The main distinguishing features of our technology are widely recognized by the industry: we offer ceramic and nano-porous micro-needle arrays.
1) The nano-pores allow for storage of active compounds, such as vaccines, inside the device consisting of micro-needles connected to a backplate. In combination with many different excipients such as surface-bound active compounds, a unique release profile can be achieved (e.g. rapid onset and longer duration) by our npMNAs, distinguishing our technology clearly from existing solid microneedles arrays.
Once brought into proper contact with the skin, the vaccine diffuses from the nano-pores into the outer skin layers targeting a.o. the dendritic cells. The microneedles pierce the stratum corneum and reach into the epidermis and dermis, never touching the deepre lying nerves or blood vessels.
2) Our ceramic material is completely inert; after sintering at 1450 degrees celcius, no organic compounds are left and all ceramic compounds are molten and welded together. There are no leechables, no monomers or polymer-associated organic excipients in our ceramic skin patches. Unlike biodissolvable micro needles, we have no degradation products that can interact with sensitive vaccine, or induce inflammation in the sensitive skin.
This inert feature of our ceramic skin patches offers maximum freedom to optimize the formulation of a given vaccine, avoiding compatibility issues as seen with polymeric materials
3) The sharpness and toughness of our ceramic tips is unparallled by other materials commonly used in other microneedles such as bio-stable or bio-dissolvable polymers, plastics and metals.
We offer a technology based on ceramic micro-needles arrays, integrated into a transdermal patch, and properly applied to the skin most likely by a npMNA-integrated applicator.
In the field of microneedle technology, the large majority of the technology developers focus on either solid microneedles or hollow microneedles (figure below). Solid micro-needles can be used in various ways: poke & patch (micro-needles perforate the skin and consequently a drug containing patch is applied onto the skin), coat & poke (drug coated micro-needles are applied on the skin for release of the coating), poke & dissolve (drug containing polymer micro-needles dissolve in the skin after administration). MyLife Technologies holds a unique position by offering a poke & diffuse technology: Drugs entrapped in the nano-pores of the micro-needle arrays diffuse into the skin after administration. The poke & diffuse approach gives a unique drug release profile, which can be influenced by the design parameters of the micro-needle arrays and by the excipients in the formulation.
