China has approved a needle-free, inhaled version of the COVID-19 vaccine

China has become the first country to approve a needle-free vaccine against COVID-19. It was manufactured by CanSino Biologics Inc., located in Tianjin. The approval sent the maker’s shares up 14.5% early Monday in Hong Kong, reports Bloomberg.

China’s National Medical Products Administration has approved CanSino’s Ad5-nCoV for emergency use as a booster vaccine, the company said in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The vaccine is a new version of CanSino’s single-use COVID drug, which was the first in the world to undergo human trials in March 2020 and has been used in China, Mexico, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Hungary. The inhaled version can stimulate cellular immunity and induce mucosal immunity to enhance protection without intramuscular injection.

Companies are considering developing inhaled versions of vaccines to stimulate antibodies in nasal and respiratory tissues to protect against the coronavirus. They can be self-administered, as they do not have needles. This will increase the appeal of the vaccine to vaccine-hesitant people and potentially reduce the pressure on health care resources.