Microneedle Vaccination with Stabilized Recombinant Influenza Virus Hemagglutinin Induces Improved Protective Immunity

The emergence of the swine-origin 2009 influenza pandemic illustrates the need for improved vaccine production and delivery strategies. Skin-based immunization represents an attractive alternative to traditional hypodermic needle vaccination routes. Microneedles (MNs) can deliver vaccine to the epidermis and dermis, which are rich in antigen-presenting cells (APC) such as Langerhans cells and dermal dendritic cells. Previous studies using coated or dissolvable microneedles emphasized the use of inactivated influenza virus or virus-like particles as skin-based vaccines. However, most currently available influenza vaccines consist of solubilized viral protein antigens. Here we test the hypothesis that a recombinant subunit influenza vaccine can be delivered to the skin by coated microneedles and can induce protective immunity. We found that mice vaccinated via MN delivery with a stabilized recombinant trimeric soluble hemagglutinin (sHA) derived from A/Aichi/2/68 (H3) virus had significantly higher immune responses than did mice vaccinated with unmodified sHA. These mice were fully protected against a lethal challenge with influenza virus. Analysis of postchallenge lung titers showed that MN-immunized mice had completely cleared the virus from their lungs, in contrast to mice given the same vaccine by a standard subcutaneous route. In addition, we observed a higher ratio of antigen-specific Th1 cells in trimeric sHA-vaccinated mice and a greater mucosal antibody response. Our data therefore demonstrate the improved efficacy of a skin-based recombinant subunit influenza vaccine and emphasize the advantage of this route of vaccination for a protein subunit vaccine.