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Professor Andy Pollard, from the Department of Paediatrics, comments in The Guardian about a new technique which allows drugs or vaccines to be encapsulated within tiny biodegradable particles.

Professor Pollard said: "Technologies which allow slow or timed release of a dose and thus reduce the ‘needle burden’ of an immunisation programme without compromising protection would be welcomed by healthcare workers, parents and their offspring.” 

Extract from The Guardian:

'Multiple injections for vaccinations could become a thing of the past, according to scientists who have developed an approach for delivering many doses of different substances in just one jab.

The technology involves encapsulating drugs or vaccines within tiny particles made of biodegradable polymers. Depending on their makeup, these polymers break down at different points in time, releasing their contents into the body.

Researchers say the approach could allow multiple vaccines to be delivered at once and remove the need for booster jabs. It may also prove handy in treatments for allergies, diabetes and even cancer where multiple injections are needed. Researchers say it could prove valuable in developing countries, potentially allowing all childhood vaccines and their boosters to be given in one shot.'