Background: Vaccines capable of eliciting cellular and humoral immune responses in tandem could provide prophylactic and therapeutic responses against infectious diseases and cancer. These responses can be induced systemically and at mucosal surfaces by activating the mucosal immune system, but rarely successfully due to challenges associated with mucosal delivery.
Objective: To investigate delivery strategies to improve the effectiveness of mucosal vaccines.
Methods: Different challenges are associated with different types of vaccines. We consider administration routes, schedules, carrier systems and adjuvants that can be used to overcome these challenges to enhance mucosal vaccination.
Results/conclusions: The use of particle-mediated delivery systems is an effective strategy to enhance mucosal vaccination by protecting immunogenic material during delivery, providing targeted delivery systems, and allowing incorporation of adjuvant material.