Vaccine For Acne Being Developed - ThirdAge

A vaccine for acne is being developed by researchers at the University of California and the vaccine company Sanofi-Pasteur.

Up to 85 percent of teenagers and 40 million people in the U.S. suffer from acne, which is caused by oil clogging the sebaceous glands, according to Chun-Ming Huang, head of the lab.

Sanofi-Pasteur, the world's biggest vaccine company, signed a contract with the University of California, San Diego, to develop "an immunological approach to acne prevention and treatment," according to New Scientist.

According to Huang, the treatment options for acne are lacking.

"This collaboration will make our dreams of acne vaccines for the public come true earlier," said Huang, as quoted by New Scientist.

The research team found a protein called CAMP, which is used by various bacteria to kill host cells, in the DNA series of P. acnes, which coded for a protein that killed cells in sebaceous glands. Then, they put the gene into young daikon radish plants to make the protein, spraying small amounts of the leaves into mice's noses, which led them to develop antibodies to CAMP.

Using this approach, the team says it will attempt "target the specific neutralisation of P. acnes factors in inflammation," New Scientist quoted, which will hopefully lead to CAMP that can be delivered using microneedles on the skin of people with acne.