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Updated: Jun 12, 2026
Intralymphatic Immunotherapy and Vaccination in Mice
Published on: February 2, 2014
Microneedle-based transcutaneous immunisation in mice with N-trimethyl chitosan adjuvanted diphtheria toxoid
Suzanne M Bal1, Zhi Ding, Gideon F A Kersten
1Division of Drug Delivery Technology, Leiden/Amsterdam Center for Drug Research, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the delivery and immunogenicity of N-trimethyl chitosan (TMC) adjuvanted diphtheria toxoid (DT) formulations applied transcutaneously with microneedles.
Methods:
Mice were vaccinated with DT-loaded TMC nanoparticles, a solution of TMC and DT (TMC/DT) or DT alone. The formulations were applied onto the skin before or after microneedle treatment with two different 300-microm-long microneedle arrays and also injected intradermally (ID). As a positive control, alum-adjuvanted DT (DT-alum) was injected subcutaneously (SC). Ex vivo confocal microscopy studies were performed with rhodamine-labelled TMC.
Results:
Independent of the microneedle array used and the sequence of microneedle treatment and vaccine application, transcutaneous immunisation with the TMC/DT mixture elicited 8-fold higher IgG titres compared to the TMC nanoparticles or DT solution. The toxin-neutralising antibody titres from this group were similar to those elicited by SC DT-alum. After ID immunisation, both TMC-containing formulations induced enhanced titres compared to a DT solution. Confocal microscopy studies revealed that transport of the TMC nanoparticles across the microneedle conduits was limited compared to a TMC solution.
Conclusions:
In conclusion, TMC has an adjuvant function in transcutaneous immunisation with microneedles, but only if applied in a solution.
