UPI - Exploding capsules could reduce shots

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Exploding capsules could reduce shots

1/3/2006

GHENT, Belgium, Jan. 3 (UPI) -- New " self-exploding " microcapsules

could change the way some vaccines are administered.

The microcapsules, developed by Belgian chemists, could one day

precisely release drugs and vaccines inside the human body weeks or

even months after injection.

Instead of an initial injection followed by a series of boosters,

certain vaccines could be given in a single shot with the " booster "

microcapsules timed to rupture at appropriate intervals.

A study of the microcapsules by researchers at Ghent University and

the Universite Catholique de Louvain, is scheduled to appear in the

Jan. 9 issue of the American Chemical Society's journal

Biomacromolecules.

Unlike some other microcapsules, which release drugs only when

exposed to ultrasonic waves or another external trigger, the new

system relies on internal mechanisms.

Each of the microparticles features a biodegradable gel core that is

surrounded by a lipid membrane. As the gel biodegrades, pressure

builds up in the membrane. Eventually the microcapsule ruptures,

releasing the medication.