A Strep A vaccine candidate generated immune responses in mice after nasal or under-the-tongue dosing, the U.K. medicines regulator said Oct. 27, offering evidence for a needle-free route against a disease with no licensed vaccine.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said its researchers worked with the GSK Vaccines Institute for Global Health on the study. The paper appeared in October 2026 in Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, and the work was conducted in a preclinical mouse model.
The candidate uses Generalised Modules for Membrane Antigens (GMMA), small bubbles that bacteria naturally release. GMMA carried Strep A carbohydrate and also served as an adjuvant, helping boost an immune response.
In the mice, immune responses appeared at mucosal tissue and elsewhere in the body, the MHRA said. The nose and throat contain such tissue and are places where Strep A establishes infection. Testing those sites with nasal and under-the-tongue dosing makes the project a needle-free vaccine approach.
The MHRA release cited estimates of more than 600 million Strep A infections around the world each year, with associated complications responsible for more than 500,000 deaths. Most infections are mild, but severe complications can result in lasting disability or death, with low- and middle-income countries facing a high disease burden.
Dr. Fatme Mawas, the MHRA's head of conjugate vaccines, said the routes could improve vaccine access in low- and middle-income countries, where Strep A remains a major burden. She also said vaccination could reduce antibiotic use and contribute to efforts against antimicrobial resistance.
The agency said the findings support further development of mucosal vaccines designed to be affordable and straightforward to administer. It described the study as part of wider MHRA work on vaccine development, immune science, laboratory testing and delivery methods.
