to the skin of mice or incorporated into a patch. After several weeks all the mice showed high levels of anti-ricin immune responses. All the mice that had received the direct application survived a lethal challenge of inhaled ricin and 70% of those that received the vaccine via the patch survived.
"Transcutaneous immunization with RTA 1-33/44-198 offers a viable alternative delivery route for this promising recombinant ricin vaccine candidate," says Matyas.
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