Abstract

TARGETED DELIVERY OF PULMONARY VACCINES

Shivani Sunil Patil*

ABSTRACT

Viruses are submicroscopic organisms that exist abundantly on earth. To date, the world has witnessed several deadly viruses. Majorly the respiratory viruses have been proven a threat to mankind. Respiratory infections are a major reason for morbidity and mortality worldwide. According to WHO, around 3.9 million individuals are affected by these viruses. Thus, it is important to consider the measures and factors to tackle these harmful and life-threatening viruses. The most important weapon to break the chain of the virus is “vaccination”. Conventionally, vaccines are administered via intramuscular, oral, subcutaneous, and intradermal route. But, direct targeting to the pulmonary route can be an effective alternative for inhibiting transmission and infection. This review particularly focuses upon the pulmonary targeting of vaccines. The intranasal route, which directly targets the pulmonary route is effective in terms of systemic as well as mucosal immunization. The review also includes the pulmonary targeted vaccines in the development pipeline. The current COVID-19 pandemic has made it possible to explore the formulation development, preclinical and clinical studies of pulmonary targeted vaccines.

Keywords: Pulmonary targeting, COVID-19, Respiratory virus, Vaccine, Virus, SARS-CoV.