Next-Generation COVID-19 Vaccines Should Take Efficiency of Distribution into Consideration

Abstract

The dire need for safe and effective coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines is met with many vaccine candidates being evaluated in pre-clinical and clinical studies. The COVID-19 vaccine candidates currently in phase 3 or phase 2/3 clinical trials as well as those that recently received emergency use authorization (EUA) from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and/or other regulatory agencies worldwide require either cold (i.e., 2-8°C) or even freezing temperatures as low as −70°C for storage and distribution. Thus, existing cold chain will struggle to support both the standard national immunization programs and COVID-19 vaccination. The requirement for cold chain is now a major challenge towards worldwide rapid mass vaccination against COVID-19. In this commentary, we stress that thermostabilizing technologies are available to enable cold chain-free vaccine storage and distribution, as well as potential needle-free vaccination. Significant efforts on thermostabilizing technologies must now be applied on next-generation COVID-19 vaccines for more cost-effective worldwide mass vaccination and COVID-19 eradication.

Management of COVID-19 vaccines cold chain logistics: a scoping review

“…A sustained interest in making vaccines safe at room temperature has resulted in several promising technologies—using specific polymers or sugars and optimising the composition of vaccines, certain vaccines can be rendered insensitive to freezing and/or stable for months at room temperatures [ 36 ]. In addition, transforming vaccines from liquid (or frozen liquid or frozen suspension) to dry powder for reconstitution at the point of administration can improve vaccine stability.…”

Reprint of: The Dark Side of the Moon: Global challenges in the distribution of vaccines and implementation of vaccination plans against COVID-19

“…Requirements such as access to electricity and adequate equipment to keep vaccines at a certain temperature and at the required standards [15] is already challenging in a wide range of areas in LMICs. In the case of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, particularly Pfizer/BioNTech's, storage at ultra-low temperatures is required, impeding access and distribution throughout vast countries with poor infrastructure [16].…”

A NIR-Based Study of Desorption Kinetics during Continuous Spin Freeze-Drying

“…The advantages of continuous manufacturing over batch manufacturing are numerous, including faster processing times, improved product quality, and various new possibilities for enhanced quality control [1,2]. In addition, since the drying of these products often requires a gentle and low temperature drying process to improve the long-term stability of these products, there is a special interest toward the realization of an end-to-end continuous freeze-drying manufacturing method [3][4][5][6]. For this purpose, a continuous spin freeze-drying technology was developed for unit doses.…”