Effectively introduced DNA vaccines represent a powerful and safe means for stimulating an immune response that recognises and eliminates target molecules in the body. However, traditional DNA vaccine delivery systems suffer from poor efficiency. The BTX AgilePulse™ in vivo system used for vaccine development and gene therapy provides an intra-dermal/intra-muscular electroporation solution to produce maximum transfection efficiency. The AgilePulse™ in vivo system can be purchased with software supporting intra-dermal (ID) or intra-muscular (IM) applications.

For vaccine applications, DNA vaccination through the dermal layer is preferred since it is an easily accessible site that is immunologically active. After direct injection of plasmid DNA in the dermal layer, a programmed sequence of electric pulses is applied through a miniature parallel needle electrode array to promote cellular uptake and transfection. Gene expression in skin is 100-fold higher when delivery is enhanced by electroporation compared to simply injecting plasmid DNA.