Abstract

The development of a new generation of vaccines that can be produced rapidly at low costs and massadministered noninvasively by non-medical personnel is crucial for boosting vaccine coverage in response to an escalation in demand. The demonstration that topical application of bioengineered nonreplicating Escherichia coli particles overproducing pathogen-derived antigens can mobilize the immune repertoire toward beneficial immune protection against relevant pathogens holds promise for enabling mass-immunization without pain, fear and perceivable tissue damage. Moreover, this noninvasive regimen using E. coli epitopes as a natural adjuvant is in compliance with evolutionary medicine.

Keywords: Skin, stratum corneum, Escherichia coli, γ-irradiation, noninvasive vaccine, epicutaneous immunization