Anadis claims oral vaccine delivery breakthrough

Claims of a breakthrough technique for delivering oral vaccines and pharmaceuticals to the stomach wall have been made by Melbourne company Anadis (ASX: ANX).

"We came across it when working on H. pylori vaccines," said the company's R&D manager, Dr Grant Rawlin. "The issue was how to get things to the stomach wall without being digested.

"Bioshielding is a method to protect and deliver molecules to the stomach wall and is suitable for use in oral pharmaceuticals."

The stomach wall has traditionally been a difficult place to which to deliver pharmaceuticals, as acid and digestive enzymes often destroy molecules before they reach their target.

According to Rawlin, the new technique will make it possible to reach the stomach lining and may be applicable to a range of pharmaceuticals. But he said that the early nature of the research meant that he would not explain how the method worked.

The technique was developed in the lab of Prof Roy Robins-Browne in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Melbourne. Robins-Browne is a non-executive director of Anadis and his lab is one of the company's R&D partners.

Anadis has filed for a provisional patent for the technique, and plans to file more as the platform expands.

"We'll be investigating various areas - what it can protect and how to formulate it," said Rawlin. "It's already at a useful stage. We'll be looking at options for joint ventures."