Moderna Covid vaccine can be safely injected into skin tissue: LUMC

The Moderna Covid-19 vaccine can be injected through skin just as safely as through muscle, the initial research of Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) proved. The advantage of this vaccination technique is that it requires a significantly smaller dose of the vaccine.

”In stage 1 of our study, we saw that administration of a tenth of the dose into the skin is safe, and that even with this low dose, antibodies were generated in all participants, comparable to the level of someone who previously had COVID-19,” said Geert Roozen, a physician and researcher of infectious diseases.

Administering the vaccine into the skin is not a new technique but it was not known whether the method can also be used with the new Covid-19 vaccines. The second stage of LUMC research, that has recently been completed established that an even smaller dose, one fifth the dose needed for muscle injection, can provide adequate protection against Covid-19.

“Because all participants from stage 1 produced significant amounts of antibodies, it is expected that this will be the case at a fifth of the dose. So we are very hopeful, but we will wait a little longer to hang out the flag until we have all the data about the antibodies in view," said the lead researcher Anna Roukens.

Other scientists will also have to assess the research before it is officially published. Moving forward, the researchers are currently also recruiting participants for stage 3 of the study.

“Just like in stage 2, we look here to see whether a fifth of the normal dose generates as many antibodies as the muscle dose, but then in a larger group of participants. Because the vaccination campaign in the Netherlands is going so well, it is a challenge to find people who have not been vaccinated,” said Roozen.

The study, which is conducted in collaboration with the Center for Human Drug Research (CHDR), is expected to be completed after the summer. Those interested in participating in stage 3 of the study can register using the study's website.

”There is still a shortage of vaccinations in large parts of the world. Five times more people can be vaccinated with the same amount of vaccine. And that's why we are doing this,” said Roukens.