A preclinical study by Harvinder Singh Gill, PhD, and colleagues at North Carolina State University demonstrated that vaccines delivered to the gingival sulcus using coated dental floss elicited robust mucosal and systemic immune responses, offering protection against lethal influenza. Various vaccine formulations, including inactivated viruses and nanoparticles, were applied to the sulcus of mice. The results showed enhanced immunity, ultimately establishing floss-based vaccination as a promising needle-free delivery method, warranting clinical trials to assess its effectiveness in humans.

Source: nature biomedical engineering