A powder formulation of measles vaccine for aerosol delivery

Both the mortality rate for measles and the risks associated with injection continue to be high in the developing world. In response to the need for safe, cost-effective vaccine delivery technologies, a powder formulation of measles vaccine has been developed to test the feasibility of administering measles vaccine as an aerosol. The first challenge in aerosol formulation development is to produce fine particles without damaging the activity of the virus or inducing physical changes. In this study, live attenuated measles vaccine is micronized by jet milling to generate particle sizes appropriate for pulmonary delivery (1-5 microm). Milling does not induce detectable physical changes and significant viral potency is maintained. Potency retention of milled vaccine ranges from 31 to 89%, demonstrating that the standard dose of vaccine can easily be achieved. Following size reduction, particles are blended with an inert carrier to improve handling and aerosol dispersion. The measles vaccine formulation is dispersable, as shown by laser light particle size analysis of vaccine aerosols. Thus, evaluation of both the potency retention and the aerosol characteristics of the current formulation clearly demonstrates the feasibility of delivering measles vaccine as a powder aerosol for immunization.