Therapeutic Transcutaneous Immunization with a Band-Aid Vaccine Resolves Experimental Otitis Media

Transcutaneous immunization (TCI) is a noninvasive strategy to induce protective immune responses. We describe TCI with a band-aid vaccine placed on the postauricular skin to exploit the unique organization of the stratum corneum and to promote the development of immune responses to resolve active experimental otitis media due to nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHI). This therapeutic immunization strategy induced significantly earlier resolution of middle ear fluid and rapid eradication of both planktonic and mucosal biofilm-resident NTHI within 7 days after receipt of the first immunizing band-aid vaccine. Efficacy was ascribed to the homing of immunogen-bearing cutaneous dendritic cells to the nasal-associated lymphoid tissue, induction of polyfunctional CD4(+) T cells, and the presence of immunogen-specific IgM and IgG within the middle ear. TCI using band-aid vaccines could expand the use of traditional parenteral preventative vaccines to include treatment of active otitis media, in addition to other diseases of the respiratory tract due to NTHI.